Market yo-yos leave a bizarre atmoshphere – Market wrap for the North American session - October 14

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Log in to today's North American session Market wrap for October 14

Market sentiment has been yo-yoing since Friday’s turmoil, with investors struggling to find stable footing after the week’s chaotic end.

While equities appear to have found an intermediate bottom, the price action remains uncertain, reflecting caution and the price action in risk-assets is now much more open compared to the prior up-only trend.

Every US-China headline is being closely dissected, the latest being this Axios update, which reignited some anxiety over the increasingly fragile trade relationship between the two global leaders.

The overall ambiance is one of hesitation — a fitting tone for what has been a volatile year.

That said, Powell’s dovish tone around the mid-session did help restore confidence, reinforcing expectations for another rate cut by month-end.

Add to that a wave of dip-buying and some further downplaying comments from USTR Greer, and markets managed to rebound convincingly – At least from their terrible daily open.

The Dow closed higher on the session, while the Russell 2000 — performing particularly better in lower rate conditions— broke new records, clearly enjoying the renewed risk-on momentum.

Russell 2000 Futures, October 14, 2025 – Source: TradingView

Read More:

• US-China trade war scare: What happened Friday and where things stand now
• The Powell/TACO combo lifts Wall Street from early losses
• USD/CAD Price Outlook: Consolidation Above Key 1.4000 Handle. What Next for the Loonie?

Cross-Assets Daily Performance

Cross-Asset Daily Performance, October 14, 2025 – Source: TradingView

The scale of changes to all assets in today's session is fairly low, but don't let that fool you:

Volatility was extremely elevated today, particularly when looking at the switch between the Asia session risk-off to the more bullish/positive sentiment that arrived after the US Open (around 10:00 A.M).

To give yourself a perspective, take a close look to the movements in Ethereum (ETH).

Almost everything mean-reverted as some point today, marking further hesitation to the ongoing themes and narratives.

Expect volatility yet again.

Read More:

• UK labor report gives pound a reality check: What's next for GBP
• WTI Oil tumbles as US-China trade tensions flare up again

A picture of today's performance for major currencies

Currency Performance, October 14 – Source: OANDA Labs

Risk-off currencies dominated the charts today, while the Euro enjoyed some of the US Dollar weakness that came back.

Apart from that, nothing much to note from FX markets that are awaiting any particular change.

Some further weakness in Antipodeans (AUD, NZD) is to denote in the past few sessions, hurt by the worsening sentiment particularly surrounding Chinese trade.

Keep an eye on this for any potential trends forming.

A look at Economic data releasing through tonight and tomorrow's session

For all market-moving economic releases and events, see the MarketPulse Economic Calendar.

The session is not entirely over, particularly for APAC traders awaiting for Chinese inflation data: Both CPI and PPI releasing at 21:30 tonight.

This should have a strong impact on the Antipodeans which haven't liked all the US-China headlines so much.

With the BLS releases still offline, traders will look to alternative indicators for signs of U.S. economic momentum — and today’s Empire State Manufacturing Survey takes center stage.

How investors and traders can gauge the US labor market amid the BLS shutdown

Consensus points to a mild rebound (-1.8 vs -8.7 prior), and any upside surprise could lift sentiment on the U.S. outlook.

Europe will start the western session with Industrial Production and several ECB and BoE speeches, while the U.S. afternoon will be packed with Fed commentary and the Beige Book release.

Later in the day, attention shifts to Australia’s employment data, which could drive AUD volatility further if the job market shows further cooling – The last piece wasn't an optimal surprise for AUD bulls.

Safe Trades!

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