Bond Yields Drop and Stocks Climb as Oil Retreats; Yen Surges on Reported Japanese Intervention

Global bond yields declined on Thursday, with the benchmark U.S. 10‑year note slipping 1.8 basis points to 4.398 percent. At the same time, major equity markets gained; the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 669.39 points, or 1.37 percent, to close at 49,530.40, while the S&P 500 rose 30.40 points, or 0.43 percent, to 7,166.35, and the Nasdaq Composite increased 12.65 points, or 0.05 percent, to 24,685.40.

Oil prices fell sharply, pulling U.S. crude down 2.02 percent to $104.72 a barrel and Brent by 3.39 percent to $114.03. The decline erased more than 10 percentage points of the earlier rally, with Brent briefly reaching $126.41 before settling near $113.5. Despite the drop, oil remains nearly double its price at the start of the year.

The Japanese yen surged after two sources told Reuters that authorities intervened to buy the currency when it hit its weakest level against the dollar since July 2024. The dollar slipped as much as 3 percent to 155.5 yen, marking the steepest one‑day fall since December 2024, and was last down 2.36 percent at 156.51 yen. European markets also moved higher, with MSCI's global index up 0.5 percent to 1,072.92 and the STOXX 600 gaining 1.38 percent.