Overnight US stocks | Traders fully priced in the Federal Reserve's rate hike in October, causing the three major indices to fall. SpaceX (SPCX.US) closed down 5%.

On Wednesday, the three major indices fell. After a two-day meeting, the Federal Reserve held its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 3.50%-3.75% for the fourth consecutive meeting, in line with market expectations. The new Federal Reserve Chairman, Kevin Wash, revealed a series of reform measures to be implemented in the future at his first FOMC meeting. Overall, the core message conveyed by Wash at his first press conference was to reduce policy guidance to the market, downplay pre-commitments to interest rate paths, and focus more on reforming the Federal Reserve system, data system, and communication framework. At the same time, traders have fully priced in an interest rate hike by the Federal Reserve in October. [US Stocks] At the close, the Dow fell 507.12 points, or 0.98%, to 51492.55 points, after hitting a record intraday high earlier in the day for the third consecutive trading session; the Nasdaq dropped 354.68 points, or 1.34%, to 26021.65 points; the S&P 500 fell 91.25 points, or 1.21%, to 7420 points. SpaceX (SPCX.US) fell 5%, NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA.US) dropped 1%, Western Digital Corporation (WDC.US) rose 4%. The Nasdaq Golden Dragon Index fell 1.1%, while Li Auto, Inc. Sponsored ADR Class A (LI.US) dropped 3%. [European Stocks] The DAX 30 index in Germany rose 38.22 points, or 0.15%, to 24952.98 points; the FTSE 100 index in the UK rose 14.02 points, or 0.13%, to 10508.23 points; the CAC 40 index in France fell 16.48 points, or 0.20%, to 8430.79 points; the Euro Stoxx 50 index rose 44.38 points, or 0.71%, to 6301.80 points; the IBEX 35 index in Spain rose 266.56 points, or 1.39%, to 19430.16 points; the FTSE MIB index in Italy rose 187.94 points, or 0.36%, to 52620.50 points. [Asian Stock Markets] The Nikkei 225 index rose 0.72%; the Korean Composite Stock Price Index rose 1.58%; the Indian Sensex index rose 0.45%. [Dollar Index] The US dollar index, which measures the US dollar against six major currencies, rose 0.55% to close at 100.091 in the foreign exchange market. At the close of the New York foreign exchange market, 1 Euro exchanged for 1.1539 US dollars, lower than the previous trading day's 1.1610 US dollars; 1 British Pound exchanged for 1.3338 US dollars, lower than the previous trading day's 1.3429 US dollars. 1 US Dollar exchanged for 160.50 Japanese Yen, higher than the previous trading day's 160.44 Japanese Yen; 1 US Dollar exchanged for 0.7971 Swiss Francs, higher than the previous trading day's 0.7931 Swiss Francs; 1 US Dollar exchanged for 1.4071 Canadian Dollars, higher than the previous trading day's 1.3993 Canadian Dollars; 1 US Dollar exchanged for 9.4610 Swedish Krona, higher than the previous trading day's 9.3618 Swedish Krona. [Cryptocurrency] Bitcoin fell by more than 2%, trading at $64430.27; Ethereum fell by 2.7%, trading at $1747.37. [Crude Oil] WTI crude oil futures prices fell by 0.35%, closing at $75.01 per barrel; London Brent crude oil futures prices fell by 0.34%, closing at $78.69 per barrel. [Precious Metals] Spot gold fell by 1.71% to $4257.13 per ounce. Spot silver fell to $67.927. [Macro News] Refusing forward guidance and avoiding interest rate paths, Wash reshapes the Fed's communication mode. Wash, as the Fed Chairman, officially ended his first press conference, where he disclosed a series of reform measures to be implemented at the Fed. One significant change is the establishment of multiple task forces to explore more open data collection methods and study how to improve the Fed's existing statistical system. Wash emphasized multiple times during the press conference that he would not provide any forward guidance and avoided all questions about future interest rate paths. In addition, he did not submit personal interest rate forecasts in the dot plot this time, nor did he comment on any price fluctuations that occurred during the press conference. Fed initiates reform: Wash plans to establish five task forces to reshape the central bank framework. At his first press conference in Washington, the new Federal Reserve Chairman Wash announced the initiation of work on reforming the Fed, including the establishment of five new specialized task forces. Wash said, "I will establish task forces in five areas closely related to monetary policy execution - the Fed's communication mechanism; the Fed's balance sheet; the use and reliance on existing data sources; productivity and employment issues in the era of transformation; the Fed's inflation framework. These issues have practical significance and important impact, and I think they are worth a comprehensive review." He expressed hope that most or even all task forces can complete their work by the end of this year. The relevant teams are still in the process of formation, and are expected to start in the coming weeks and provide preliminary analysis frameworks in the fall. Wash also said that the task force responsible for communication mechanisms is expected to eventually propose "well-considered adjustment suggestions," which may include modifications to the Fed's Summary of Economic Projections (SEP). The SEP contains the dot plot, which shows the interest rate expectations of 19 senior officials. Wash also pointed out that most private sector executives use real-time information, which generally requires minimal adjustment, while government data is often revised. AI industry giants gather at G7 summit, US seeks to drive global AI standard coordination. During the Group of Seven summit held in France on Wednesday, US President Trump and senior government officials met with CEOs of leading artificial intelligence companies to discuss efforts led by the US to coordinate global AI standards. According to reports, US Secretary of State Rubio, Secretary of the Treasury Bennett, Secretary of Commerce Lutnick, and other country leaders jointly participated in a "working lunch" on artificial intelligence and the digital age. Industry leaders in attendance included OpenAI founder Ortelman, Google DeepMind CEO Hasabis, Anthropic CEO Amodei, Meta's Scale AI founder and CEO Alex Wang, and Mistral AI CEO Gates. Following the meeting, OpenAI's Global Affairs Head Ryan revealed that discussions were held on the possibility of establishing a global AI standards forum. He stated that there is a consensus forming between countries and AI labs on creating a platform for democratic countries to collaborate and explore pathways to setting AI safety standards. Ryan stated that the US will lead this process as the "ability to set standards is the way to ensure continued access to cutting-edge models." US May existing home sales contract index rises to six-month high, exceeding expectations. The National Association of Realtors (NAR) data released on Wednesday showed that the US existing home contract sales in May exceeded expectations, but high mortgage rates and tight housing supply continue to limit the performance of the real estate market. The existing home contract sales index, which measures signed contracts on existing homes, rose by 3.8% in May to 76.8, the highest level since November last year. Since contracts usually take one to two months to be completed successfully, this index is considered a leading indicator of future home sales. May contract sales increased by 4.8% year-on-year. Due to the impact of the Iran conflict pushing up oil prices, inflation and US Treasury yields have risen, and mortgage rates have also followed suit. Mortgage financing firm Freddie Mac data shows that since the end of February, the 30-year fixed mortgage rate has risen by over 50 basis points. US May retail sales exceed expectations, with tax refund funds and stock market gains supporting consumer spending. US May retail sales growth exceeded expectations, but with the support from high tax refunds against rising prices gradually diminishing, future growth momentum may slow down. The US Census Bureau of the Department of Commerce announced on Wednesday that retail sales in May increased by 0.9% month-on-month, surpassing the market's expected 0.5%. The growth in May sales partly reflects the rise in gasoline prices, which drove up sales at gas stations. Due to the impact of the Iran conflict, gasoline prices hit their highest level in four years at one point. Since then, oil prices have fallen, and this week the average retail gasoline price in the US dropped below $4 per gallon for the first time since April. Tax refund funds and stock market gains have supported consumer spending, and this growth in consumption is achieved at the expense of reducing savings. The savings rate fell to its lowest level in four years in April. Excluding automobiles, gasoline, building materials, and food services, core retail sales in May increased by 0.7%, compared to a 0.5% increase in April. Core retail sales are closest to the consumer spending component in GDP. Tax filing season has ended, and a significant amount of tax refund funds has been spent. Analysis of internal data shows that "households are spending their tax refund funds faster than in previous years, and the increase in gasoline spending is the main reason for this difference." [Stock News] The US allocates $500 million to SandboxAQ to find new chip manufacturing materials. The US government allocated $500 million to SandboxAQ on Wednesday to develop new chemicals and materials needed for domestic semiconductor manufacturing in the US, including alternatives to PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances). This fund is part of President Trump's allocation of research funds under the CHIPS Act. Prior to this, the program had already provided $150 million for new chip manufacturing equipment and $20 billion into the field of quantum computing. Supported by NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA.US), SandboxAQ, valued at $5.75 billion in April 2025, has raised over $1 billion to date. AST SpaceMobile (ASTS.US) ignites commercial prospects for "low-orbit direct-to-mobile" with BlueBird launch. AST SpaceMobile (ASTS.US), a leader in satellite internet technology focusing on "direct-to-mobile satellite broadband," reported on Wednesday that its exclusive BlueBird 8, 9, and 10 satellites were successfully launched by SpaceX Falcon 9 and successfully entered orbit. AST SpaceMobile stated that the BlueBird satellite is the largest commercial communication array ever deployed in low Earth orbit, with an area of approximately 2400 square feet, for commercial use in government, defense, and business sectors. The BlueBird satellite has been produced and deployed to BlueBird 37, while BlueBird 11, 12, and 13 satellites are in the final preparation stages to be transported to Cape Canaveral. "This first stacking launch is just the beginning," said the company's CEO, Abel Avellan. "The BlueBird 11, 12, and 13 satellites will soon be shipped out for our next launch, and the next generation of BlueBird satellites up to BlueBird 37 are already in active production and final assembly stages. Our focus remains firmly on execution: expanding launch pace, manufacturing scale, and preparing for commercial services."