Amazon-OpenAI Deal, Fed Cut Lift Global Stocks

Global stocks rose Monday after Amazon agreed to a multiyear $38 billion cloud‑services deal with OpenAI and investor optimism over AI, alongside a U.S.-China year‑long trade truce that boosted risk appetite. The dollar hovered near a three‑month high even after the Federal Reserve’s recent 25 basis‑point cut, as Chair Jerome Powell warned a December cut is “not a foregone conclusion” and some officials pushed back. Market leadership narrowed to AI and tech, leaving markets vulnerable amid a U.S. government shutdown that has curtailed official data releases and shifted focus to private payrolls (ADP) and upcoming tech earnings. Asian indices, including the Kospi, rose despite signs of slowing manufacturing in China and the region, underscoring mixed fundamentals beneath the rally. Commodities moved modestly — oil rose after OPEC+ held output steady while gold softened — and policy and legal risks, including a U.S. Supreme Court review of Trump‑era tariffs, added to uncertainty.