MarketAlleys Daily Brief, Wednesday, October 28, 2026: FOMC decision and major earnings scheduled

Global market snapshot

US equity ETFs were mixed at the prior close, with the SPY ETF at $769.66 (rose 0.56%), the QQQ ETF at $721.25 (rose 1.27%) and the IWM ETF at $280.18 (rose 1.15%) as of Oct 27, 20:00 UTC. Crypto prices rose on a 24-hour basis, with Bitcoin at $80,852.00 (rose 1.37%) and Ether at $2,350.01 (rose 1.79%) as of Oct 28, 05:44 UTC.

US equities: prior close

US index proxies at the prior close included the SPY ETF at $769.66 (rose 0.56%), the QQQ ETF at $721.25 (rose 1.27%), the DIA ETF at $523.28 (rose 0.06%) and the IWM ETF at $280.18 (rose 1.15%), all as of Oct 27, 20:00 UTC. Market breadth tracked 32 names, with 24 up and 8 down.

Europe and Asia

European and Asian ETF proxies at the prior close included the EWG ETF at $41.52 (rose 0.68%), the EWU ETF at $47.19 (fell 0.88%) and the EWJ ETF at $95.25 (rose 1.03%), all as of Oct 27, 20:00 UTC.

Crypto

On a rolling 24-hour basis (as of Oct 28, 05:44 UTC), Bitcoin was $80,852.00 and rose 1.37%, Ether was $2,350.01 and rose 1.79%, Solana was $101.75 and rose 1.84%, and XRP was $1.3300 and rose 2.12%.

FX, commodities and rates

FX reference rates (as of Oct 27, 15:00 UTC) showed EUR/USD at 1.1150 (fell 0.34% from the prior ECB fixing), USD/JPY at 157.82 (rose 0.24%) and GBP/USD at 1.3328 (fell 0.15%). Commodities at the prior close (as of Oct 27, 20:00 UTC) included the GLD ETF at $372.28 (rose 1.21%), the SLV ETF at $49.16 (rose 1.03%), the USO ETF at $163.88 (fell 1.41%) and the BNO ETF at $69.67 (fell 0.57%). US Treasury yields were the US 2-year at 4.68% (daily change -1 bp) and the US 10-year at 5.00% (daily change 0 bp), observed on Mon Oct 26; the Fed broad trade-weighted dollar index was 121.32 (observation date Fri Oct 23).

Top catalysts ahead

Major scheduled items include PSX Q3 2026 earnings before the open on Wed Oct 28 and the FOMC rate decision scheduled Wed Oct 28, 18:00 UTC. Several large companies — including GOOGL, MSFT, F and TMUS — are scheduled to report after the close on Wed Oct 28.

• Wed Oct 28 (before the open) — PSX Q3 2026 earnings · EPS estimate 11.84
• Wed Oct 28, 18:00 UTC — FOMC rate decision (US) (source)
• Wed Oct 28 (after the close) — GOOGL Q3 2026 earnings · EPS estimate 3.11
• Wed Oct 28 (after the close) — MSFT Q1 2027 earnings · EPS estimate 4.82
• Wed Oct 28 (after the close) — F Q3 2026 earnings · EPS estimate 0.41

Three stories to watch

The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission published a press release about AgCon 2026 and participation, per the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission. The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission announced it will publish the Commitments of Traders (COT) report on a semiweekly basis, per the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission. The European Central Bank published its October 2026 euro area bank lending survey, per the European Central Bank.

• ICYMI: Agricultural Leaders and Market Participants Join CFTC Chairman Selig in Overland Park, Kansas for AgCon 2026 — U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission, Oct 27, 19:22 UTC
• CFTC Announces Semiweekly Publication of the COT Report — U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission, Oct 27, 17:47 UTC
• October 2026 euro area bank lending survey — European Central Bank, Oct 27, 00:00 UTC

What matters next

Looking ahead, the FOMC rate decision is scheduled Wed Oct 28, 18:00 UTC and will be followed by US releases including Personal income and outlays / PCE and GDP on Thu Oct 29; the ECB monetary policy decision is scheduled Thu Oct 29, 13:15 UTC. Major US payroll and employment data are scheduled in early November, including the Employment Situation on Fri Nov 6, 13:30 UTC.

• Next central-bank decision: Wed Oct 28, 18:00 UTC — FOMC rate decision (US) (source)
• Next high-impact data: Thu Oct 29 (time not confirmed) — Personal income and outlays / PCE (BEA) (US) (source)
• Next major earnings: Wed Oct 28 (time not confirmed) — CWK Q3 2026 earnings · EPS estimate 0.36

Sources and data

• Finnhub (market data) — market data
• CoinGecko (market data) — market data
• European Central Bank (euro reference rates) (primary source) — market data
• U.S. Treasury and Federal Reserve Board via FRED (primary source) — Yields and dollar index
• Federal Reserve (primary source) — calendar
• U.S. Energy Information Administration via FRED (primary source) — calendar
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (primary source) — calendar
• Bank of England (primary source) — calendar
• U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (primary source) — ICYMI: Agricultural Leaders and Market Participants Join CFTC Chairman Selig in Overland Park, Kansas for AgCon 2026
• European Central Bank (primary source) — October 2026 euro area bank lending survey
• CoinDesk (secondary source) — Treasury's Bessent sees crypto as America's next tool for keeping the U.S. dollar on top

Market data as of Oct 28, 05:44 UTC; report generated Oct 28, 06:00 UTC. All times are UTC. Each table row shows its own timestamp and provider.

This report was produced by the MarketAlleys Research Desk using automated data processing and language tools from the sources listed above, and checked against our automated-content validation rules. It is for information only and is not investment advice.