August 21, 2026

US Treasury yields rose yesterday, while the S&P 500 fell -0.9%

International

The US Treasury yield curve reversed the compression seen in the previous session yesterday. The 10-year Treasury note rose to 4.70% from 4.64%, the 3-year note advanced to 4.27% from 4.23%, and the 1-year note settled at 3.98%, up from 3.96%.

Meanwhile, the main US stock indexes retreated yesterday, following the rebound in the previous session. The S&P 500 fell 0.9%, the Nasdaq lost 1.0%, and the Dow Jones declined 1.3%. Thus, year-to-date, the indexes have accumulated gains of 11.6%, 12.2%, and 9.8%, respectively.

On the macroeconomic front, Japan released its July Consumer Price Index (CPI) yesterday. Core inflation accelerated to 1.8% year-on-year, in line with expectations and above the previous 1.6%, while the overall index climbed to +0.4% month-on-month. Also released were the preliminary August Purchasing Managers' Indices (PMIs) compiled by S&P Global, which showed a broad-based improvement: the services index rose to 52.3 points, while the manufacturing index reached 55.1, indicating expansion in activity in both sectors (above 50 points).

Finally, commodities mostly moved higher yesterday. The price of WTI crude rose 2.3%, closing at $87.83, while Brent crude gained 2.0% to $93.41. Gold climbed 0.1% to $4,518.54 an ounce, while soybeans slipped 0.1% to $448.41 a ton.

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