Week ending 25 Sep 2026

Last week was one of the calmest of the year across the 437 markets we track. Our Spotlight Index, which scores each market's move against its own past, averaged 47 for the week, where 50 is normal. Only 7 of the past 52 weeks were that calm.

Chip stocks did most of the moving. Intel jumped 12% on Monday alone as Meta's new AI agent set off a rally in chip shares, and Amphenol rose the same day. Cadence climbed a little every day for a 15% week, after launching new AI tools for designing chips and widening its partnership with TSMC.

Outside tech, Amgen gained on Tuesday after its drug for Sjögren's disease met its main goal in a late-stage trial. General Dynamics went the other way, falling 3% on Tuesday as defence stocks sold off together.

There is no Fed decision next week, but the calendar still fills up. Australia's central bank sets rates on Tuesday, and the weekly US oil stocks report lands on Wednesday. On Thursday Japan publishes its Tankan business survey and the US reports gas storage, and on Friday the euro area gets its first reading of September inflation.

The one to watch is Friday's US jobs report for September, due at 08:30 New York time. It tends to move stocks, the dollar, gold and crypto at once.