Oil Falls From Six-Month Highs as Fed Week Opens Today

Oil fell from six-month highs as Fed week opens today, even after weekend attacks on Saudi energy sites. Friday's week ahead had West Texas Intermediate settling at 103.27 dollars after Houthi strikes; crude last printed about 100.94 dollars this morning. Overnight S&P 500 futures last printed about 7,675, labeled overnight futures, against Friday's cash close of 7,623.68. US cash opens at 15:30 Cyprus (13:30 UTC).

The Setup: Asia Mixed as S&P 500 Futures Hold a Small Gain

The S&P 500 closed 7,623.68 on Friday, down 0.52 percent (CNBC, YCharts, CBOE). Range 7,612.07 to 7,660.15. October 6's 7,818.93 record close remains unrepaired. The Nasdaq Composite closed 25,955.34, down 0.21 percent. The Dow closed 52,215.16, down 1.23 percent, a 653-point drop as oil's Friday spike hit defensives. Overnight S&P 500 futures last printed about 7,675, labeled overnight futures (Markets Insider 7,674.75 at 02:19 New York October 26, up 0.20 percent). Nasdaq-100 futures last printed about 29,138. Dow futures last printed about 52,559. Japan's Nikkei 225 last printed 62,602.86, down 0.1 percent, labeled intraday (AP). South Korea's Kospi last printed 5,494.29, down 1.1 percent, labeled intraday. Hong Kong's Hang Seng last printed 23,137.93, up 0.2 percent, labeled intraday. Shanghai last printed 3,673.83, down 0.4 percent, labeled intraday. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 last printed 8,782.30, down 0.2 percent, labeled intraday. New Zealand and Taiwan cash markets are shut. China's Fifth Plenum opened today and runs through Thursday. The 10-year yield last sat about 4.97 percent, a move of about 3 basis points overnight, under the 10 basis-point bar. S&P bullish trigger: a reclaim of Friday's 7,660.15 high, then Thursday's 7,663.43 close. Bearish trigger: a fade through Friday's 7,612.07 low.

Story of the Day: Oil Falls From Six-Month Highs

West Texas Intermediate last printed about 100.94 dollars (goldoilprice at 06:19 UTC), down 2.26 percent from Friday's 103.27 settle. Session range 100.69 to 102.63. OilPriceAPI sat at 100.99, under 1 percent apart. Brent last printed about 114.52 dollars (Markets Insider, Morningstar/LSEG), after Friday's 116.72 settle, a six-month high and the highest weekly close since mid-2022. Houthis said they struck the Saudi airport and oil facilities on Saturday. Riyadh said it intercepted more missiles and drones on Sunday and restarted partial operations at its main airport. Reuters reported Qatari mediators in Tehran on Sunday as part of a de-escalation effort coordinated with the United States, which helped fade the weekend premium. Saudi ministers said the kingdom will start storing crude in Singapore from the second half of 2027. The Federal Reserve is in blackout through October 29 ahead of the October 27-28 FOMC. Futures still assign about a 90 percent chance of a hold, with a December hike still the live meeting (Yonhap, Reuters). Goldman Sachs said the committee is set to skip October and hike in December, with oil above its forecast the main risk. Bank of America still sees a 25 basis-point October hike. Oil bullish trigger: a reclaim of Friday's 103.27 settle. Bearish trigger: a slip through the session low at 100.69.

Gold Holds Near a Three-Month Low

Spot gold last printed about 4,005 dollars (TradingView 4,004.32, goldoilprice 4,005.20 at 06:33 UTC). Kitco sat at 4,013.10 at 01:54 New York, range 3,977.90 to 4,020.20, 0.22 percent from TradingView and under 1 percent. Friday's close near 3,996 was the first finish under 4,000 in three months, after a week of about 3.3 percent, the steepest since June. The one-month fade is about 6.9 percent. That three-month low is the long-term gold story of the morning; world stocks, listed real estate, and long-dated Treasury yields did not clear the bar for a separate note. The 4,100 zone from last week's notes is overhead. Gold bullish trigger: a reclaim of 4,100. Bearish trigger: a slip through the session low near 3,978.

Bitcoin Last Printed $80,142 Under Last Week's Overhead

Bitcoin last printed about 80,142 dollars (TradingView), down 0.53 percent over 24 hours. CoinMarketCap sat about 80,000 to 80,139, under 1 percent apart. Sunday's week-ahead print was about 80,664. The 21-period exponential average near 82,700 from last week's notes remains overhead. The 80,400 zone is the next lower reference; 79,800 remains the floor from Thursday. Ether last printed about 2,317 dollars (TradingView 2,316.5). Crypto's daily candle closes at 00:00 UTC, so these remain intraday. BTC bullish trigger: a reclaim of 82,700. Bearish trigger: a slip through 80,400, then 79,800.

What's Next: Germany Ifo, Verizon, Then the Fed

Germany's Ifo business climate prints at 11:00 Cyprus (09:00 UTC), previous 89.9, forecast 89.8. Verizon reports before the US open at 13:00 Cyprus (11:00 UTC), earnings seen about 1.27 dollars a share, with the call at 14:30 Cyprus (12:30 UTC). US cash opens at 15:30 Cyprus (13:30 UTC). The Fed remains in blackout through October 29. The statement is due Wednesday at 20:00 Cyprus (18:00 UTC), with Chair Kevin Warsh's press conference at 20:30 Cyprus (18:30 UTC). Microsoft and Alphabet report after that close. Amazon reports Thursday. New Zealand Labour Day and Taiwan Retrocession Day keep those cash tapes shut today. The Fifth Plenum runs through Thursday beside FOMC. Docket: the calendar and the week ahead. Scenarios to watch, not a recommendation.

For live prices see the ThriveInMarkets homepage. None of the above is a recommendation to buy or sell any asset. US cash closes are Friday, October 23, 2026. Overnight futures, gold, oil, Bitcoin, Ether, Kospi and Nikkei are Monday, October 26, 2026.