Market Highlight 26.10.2026

The Federal Reserve (FED), the European Central Bank, and the Bank of Japan may keep interest rates unchanged at their policy meetings this week, opting to wait for additional economic data before making their next policy decisions. The U.S Central Bank raised interest rates in September for the first time since 2023 and signaled that another rate hike could come later this year. Although U.S inflation has accelerated sharply since then, the FED appears to be in no hurry to deliver another increase and may instead wait until its final meeting of 2026 in December. However, according to economists, the recent rise in U.S Treasury yields, together with fading optimism over AI, has pushed U.S equities lower again. At the same time, a potentially more complicated political environment in the U.S following the 3/11 election could lead the FED to refrain from any further rate hikes through the end of 2027. By contrast, the Central Banks of New Zealand and Canada are expected to raise interest rates on Wednesday this week.

Brent and WTI crude prices rose by 6% and 2,3%, respectively, last week as tensions between Houthi forces and Saudi Arabia continued to escalate sharply. Brent crude futures ended the week at 116,72 USD/barrel, the highest level since 29/4. The U.S Department of Energy said it had released an additional 400.000 barrels of crude oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve on an emergency basis to address supply disruptions. The reserve has now fallen to its lowest level since 1982 following the Russia - Ukraine war and the U.S attack on Iran earlier this year.

Interbank USD/VND declined by another 0,2% over the past week and closed Friday at 25.840. Since the beginning of 2026, the exchange rate has fallen by more than 1,7%.

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