ROI-Bond storm, Trump's diesel gambit and the Muse effect: the financial week in five charts
SPY•Bond yields hit multi-decade highs, Meta’s Muse reached 2.5 million downloads in 13 days, and Trump backed the idea of restricting diesel exports. The week also saw the US-China bond-yield spread approach 350 basis points and the national average gasoline price reach about $4.43 a gallon.
1. Markets and AI
Government bond yields rose to new multi-decade highs as hot US business activity data, debt concerns and rising oil prices weighed on bond markets. The 30-year US Treasury yield reached its highest level in 22 years, while Japan’s 10-year yield hit a 30-year high. Meta’s Muse recorded about 2.5 million downloads in its first 13 days, compared with ChatGPT’s 3.1 million over the same period; Meta shares rose more than 11% on Monday, and AMD’s market value topped $1 trillion.
2. Diesel and bonds
Donald Trump backed the idea of restricting diesel exports, unsettling global oil and diesel markets. The White House later said it preferred working with US refiners in a “simpler, voluntary, cooperative fashion” to increase production. On the day Trump and Xi Jinping met in Washington, the spread between US and Chinese bond yields widened to almost 350 basis points.
3. Fuel costs
The national average gasoline price was about $4.43 a gallon, roughly 180% higher than the average cost to recharge a mid-sized electric vehicle. The range between the cheapest and most expensive gasoline markets was about $2.17 a gallon, compared with a $2.30 range in EV charging costs across states; EVs were cheaper to refuel than gasoline vehicles in every state.
