3 Things: Defense stocks, China trade, Tether

European defense stocks rose (SAAB-B.ST, BA.L, RHM.DE, HO.PA) after President Trumps shift in policy towards Ukraine. In a move that could appease U.S trade negotiators, China says it will forego asking for benefits it gains from its status as a developing country from the WTO. Tether, the issuer of the world's largest stablecoin is in talks with investors to raise $20 billion. This deal would give the company a valuation of $500 billion - making it one of the world's most valuable private firms. For more live coverage of markets watch the full episode of Market Sunrise and head to Yahoo Finance.

Video Transcript

00:15 Speaker A

Well, the first thing we're going to talk about is the fallout from the president's UN speech, subsequent meetings, and of course, social media posts. European defense stocks jumped in early trade today. They got a fresh boost to this year's rally after Trump's sudden and surprising rhetorical shift. He now believes that Ukraine could retake all its land occupied by Russia.

00:43 Speaker A

Next up, we got a move by China that may please US trade negotiators. China says it will forgo asking for the benefits it gains from its status as a developing country from the World Trade Organization or WTO. Now, in the past, Washington has argued that this benefit gives China an unfair advantage when it comes to trade. Under this special benefit, China was able to set higher tariffs and still use subsidies.

01:13 Speaker A

And for the last thing you need to know, we're going to the world of crypto. Tether, issue of the world's largest stable coin is in talks with investors to raise as much as $20 billion. This deal would give the firm a valuation of $500 billion. Now, for the 20 billion, Tether would be giving up a roughly 3% stake. Now, this deal would make Tether one of the most valuable private firms in the world, a cool 100 billion more than Elon Musk's SpaceX.

01:53 Speaker A

Well, here's Miles Udland with what else to watch today.

02:05 Miles Udland

All right, time now for what to watch on Wednesday, September 24th, starting off with the Federal Reserve. We'll get even more commentary from central bank officials on Wednesday. San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly is set to speak. This comes after Jay Powell said weakness in the labor market is outweighing concerns about stubborn inflation, leading to the central bank's decision to lower rates at September's FOMC meeting.

02:37 Miles Udland

Taking a look at the earnings calendar, a few more names reporting on Wednesday. Notables including Cintas, KB Home and Stitchfix. KB Home is announcing results for the third quarter after the market close. The housing market has been sluggish this year with elevated mortgage rates and affordability issues. Investors will be listening closely to the call for any commentary about how a lower rate environment could impact the company as we head towards 2026.

03:09 Miles Udland

And speaking of housing, new home sales data for August is due out on Wednesday morning. Economists are forecasting sales slowed slightly to an annualized rate of 650,000 homes last month.

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