US hiring plans continue to improve: US-based employers announced plans to hire 12,325 workers in August, the strongest August total since 2022. This marks a +725% increase from the 1,494 recorded in August 2025. Aerospace and Defense led all industries, with 4,025 announced hires, followed by Technology at 2,520, and Industrial Goods at 1,856. Year-to-date, US hiring plans surged +37% YoY, to 119,825 workers, the strongest January-to-August total since 2023. Technology leads all sectors with 19,751 announcements so far in 2026, followed by Aerospace and Defense, at 16,541, and Automotive, at 14,937. Meanwhile, manufacturing industries now account for 46% of all announced hiring plans this year. Hiring plans are gaining momentum.

BREAKING: Global central banks purchased +23 tonnes of gold in July, marking their 4th consecutive monthly purchase. This follows +51 tonnes in June, their 2nd-largest monthly purchase since November 2024. In July, demand was led by China at +20 tonnes, bringing its year-to-date purchases to +60 tonnes. Poland followed with +8 tonnes, lifting its total 2026 purchases to +90 tonnes. Year-to-date, central banks have acquired +130 tonnes of gold, slightly trailing the +160 tonnes purchased over the same period last year. Meanwhile, the Bank of Korea disclosed on August 13th that it made its first gold investment in 13 years, holding $250 million in the largest US gold-backed ETF, $GLD, as of Q2 2026. Central bank gold demand remains incredibly strong.

BREAKING: South Korea's exports surged +72.5% YoY in August, their largest annual increase on record. This follows a +63.0% gain in July and marks the 2nd consecutive monthly improvement. South Korean exports have now seen above +40.0% YoY growth for 7-straight months. Semiconductor exports continue to lead the gains, surging +209.0% YoY, to $46.7 billion, driven by strong AI and data center investments. At the same time, shipments of computer-related products soared +419.0%. By destination, exports rose +119.0% to China, +89.3% to the US, +47.3% to India, and +14.6% to the EU. South Korea has become a global economic power.

Volatility has rarely been this quiet. The Volatility Index, $VIX, has closed in the 14 to 17 point range for 25 consecutive trading days, the longest such streak since May 1992. The only comparable stretch over the last 34 years was in 2025, at 24 sessions. This comes as $VIX finished every trading day below 17 points in August. On Thursday, the index closed at 14.3 points, its 3rd-lowest daily close since December. All while the S&P 500 has traded for 26 consecutive sessions without a decline of at least -1.0%. The market is unusually calm.

September 16th is about to be a wild day. We now have President Trump threatening to "stop trading" with all countries that the US has a trade deficit with if the Fed does not CUT rates. This would effectively cut off trade with ~50% of all US trading partners, including Mexico, China, Taiwan, Germany, Japan, South Korea, Canada, and India. Trump says the Supreme Court has ruled that he has an "absolute right" to do so. Meanwhile, the market now thinks Fed Chair Warsh, who was just appointed by President Trump, will HIKE rates in his first rate move. Just months ago, President Trump said it was a precondition that his Fed Chair appointee is willing to cut rates. September 16th marks the next Fed decision. If the Fed doesn't cut rates on September 16th, a potential of $300+ billion in monthly US trade volume could apparently come to a halt. We will be breaking it all down in real-time.

BREAKING: President Trump calls on the Fed to cut interest rates after the August jobs report nearly triples expectations. Trump also threatens to "stop trading with countries with which we have a deficit" if the Fed does not cut rates. The Fed "must get smart," Trump says.

The system is broken. You know the system is broken when stocks FALL after the US unexpectedly adds +162,000 jobs in a month, TRIPLING expectations. Why? Because a strong jobs report means a higher chance of rate hikes. This is the product 60-straight months of 2%+ inflation. Markets now "want" a labor market collapse.

BREAKING: The Fed is now expected to hike interest rates at their September 16th meeting after the August jobs report nearly tripled expectations. Market expectations for a September rate hike are surging, now up to a 53% chance.