🌅 NordFX MORNING UPDATE | May 1, 2026 📈 WALL STREET - APR 30 CLOSE S&P 500 hit its first-ever close above 7,200, ending at 7,209 (+1.02%) - a new all-time high. The Dow surged +790 pts to 49,652 (+1.62%), and the Nasdaq closed at 24,892 (+0.89%), also a record. For April: S&P 500 +10.4%, Nasdaq +15.3%, Dow +7.1% - best month since 2020. Alphabet (+10%), Caterpillar (+10%) and Eli Lilly (+7%) led gains. Meta (-8.6%), Microsoft (-3.9%) and Nvidia (-4.6%) weighed on tech. 🌏 ASIAN MARKETS 🇦🇺 ASX 200: +0.91%, snapping an 8-session losing streak. 🇯🇵 Nikkei: Closed (Golden Week). 🇨🇳🇭🇰 China & Hong Kong: Closed (Labour Day, through May 5). 🏦 FED Rates held at 3.50-3.75% in a rare 8-4 split vote. Powell's final meeting as Chair (term ends May 15). Kevin Warsh expected as successor with a more hawkish stance. 💱 FOREX EUR/USD: 1.1712 | USD/JPY: 157.25 - the yen surged sharply from yesterday's high of 160.66, reflecting BoJ intervention fears and a broad dollar pullback. 🥇 GOLD XAU/USD: $4,627/oz (+1.21% today). Safe-haven demand remains firm amid geopolitical tensions. 🛢️ OIL Brent: $111.84/bbl | WTI: ~$105/bbl. Iran tensions and Strait of Hormuz concerns keep prices elevated. ₿ BITCOIN BTC: $76,550 - consolidating, with resistance near $80,000. 📅 TODAY'S EVENTS (all times GMT+3) 🇬🇧 11:30 - Manufacturing PMI Final (Apr) 🇨🇦 16:30 - Manufacturing PMI (Apr) 🇺🇸 16:45 - Manufacturing PMI (Apr) 🇺🇸 17:00 - ISM Manufacturing Index + Prices + Employment (Apr) 🇪🇺🇬🇧 17:00 - ECB & BoE Rate Decisions ⚠️ Trading involves significant risk. Not investment advice. NordFX 🚀 nordfx.com