The trading session was marked by a decline in equity indices ahead of the Fed’s decision on Wednesday, with the Nasdaq falling 0.8%, the S&P 500 0.4%, and the Dow Jones 0.6%, while the interest rate futures market assigns a 96% probability to a 25-basis-point rate hike. In Asia, the Nikkei remained flat, the Kospi fell 0.9%, and the CSI 300 dropped 0.7%, while in Europe the Stoxx 600 rose 0.9%. The 10-year UST hit its highest level since 2007 (reaching 5.04% intraday) amid a bear steepener (the long end of the curve rising more than the short end), with the 2-year UST rising 0.9, the 10-year 1.5, and the 30-year 2.1 basis points; the German Bund rose by 1.7 bps and the British Gilt by 1.9 bps. Meanwhile, in commodities, oil extended its rally due to geopolitical tensions between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis that are threatening supply in the Red Sea, with WTI rising 4.6% to USD 106.0 and Brent 2.8% to USD 108.6; gold remained virtually flat, and silver rose 0.7%. In the FX and volatility markets, the DXY rose 0.2% to 99.6, and the VIX gained 0.2 points to 17.3.

In Venezuela/PDVSA, the short end of the sovereign yield curve fell 0.1 pts, while the medium and long ends remained flat; in PDVSA, the short end declined 0.1 pts and the medium and long ends fell 0.2 pts. Elecar closed flat, and PDV'20 gained 0.1 points. Trading volume totaled USD 98 million, concentrated in a few trades of PDV'24 and PDV'27.

As for Latin American yield curves, sovereign yields mostly trended lower, with Argentina falling 0.6, Ecuador 0.7, El Salvador 0.5, the Dominican Republic 0.5, and Colombia 0.6 points, while Mexico declined 0.1, Brazil 0.2, and Pemex 0.2 points. Average volume.