Today's top stories, with context, in just 15 minutes.
On today's podcast:
1) President Trump traveled to Iowa on Thursday to boost Ashley Hinson, the Republican Senate candidate locked in a tight race with Democrat Josh Turek. Trump’s visit is the first of two he is expected to make to the state before Election Day on November 3rd. After reliably voting Republican for the past decade, Iowa has become competitive territory once again thanks to high fertilizer and fuel costs wrought by Trump’s war on Iran and shrinking export markets for farmers due to his tariffs.
2) With a fresh infusion of cash to his super political action committee in the first two weeks of October, Elon Musk has now given more than $445 million in the current election cycle and become one of the biggest-ever contributors to such groups. The world’s richest person put $77 million into America PAC, Federal Election Commission filings show, in an effort to elect Republicans in November midterm contests.
3) Stocks steadied at the start of the European session, offering global investors some respite after a rout in the artificial intelligence trade, while further gains in oil prices kept sentiment cautious. Meantime, a gauge of the inverse relationship between US government bonds and AI-focused stocks has strengthened to levels last seen a year ago. It’s a sign the deepening tech selloff is sending investors back into bonds for safety, reviving a haven role that had faded as inflation worries and higher interest rates weighed on Treasuries.