The latest Market Talks covering Financial Services. Exclusively on Dow Jones Newswires at 4:20 ET, 12:20 ET and 16:50 ET.
1336 ET - Perpetual futures trading volume on prediction market Kalshi jumped in August, the company tells the WSJ. Nearly $13.7 billion in perpetual futures have been traded on Kalshi in the past 3 weeks -- which is "nearly twice the volume of the entire month of July," a spokeswoman says. Kalshi today submitted a filing with the CFTC to allow the exchange to trade perpetual futures for FX, including the euro and USD. This month, Kalshi also filed with the CFTC to allow for the trading of equity perpetuals. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com)
1318 ET - Eight of the 10 best metros for purchasing a newly built home are in the South, according to Realtor.com. Leading the way is Charleston-North Charleston, S.C., where the median newly built home is priced 12.2% below the median existing home. The ranking finds that markets with builder-friendly conditions are giving buyers more opportunity to find a new home with a competitive price, ample availability and strong demand, Realtor.com says. The Charleston metro's median new-build listing price is $443,273, compared with $504,832 for existing homes, the strongest new-construction price advantage among the top 10 markets. Greenville-Anderson-Greer, S.C., ranks second, followed by Boise City, Idaho. Realtor.com's list is dominated by small-to-midsize metros. (chris.wack@wsj.com)
1257 ET - The rebound seen in cryptocurrencies appears to have hit near-term resistance levels, with further upward momentum depending on next moves by the Fed. "If bitcoin ETF inflows and stablecoin supply continue rising while markets maintain a greater-than-50-percent probability of a September hike, [we] believe it would provide stronger evidence that underlying crypto demand can withstand tighter monetary conditions," says Bitfinex in a note. "If those flows begin to weaken as rate expectations rise, the macro backdrop could increasingly cap bitcoin's upside." Bitcoin is flat at $78,620, while other cryptocurrencies are mixed. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com)
1210 ET - Prediction market exchange Kalshi has filed a new proposal to the CFTC to allow for the implementation of FX perpetual futures. These would include perp contracts for the USD and euro, adding for Kalshi's stable of available perp contracts. "The FX market is the largest financial trading market in the world," says a spokesperson for Kalshi in a note. "BIS's latest comprehensive survey found $9.6 trillion of average daily FX turnover in April 2025, up 28% from $7.5T/day in 2022." Kalshi has been the target of litigation challenging prediction markets, contending that they're just gambling with investment-sounding terminology. "[We have] supported state efforts to protect consumers from unregulated gambling from the get-go," says CFTC watchdog Better Markets in a note Friday. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com)
1159 ET - A streak of investor capital coming back into bitcoin ETFs was snapped on Friday, according to data from CoinGlass. An outflow of $201.9 million was recorded for bitcoin ETFs on Aug. 28, breaking a two-week streak of inflows into those ETFs. ETF activity has been an indicator of institutional investor interest in cryptocurrencies, which has been low through the first-half of the year as money flowed into more lucrative assets like AI and semiconductor stocks. Investor risk appetite has since changed, making assets like bitcoin and gold more attractive to institutional money - although bitcoin appears to have found resistance around the $80,000 mark. It's down 0.1% to $78,530. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com)
0654 ET - Royal Bank of Canada's solid quarter, including a wealth management-driven beat on net interest income, prompts Keefe, Bruyette & Woods to lift its target on the shares to C$324 from C$316. Yet it views the strength of the bank's franchise to be largely reflected in the valuation, with the stock trading at 15.8 times expected fiscal 2027 earnings. It therefore reiterates a market perform call. KBW raises its forecast for fiscal 2026 earnings per share by C$0.40 to C$16.38 and for fiscal 2027 by C$0.45 to C$17.95. (robb.stewart@wsj.com)
0312 ET - BOC Hong Kong's fundamentals are likely to remain solid as it maintains its loan growth and asset quality advantage over peers, say DBS Group Research analysts in a note. Asset quality improvement in the lender's 1H earnings was a pleasant surprise, the analysts note. They expect BOC Hong Kong to deliver growth in 2026 thanks to higher interest rates and recovery in the Hong Kong property sector and economy. However, they say BOC Hong Kong's additional shareholder return plan appears to be on the lower end of market expectations and its higher dividend payout ratio has likely been priced into shares. DBS retains its buy rating and 52.00 Hong Kong dollar target price. Shares rise 2.75% to HK$52.35.(megan.cheah@wsj.com)
0114 ET - Federal Chair Kevin Warsh delivered a clear and hawkish speech at Jackson Hole on Friday, "walking back his communication mistakes in July," SEB's Fed watcher and U.S. economist Elisabet Kopelman says in a note. "While Warsh did not send clear signals on the timing of rate changes, the speech was supportive of market expectations of a rate hike during the fall--whether in September or by year-end," she says. Inflation and the balance within a currently split FOMC will be decisive but the speech indicates an upside risk to SEB's forecast that rates have peaked, Kopelman says.
