Thursday begins with a market that has been given liquidity relief without having been given a cheaper economic world.

Thursday begins with a market that has been given liquidity relief without having been given a cheaper economic world. Treasury’s decision to at least double buybacks of longer-dated debt interrupted this week’s bond selloff, but the respite is already being tested by oil near…

Thursday begins with a market that has been given liquidity relief without having been given a cheaper economic world. Treasury’s decision to at least double buybacks of longer-dated debt interrupted this week’s bond selloff, but the respite is already being tested by oil near $94 Brent, a Federal Reserve that sounded less comfortable with inflation than markets had assumed, and a Walmart report that complicates the emerging consumer narrative. U.S. futures are little changed rather than celebratory. The 10-year Treasury is around 4.67% and the 30-year near 5.22%—below the week’s extremes, but still restrictive enough to keep the cost of capital central to equity valuation.

The most interesting corporate evidence is not simply that Walmart disappointed. Its total revenue still grew nearly 6%, e-commerce remained strong, and the company raised its full-year sales outlook. What weakened was U.S. comparable-sales momentum, partly because regulated drug-price changes reduced pharmacy revenue and partly because households are absorbing higher fuel costs. That makes Walmart a more nuanced signal than a recession alarm. At the other end of the corporate spectrum, Deere reported its first quarterly profit increase in three years as construction-equipment demand benefited from infrastructure spending and the AI data-center buildout. The same economy is producing caution in the shopping basket and strength in the machinery used to build compute capacity.