The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals handed the Trump administration a significant legal victory Wednesday, issuing a formal injunction blocking California's No Vigilantes Act from being enforced against federal law enforcement officers. The court ruled that the state law - which required non-uniformed federal agents to visibly display identification while performing their duties - likely violates the Supremacy Clause of the U.S. Constitution.
Carlin Stiehl/Los Angeles Times via Getty ImagesThe No Vigilantes Act, part of a two-bill package signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in September, was California's legislative response to immigration enforcement operations in Los Angeles.
The Trump administration had filed suit in November, contending the law created real and immediate dangers for ICE officers already facing what it described as harassment, doxing, and threats of physical violence. The Department of Justice argued that federal agents must retain discretion over their own safety protocols. "Denying federal agencies and officers that choice would chill federal law enforcement and deter applicants for law enforcement positions," the Justice Department wrote in its lawsuit.
The law's companion piece, the No Secret Police Act, had previously been blocked by a federal district court in February on the grounds that it discriminated against federal interests by applying the mask ban exclusively to federal officers.
"The No Vigilantes Act responds to troubling immigration enforcement activities in which masked agents have seized people off the street without showing an agency name, personal identification, or badge number, alongside a rise in law enforcement impersonation cases and efforts in other states to recruit bounty hunters for immigration enforcement," State Sen. Sasha Renée Pérez (D-Pasadena), who authored the legislation said back in September, adding that the measure would "help rebuild the community's trust."
The court clearly didn’t see it that way.
The 9th Circuit's three-judge panel found that “The United States is likely to succeed on the merits of its claim that § 10 of the No Vigilantes Act violates the Supremacy Clause because § 10 attempts to directly regulate the United States in its performance of governmental functions.”
The court further determined that all other preliminary injunction factors favored the federal government, clearing the way for the injunction to take effect pending further court order.
BREAKING: The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has issued an injunction blocking enforcement of California’s new law that requires ICE agents to unmask and wear visible ID, arguing it violates the Supremacy Clause because it “attempts to directly regulate the United States in its… pic.twitter.com/jedIEO0z2N
— Bill Melugin (@BillMelugin_) April 22, 2026The outcome was not unexpected. During oral arguments in early March, 9th Circuit judges were openly skeptical of California’s position that the identification requirement was analogous to generally applicable laws such as speed limits. The state argued the law treated all law enforcement equally, but the panel clearly didn’t buy the argument that such framing could justify states directly regulating federal operations.
Bill Essayli, First Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California, did not understate what the ruling meant in a post on X. "Huge legal victory this morning in the Ninth Circuit, where the court permanently enjoined California's unconstitutional mask law targeting federal agents," he wrote.
The use of "permanently" may be premature — the injunction technically remains pending further court order — but the Supremacy Clause of the Constitution is quite clear, and there’s little reason to believe the No Vigilantes Act will survive.
Tyler Durden Thu, 04/23/2026 - 09:05US equity futures are lower, but rapidly rising and now at premarket highs after a CCTV report that talks between Iran and the US in Pakistan may see a breakthrough "tonight or tomorrow"; still the optimism of recent days is being tested, with peace talks in limbo, software concerns reemerging and the bond market flashing warning signals. As of 8:15am ET, S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq 100 contract both fell 0.1%, recovering almost all of their 0.8% overnight drop. Pre-market, Mag 7 are mostly lower with TSLA (-2.8%) and MSFT (-1.6%) lagging. Overnight, we saw a slew of positive semi earnings in Asia: SK Hynix sets record quarterly profits. Oil traffic through the Strait of Hormuz ground to a halt after Iran fired on commercial ships and said it had seized at least two vessels, while the US military intercepted two Iranian oil supertankers that tried to evade its blockade. Brent rose 0.9% to around $103 a barrel as the US and Iran kept blocking the Strait of Hormuz. The dollar advanced 0.2%, while Treasury yields climbed across the curve. Precious metals are recovering overnight losses and base metals are all higher.
In premarket trading, Mag 7 stocks are all lower: Tesla (TSLA) falls 3% after the electric-vehicle maker boosted its capital expenditures to more than $25 billion for the year to support Elon Musk’s ambition to transform his firm into an AI and robotics company (Microsoft -1.9%, Amazon -0.4%, Nvidia -0.5%, Meta -1.5%, , Alphabet -0.5%, Apple -0.1%)
In corporate news, Lululemon named former Nike head of consumer, product and brand as its new CEO as it looks to move beyond a turbulent period. American Airlines and Alaska Air are said to be pursuing potential revenue-sharing agreements and other strategic partnerships.
The recent resilience of stocks has been underpinned by confidence in a Middle East resolution, a dip-buying mentality, robust earnings and AI. But the steep equity rally is ignoring loud warning signs from the bond market. Treasury yields have been creeping higher on concerns about rising inflation, while stocks appear to be looking past any increase in inflation expectations. Don't tell that to semiconductor stocks though, which are now up a record 16 days, and the rally extended in premarket trading. Texas Instruments set the pace with a 9% jump on booming demand from data center builders.
When you go to a strip club tonight, ask Chyna about the difference between TPU and GPU or DRAM and NAND pic.twitter.com/mDCAi8PWC1
— zerohedge (@zerohedge) April 22, 2026With the earnings season in full swing, the likes of Comcast Corp. and American Express Co. reported beats in profit estimates on Thursday. American Airlines Group Inc. warned it saw $4 billion in extra expenses due to higher jet fuel costs. While earnings remain front and center, price action is perhaps not as strong as it seems on the surface, with the equal-weight S&P 500 lagging behind the records set by S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 on Wednesday. The latest batch of earnings also revived concerns about the impact of AI on software companies, with IBM’s results seen as underwhelming and ServiceNow disappointing the Street with a guidance cut. That said, of the 101 S&P 500 companies to have reported so far this earnings season, 79% have beaten analysts’ forecasts, while 14% have missed.
“A lack of progress on US-Iran negotiations may bring some reality check to equity markets after a strong rebound,” said Emmanuel Cau, head of European equity strategy at Barclays Plc. It’s “hard to see much more upside without more decisive progress on peace. Earnings so far are good, so at least that’s providing some fundamental backstop.”
In politics, Senate Republicans are on a collision course with many of their House counterparts over whether to use their most powerful legislative tool — a funding bill Democrats can’t stop — to narrowly fund the Homeland Security department or to go big and try one last election-year push on affordability. Navy Secretary John Phelan was fired after clashing with top leaders at the Pentagon.
Europe's Stoxx 600 is down 0.5% and on course for a fourth day of declines as business activity data in the euro area comes in softer than expected and ASML shares fall after TSMC said it would hold off deploying the firm’s most cutting-edge lithography machines through 2029. The travel and leisure and mining sectors are the worst performers while telecoms rise. Here are some of the biggest movers on Thursday:
In one of the first data points for April, business activity in the euro area unexpectedly shrank for the first time since 2024. The US reading later on Thursday will also be in focus as an early signal of how the economy is being impacted by higher oil prices.
“The broader data resilience has been a crucial factor supporting risk assets,” wrote Jim Reid, head of macro research and thematic strategy at Deutsche Bank AG. “Any sign of that changing would be significant, as it would take away one of the key pillars that’s prevented a more negative market reaction to recent geopolitical events.”
Earlier in the session, Asian stocks declined as this week’s continued increase in oil prices and lack of clarity over US-Iran peace talks weighed on investor sentiment. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index was down 0.6%, after swinging between gains and losses during a volatile morning session. Chinese tech shares were among key drags, while an advance in energy stocks and heavyweight TSMC lent support to the regional benchmark. Oil rose for a fourth day as the US and Iran remained locked in a battle for control of the Strait of Hormuz. Sentiment remained fragile as the US said it was waiting for a response from Iran before the warring sides can restart peace talks. Volatility was high as investors also monitored corporate results for any signs of impact from the Iran war, as well as to gauge the longevity of the AI boom.The Philippine central bank increased its key interest rate and signaled it was ready to deliver more hikes, with the Iran war likely to spur inflation beyond the official target through next year.
“Markets are playing the theme that the Hormuz fallout will hit Asian and European economies harder than the US economy,” said Holger Schmieding, chief economist at Berenberg. “It also means that, once Hormuz reopens, Europe and Asia will outperform.”
In FX, the Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rises 0.2%. The kiwi is the weakest of the G-10 currencies, falling 0.5% against the greenback. Emerging-market currencies in Asia came under pressure on Thursday, with Indonesia’s rupiah and Thailand’s baht the top losers. Their equity benchmarks too were among the worst performers in the region.
In rates, treasuries are slightly cheaper across the curve, following wider losses seen across gilts. Oil futures are drifting higher as peace talks in the Middle East remain in limbo. Treasury yields cheaper by 1.5bp to 2bp across the curve with spreads trading broadly within a basis point of Wednesday’s close. US 10-year yields trade around 4.315% with gilts lagging by an additional 3bp in the sector. UK government bonds lead a broader selloff in global fixed income markets as traders boosted bets on interest rate hike hikes by the Bank of England after stronger-than-expected PMI data. Swaps now imply around 59 basis points of tightening by year end, up from 51 bps at the close on Wednesday. UK two year yields rise 5 bps to 4.39%. Bunds also fall, pushing US and German two-year borrowing costs up 2 bp each. IG dollar issuance slate empty so far. Blackstone Private Credit Fund was the only issuer in the US investment-grade primary market on Wednesday. The US session focus includes manufacturing PMI, following broadly stronger-than-expected European prints. Supply is also scheduled with a $26 billion 5-year TIPS sale at 1pm New York. Wednesday’s 20-year bond auction attracted solid demand, stopping 0.9bp through the WI yield
In commodities, oil is higher for the fourth day in a row as the US and Iran remained locked in a battle for control of the Strait of Hormus. Precious metals decline with spot silver down 4%. Bitcoin falls 1.5%
US economic data calendar slate includes March Chicago Fed national activity index, weekly jobless claims (8:30am), April manufacturing PMI (9:45am) and Kansas City Fed manufacturing activity (11am). Otherwise, central bank speakers include Bundesbank President Nagel, whilst EU leaders will meet in Cyprus
Market Snapshot
Top Overnight News
Iran
A more detailed look at global markets courtesy of Newsquawk
APAC stocks were mostly negative despite the positive handover from Wall Street, with risk appetite souring amid higher oil prices and following the recent bout of mixed geopolitical headlines. ASX 200 declined with the downside led by weakness in the consumer-related sectors and with nearly all industries subdued aside from energy, while the improvement in PMI data, which returned to expansionary territory, did little to spur a rebound. Nikkei 225 swung between gains and losses, in which the index retreated after hitting a fresh record high above the 60,000 level, with pressure seen amid fluctuations in oil. Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp were lower amid a slew of earnings updates and as the weakness seen in retailers and autos clouded over the gains in the energy majors.
Top Asian News
European bourses opened mostly lower, and price action has been fairly tentative since the cash open. In terms of individual indices, the AEX (-1%) underperforms, whilst the SMI (+1%) outperforms. The former lags, with ASML (-3%) weighing on the index; the Swiss index has been buoyed by post-earnings strength in both Nestle (+6.9%) and Roche (+2.2%). In a bit more detail, Nestle reported strong Q1 organic sales and maintained its outlook. European sectors hold a negative bias this morning. Telecoms takes pole position, led higher by Nokia (+10%) and Orange (+3.5%); the former reports 4% sales growth in Q1, benefiting from the recent AI boom. Food, Beverage & Tobacco takes second spot, helped by Nestle, whilst Energy completes the top three.
Top European News
Trade/Tariffs
FX
Central banks
Fixed Income
Commodities
US Event Calendar
DB's Jim Reid concludes the overnight wrap
Oil prices are still rising as we go to press this morning, with Brent crude currently at $103.39/bbl, leaving it on track for a 4th consecutive gain. There hasn’t been a single catalyst behind that, but the absence of any peace talks between the US and Iran has led investors to price in a longer conflict again, along with a more extended closure of the Strait of Hormuz. Indeed, the US blockade is still in place, and yesterday Iran said they’d seized two commercial ships in the Strait. So if anything, the latest moves pointed in an escalatory direction. Moreover, the Washington Post reported that the Pentagon informed Congress it could take 6 months to clear the Strait of Hormuz of mines, which further added to fears about extended disruption.
In the meantime, there’s been no obvious signs of progress towards peace talks from either side. For instance, Iran’s President Pezeshkian posted that the US “blockade and threats are main obstacles” to negotiations, while its lead negotiator Mohammad Ghalibaf said it is “not possible to reopen the Strait of Hormuz considering all the blatant violations of the ceasefire”. Meanwhile on the US side, White House Press Secretary Leavitt said that Trump “has not set a firm deadline to receive an Iranian proposal”, so it wasn’t clear that anything was happening. And even before the overnight moves, Brent crude was up +3.48% yesterday to $101.91/bbl.
That backdrop has led to a fresh selloff this morning, with losses across the major equity indices in Asia. Indeed, the Nikkei (-1.05%), the KOSPI (-0.86%), the Hang Seng (-1.07%), the CSI 300 (-0.79%) and the Shanghai Comp (-0.79%) have all fallen. Moreover, futures on the S&P 500 (-0.64%) are pointing to fresh losses as well, despite the index reaching a record high yesterday. And over in Europe, DAX futures (-1.28%) are pointing to even sharper declines today.
Overnight, we’ve also started to get some of the flash PMIs for April. So far they’ve been broadly resilient, with Australia’s numbers bouncing back from March, with the composite PMI just about in expansionary territory again at 50.1. Meanwhile, Japan’s composite PMI slipped back a bit to 52.4 in April, but was still in expansionary territory as well. Notably, there was a surge in Japan’s manufacturing PMI to 54.9, the highest in over a decade. But the report acknowledged that some manufacturers had raised output because of concern about future supply shortages given events in the Middle East. So despite the headline resilience, the impact of the conflict was still evident.
Those flash PMIs will be worth keeping an eye on today, as we’ll get the rest of the numbers from Europe and the US. They’re one of the first data points we get for April, so they’ll be in focus as an initial signal for how the global economy is being affected by the Iran conflict and higher oil prices. Back in March, the PMIs were still in expansionary territory for the most part, echoing what we’ve seen this morning, and the broader data resilience has been a crucial factor supporting risk assets. So any sign of that changing would be significant, as it would take away one of the key pillars that’s prevented a more negative market reaction to recent geopolitical events.
Ahead of that, US equities actually performed quite strongly yesterday, with the S&P 500 (+1.05%) closing at a new record high. That got support from corporate earnings, and Boeing (+5.53%) was one of the top performers in the index after their cash outflow was smaller than expected by analysts. Otherwise, tech stocks did well, with the NASDAQ (+1.64%) reaching a new record of its own, while the Philadelphia Semiconductor index (+2.72%) posted a record 16th consecutive advance. That said, the breadth of the advance was quite narrow, with most of S&P 500’s constituents falling on the day.
After the US close, Tesla was the first of the Mag 7 to report earnings, with its shares initially rising by almost 5% on a solid earnings beat, but this gain was erased by the end of after-hours trading as executives unveiled that capex will exceed $25bn this year, roughly three times last year’s level. Meanwhile, IBM’s shares slumped by -7% after hours as its software revenues only just met analyst expectations.
For US Treasuries there was a steadier performance, although the gains for oil prices meant they lost a bit of ground as concern grew about inflation. For instance, the 1yr US inflation swap (+5.5bps) moved back up to 3.23%, and investors dialled back the likelihood of a Fed rate cut by the December meeting, which fell to just 30% by the close. So US Treasury yields moved a bit higher, particularly at the front end, with the 2yr yield (+1.9bps) up to 3.80%, and the 10yr yield (+1.0bps) up to 4.30%.
Earlier in Europe, markets were more negatively affected by the oil price moves, given the continent’s greater exposure to an energy shock. So equities lost ground across the board, with the STOXX 600 (-0.35%) posting a third consecutive decline for the first time in a month. Moreover, bonds also struggled as investors grew more concerned about inflation. So that pushed yields higher too, with the 2yr German yield (+3.4bps) up to 2.55%, whilst the 10yr yield (+0.5bps) was back up to 3.01%.
That downbeat backdrop wasn’t helped by the incoming newsflow across the continent. Most notably, the European Commission’s preliminary consumer confidence measure for the Euro Area slumped in April, falling to -20.6 (vs. -17.2 expected), which is its lowest since December 2022. So that added to fears about a more meaningful data deterioration into this month. Meanwhile in Germany, the country’s Economy Ministry also cut the country’s growth forecast to +0.5% for 2026, down from a +1% projection in January.
Finally in the UK, gilts continued to underperform yesterday, with the 10yr yield (+2.4bps) up to 4.91% as speculation around Prime Minister Starmer’s position continued to swirl. Indeed, it was announced yesterday that more individuals would appear before the Foreign Affairs Committee of MPs over the appointment of Peter Mandelson as US ambassador, including Starmer’s former chief of staff Morgan McSweeney next week. In the meantime, the latest CPI report for March painted a mixed picture, even as headline inflation rose to +3.3% as expected on the back of higher energy prices. On the one hand, core CPI came in beneath expectations at +3.1% (vs. +3.2% expected). But services CPI saw an unexpected uptick to +4.5% (vs. +4.3% expected).
Looking at the day ahead, data releases include the April flash PMIs from the US and Europe, along with the US weekly initial jobless claims. Otherwise, central bank speakers include Bundesbank President Nagel, whilst EU leaders will meet in Cyprus
Tyler Durden Thu, 04/23/2026 - 08:43Following the surge in ADP's weekly job additions index earlier in the week...
Today we see that the number of Americans filing for jobless benefits last week was just 214k - hovering back near record lows...
Continuing jobless claims inched back above 1.8 million Americans last week but remains near two year lows...
So are we morphing from "no hire, no fire" to a "mo more, no fire" economy?
Tyler Durden Thu, 04/23/2026 - 08:34American Airlines slashed its full-year outlook on Thursday morning, warning it could post a loss in 2026 as the Iran-U.S. war, which sent jet fuel prices soaring, adds roughly $4 billion in fuel costs.
The airline now expects full-year results ranging from a 40-cent loss to a $1.10 profit, down from its earlier forecast of $1.10 to $2.70 in earnings per share.
"Based on the forward fuel curve and the current revenue outlook, the midpoint of the full-year guidance is expected to be approximately flat to 2025, despite a greater than $4 billion increase in expense related to higher prices for jet fuel," American stated in an earnings release.
However, American beat Bloomberg Consensus first-quarter estimates, posting a smaller-than-expected adjusted loss and stronger-than-forecast revenue.
Management said the airline is trying to shield the company as elevated jet fuel costs erode profits, while hoping that premium and international demand can offset some of the impact through higher fares and baggage prices.
"American delivered record revenue in the first quarter, and we're on track for another record in the second quarter," American CEO Robert Isom stated in the release.
Snapshot of the 1Q26 results:
Elsewhere in the airline industry, the Trump administration is considering an emergency package for bankrupt Spirit Airlines that could give the federal government 90% control. The airline had been planning to emerge from bankruptcy, but the fuel shock sent it into a tailspin in recent weeks, with reports that creditors were planning to liquidate. This complicates matters for the administration, as 14,000 jobs would be at risk.
Other budget carriers met with Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy earlier this week to discuss their financial situation amid elevated jet fuel costs.
As we've previously noted, Delta Air Lines is America's standout carrier because it's the only one with an in-house refinery that can properly weather the fuel shock.
Tyler Durden Thu, 04/23/2026 - 08:20