Business & Markets — October 1, 2026

Micron earnings beat leaves stock flat. Micron beat earnings estimates as data center revenue rose 11-fold on AI demand. But shares stayed flat -- a 500% one-year run had already raised expectations.

MarketWatch attributes the muted reaction to positioning rather than the results themselves: investors had largely priced in strong growth before the report. The dynamic illustrates a recurring pattern for companies tied to AI spending, where even substantial beats can fail to move shares once a prolonged rally has reset the bar. Micron's data center business, now its clearest growth driver, remains the figure investors watch most closely.

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Paramount-Warner merger clears legal hurdle. A federal judge approved Paramount's settlement with 12 states over its $81 billion takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery, clearing the way for the deal to close.

The settlement resolves litigation brought by a dozen state attorneys general, which had stood as the remaining legal obstacle to combining the two media companies. With the court's approval, Fast Company reports the transaction is now positioned to close soon. The deal's $81 billion price tag makes it one of the largest media consolidations, uniting two major studio and streaming portfolios under one owner.

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SEC moves to widen private market access. The SEC voted to expand retail investor access to private markets, proposing an exam-based path to accredited status beyond income and net-worth thresholds.

Under current rules, accredited investor status is generally limited to people meeting income or net-worth thresholds, which gatekeeps access to private offerings. The commission's proposal would add a knowledge-based alternative, letting individuals qualify by passing an examination. Because this is a proposed rule approved by vote, it would still need to move through the standard rulemaking process before taking effect, and the final contours of the exam pathway remain to be set.

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10-year Treasury yield hits 24-year high. The 10-year U.S. Treasury yield reached its highest level since 2002 Thursday as a global bond selloff accelerated; UK 30-year gilt yields hit their highest since 1998.

The move came on the first trading day of the fourth quarter, with selling pressure spanning multiple government bond markets rather than being confined to the U.S. Rising yields on sovereign debt translate directly into higher borrowing costs for governments, and the simultaneous milestones in U.S. Treasurys and British gilts underscore how broad the repricing has become across developed-market debt.

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