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Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange during afternoon trading on September 26, 2023 in New York City.

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This report is from today’s CNBC Daily Open, our new, international markets newsletter. CNBC Daily Open brings investors up to speed on everything they need to know, no matter where they are. Like what you see? You can subscribe here.

What you need to know today

Battered markets
U.S. markets traded mixed Monday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average the only major index to dip. The small-cap Russell 2000 turned negative for the year. Asia-Pacific markets fell Tuesday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 lost 1.65%, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 retreated 1.36% and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index slumped 3.25%, leading losses. The HSI was dragged down by the real estate and energy sectors.

Firing up demand for gas
Southeast Asian countries are poised to be prime markets for liquified natural gas by 2030, said industry watchers. Vietnam, in particular, is seen as a main driver of demand because of the government’s power plan for the decade that prioritizes imported LNG for energy generation. Conversely, analysts expect Europe’s demand for LNG to peak in 2027.

The Pound pounded
The British pound fell 3.75% against the U.S. dollar in September, its worst month for a year. It’s currently trading at 1.20 to the dollar, but Goldman Sachs strategist Michael Cahill thinks it’ll drop below that figure because the Bank of England — which left rates unchanged at its last meeting — has expressed a dovish tilt recently.

Trapped in the ‘Google web’
“Everybody talks about the open web, but there is really the Google web,” Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella testified in federal court as part of the U.S. government’s antitrust trial against Google. Nadella was referring to the way publishers often cater their content and advertising to Google’s products, reflective of the sway Google has over web publishing.

[PRO] Irrational fears
An irrational fear is making shares of this money manager look cheap, said a value investor. That’s a great bargain for a firm that’s a “phenomenal business,” and whose shares might rise up to 40%, according to one analyst.

The bottom line

Markets were relieved over a stopgap bill that allows the U.S. government to continue functioning for 45 days. But they grew more anxious over ever-increasing Treasury yields — both the 2-year and 10-year yield increased about 0.1 percentage points. Markets, as a result, teetered between the green and the red.

The S&P 500 was unchanged, the perfect symbol of dancing on that knife’s edge. The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 0.22%, but the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.67% for its fourth consecutive day.

But it’s the Russell 2000 index to which investors should pay attention. The index fell 1.6% Monday, dragging down its year-to-date performance to negative 0.2%. In other words, the Russell 2000 turned negative for the first time in 2023.

Why does that matter to investors?

A quick background on the index. It comprises 2,000 small companies — the average market capitalization of a firm on the Russell 2000 is $2.98 billion, as of Aug. 31. (By contrast, a firm must have a market capitalization of at least $14.5 billion to be added to the S&P 500.)

Compared with the S&P’s year-to-date increase of 11.69%, the Russell 2000’s loss underscores how gains have been concentrated in mega-caps this year.

More significantly, investors think the Russell 2000 more accurately reflects the state of the U.S. economy. Smaller firms are more exposed to macroeconomic conditions. They don’t have the humongous cash reserves of Apple to help them sit out tumultuous times, for instance, or have pricing power to increase margins even as inflation bites.

The implication’s that the Russell 2000’s year-to-date loss portends further declines for stocks later in the year, as economic conditions catch up with bigger firms.

But Paul Hickey, co-founder of Bespoke Investment Group, doesn’t think that’s necessarily the case. Financials comprise much of the index, Hickey said, which makes the Russell 2000 more sensitive toward higher interest rates.

“So if you put all those factors together, I wouldn’t say that the Russell 2000 is a canary in the coal mine,” said Hickey.

A canary the Russell 2000 might not be, but a cautionary tale it definitely is.

— CNBC’s Hakyung Kim contributed to this report

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Gogoro goes affordable with new Ezzy battery-swapping scooter

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Gogoro goes affordable with new Ezzy battery-swapping scooter

Taiwanese smart-scooter pioneer Gogoro is taking a step into more accessible territory with its newest model, the Ezzy. The company hopes to leverage its massive lead in battery-swapping technology while also bringing its smart scooters to a broader audience by lowering its price point.

Designed as a no-frills, budget-friendly ride that doesn’t skimp on modern conveniences, Ezzy is priced around NT$59,980 (around US $2,000). Once you add in the government subsidies from its native Taiwan, that price drops below NT$30,000 (around US $1,000). For Gogoro, this is the smartscooter distilled to its essential core: practical, connected, and ready for daily life.

The Ezzy looks like it is trying to build on Gogoro’s success with its 2024 Jego launch, the company’s previous forray into lower cost electric scooters. The Jego was a massive success and wound up resulting in around 40% of the company’s sales. Now the Ezzy looks to keep the good vibes rolling in a sleek, compact, and intuitive package.

The scooter features a rounded, minimalist body with a durable front panel and straightforward controls. Practicality is the guiding principle: a 68 cm (27 inch) long seat, spacious footwell, and a 28 liter (7.4 gallon) under-seat storage compartment, which the company says is large enough for two helmets – if they’re a 3/4 and a half helmet. Put it all together, and the features sound like they should make the Ezzy ideal for urban errands or weekend jaunts. Add in a built-in cupholder and flip-out footrests, and you’ve got a scooter designed to seamlessly slot into everyday routines with one or two riders aboard.

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The design is cute, but it’s under the panels where Gogoro usually tries to set itself apart. Ezzy is powered by a new hub motor capable of speeds up to 68 km/h (42 mph), high enough for city traffic while keeping maintenance low. The last time I was scootering around in Taipei, those speeds felt like plenty on the congested streets.

And while Gogoro’s scooters have long been impressive, the most important part of the company’s offerings isn’t even its rides, it’s how they’re powered. Ezzy integrates directly into Gogoro’s famed battery-swapping network, which includes thousands of swap stations around Taiwan.

Riders can skip charging downtime by swapping depleted packs at GoStation kiosks, which regularly see hundreds of thousands of battery swaps every day.

Electrek’s Take

In terms of performance, Ezzy strikes a balance. It’s not built for speed demons, but it likely won’t bog down in traffic either. It’s not overflowing with gadgets, yet includes thoughtful features that matter – cup holder, flip-out footrests, and room for two helmets. At around US $2,000 retail before subsidies, it’s clearly aimed at broadening access to smart two-wheeling in dense cities. And since the combustion engine scooters still dominate cities in most countries, making electric alternatives more affordable is a key part of displacing those heavy polluters.

This feels less like a normal launch and more like a strategic pivot for Gogoro. While the company’s premium Smartscooters – like the sports car-inspired Pulse or high-performance SuperSport – are impressive, they’re also spendy and niche. Ezzy, by contrast, looks like what Gogoro might want every city overpopulated by cars to embrace: a stylish, comfortable, and economical electric scooter that’s accessible to the masses.

It’s still early days and Gogoro hasn’t confirmed availability beyond Taiwan, but enthusiasm for affordable, swappable-battery electric scooters is growing. If Ezzy finds even moderate success in its initial market, it could pave the way for Gogoro to expand its smart ecosystem deeper into urban centers worldwide.

In short, Ezzy may not be a headline-grabbing performance machine, but that’s exactly the point. Sometimes progress happens not with fireworks, but with smart, thoughtful moves that make electric mobility more attainable for everyone. And that’s an evolution worth riding along with.

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750W e-bikes in Europe? Discussions underway to update e-bike laws

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750W e-bikes in Europe? Discussions underway to update e-bike laws

The e-bike industry in the West has long been a tale of two territories. North Americans enjoy higher speeds and power limits for their electric bicycles while Europeans are held to much stricter (i.e. slower and lower) speed and power limits. However, things might change based on current discussions on rewriting European e-bike regulations.

New power levels are not totally without precedent, either. The UK briefly considered doubling its own e-bike power limit from 250 watts (approximately 1/3 horsepower) to 500 watts, though the move was ultimately abandoned.

But this time, the call for more power is coming from within the house – i.e., Germany. The Germans are the undisputed leaders and trend setters in the European e-bike market, accounting for around two million sales of e-bikes per year. Home to leading e-bike drive makers like Bosch, the country has yet another advantage when it comes to making – or regulating – waves in the industry.

And while there aren’t any pending law changes, the largest German trade organization ZIV (Zweirad-Industrie-Verband), which is highly influential in achieving such changes, is now discussing what it believes could be pertinent updates to current EU electric bike regulations.

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Some of the new regulations involve creating rules maxing out power at levels such as 400% or 600% of the human pedaling input. But a key component of the proposed plan includes changing the present day power limit of e-bikes from 250W of continuous power at the motor to 750W of peak power at the drive wheel.

The difference includes some nuance, since continuous power is often considered more of a nominal figure, meaning nearly every e-bike motor in Europe wears a “250W” or less sticker despite often outputting a higher level of peak power. Even Bosch, which has to walk the tight and narrow as a leader in the European e-bike drive market, shared that its newest models of motors are capable of peak power ratings in the 600W level. That’s still far from the commonly 1,000W to 1,300W peak power seen in US e-bike motors, but offers a nice boost over an actual 250W motor.

Other new regulations up for discussion include proposals to limit fully-loaded cargo e-bike weights to either 250 kg (550 lb) for two-wheelers or 300 kg (660 lb) for e-bikes with more than two wheels. As road.cc explained, ZIV also noted that, “separate framework conditions and parameters must be defined for cargo bikes weighing more than 300 kg (see EN 17860-4:2025) as they differ significantly from EPACs and bicycles in their dynamics, design and operation.” Such heavy-duty cargo e-bikes, which often more closely resemble small delivery vans than large cargo bikes, are becoming more common in the industry and have raised concerns about cargo e-bike bloat, especially in dedicated cycling paths.

It’s too early to say whether European e-bike regulations will actually change, but the fact that key industry voices with the power to influence policy are openly advocating for it suggests that new rules for the European market are a real possibility.

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China overhauls EV charging: 100,000 ultra-fast public stations by 2027

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China overhauls EV charging: 100,000 ultra-fast public stations by 2027

China just laid out a plan to roll out over 100,000 ultra-fast EV charging stations by 2027 – and they’ll all be open to the public.

The National Development and Reform Commission’s (NDRC) joint notice, issued on Monday, asks local authorities to put together construction plans for highway service areas and prioritize the ones that see 40% or more usage during holiday travel rushes.

The NDRC notes that China’s ultra-fast EV charging infrastructure needs upgrading as more 800V EVs hit the road. Those high-voltage platforms can handle super-fast charging in as little as 10 to 30 minutes, but only if the charging hardware is up to speed.

China had 31.4 million EVs on the road at the end of 2024 – nearly 9% of the country’s total vehicle fleet. But charging access is still catching up. As of May 2025, there were 14.4 million charging points, or roughly 1 for every 2.2 EVs.

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To keep the grid running smoothly, China wants new chargers to be smart, with dynamic pricing to incentivize off-peak charging and solar and storage to power the charging stations.

To make the business side work, the government is pushing for 10-year leases for charging station operators, and it’s backing the buildout with local government bonds.

The NDRC emphasized that the DC fast chargers built will be open to the public. This is a big deal because a lot of fast chargers in China aren’t. For example, BYD’s new megawatt chargers aren’t open to third-party vehicles.

As of September 2024, China had expanded its charging infrastructure to 11.4 million EV chargers, but only 3.3 million were public.

Read more: California now has nearly 50% more EV chargers than gas nozzles


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