Daily Update — January 30, 2026
EU-India Trade Pact; Driverless Cars; and Private Credit CLOs
Today is Friday, January 30, 2026, and here’s your curated selection of Essential Intelligence on global markets from S&P Global. Subscribe to be notified of each new Daily Update.
Global Trade
EU-India seal ‘largest ever’ trade pact; automobile tariffs cut, protein duties retained
The EU and India signed a free trade agreement Jan. 27 to expand their €180 billion, or $214 billion, of annual trade in goods and services. India will reduce tariffs on European industrial inputs and auto imports, with the latter going to as low as 10% from 110%. In turn, the EU will mostly eliminate tariffs on machinery, chemicals and pharmaceuticals, and cut duties on many agricultural imports.
“This agreement has brought huge opportunities for 1.4 billion people of India and millions of people of European countries,” Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, adding that it represents about 25% of global GDP and about a third of global trade. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the deal created a “free-trade zone for 2 billion people” and deepens ties among “the world’s biggest democracies.”
Artificial Intelligence
Scenes from CES 2026: Driverless cars level up
Exhibitors at this year’s CES in Las Vegas highlighted advancements in driverless technology, agentic AI assistance and autonomous vehicles. Companies such as Waymo, Lucid Group and Tensor Auto are using AI technology to push deeper into Level 4 driverless vehicles, which can be fully automated in specific zones. The next step is Level 5, the highest stage of autonomy, meaning a vehicle can drive anywhere at any time without human input.
While fully driverless vehicles are far from becoming commercially available, AI is helping to make many advancements, S&P Global Market Intelligence Kagan analyst Neil Barbour said.
Private Markets
Good Times, Bad Times: Private Credit and Middle-Market CLOs
Private credit and middle-market collateralized loan obligations (CLOs) benefited from the US economy’s continuing resilience in 2025, S&P Global Ratings said. In the fourth quarter of 2025, the number of credit estimate downgrades matched, instead of exceeded, the number of upgrades for the first time since the third quarter of 2022. Downgrades are forecast to surpass upgrades again in 2026 due to sustained margin pressures on weaker companies, though the pace of downgrades could moderate given a supportive macroeconomy.
S&P Global Ratings expects 2% US GDP growth in 2026, with moderate inflation, and an interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve in the second half of the year. This scenario bodes well for many private credit and middle-market issuers, though risks such as geopolitical challenges, resurgent inflation and AI-related disruption remain.
In case you missed it
- Global equity indices posted strong returns in 2025, with the S&P World Index up 23% and the S&P 500 up 18% year over year. Increasing electricity usage and AI adoption are among the key themes that will continue into 2026.
- Revenue from the US’ largest publicly traded managed care providers is expected to decline amid increasing costs, S&P Global Market Intelligence reported.
- The Philippine cement industry plans to lower its reliance on coal and use more alternative fuels to reduce CO2 emissions.
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