Daily Update — October 20, 2026
Global Economic Momentum; Private Capital in Media Assets; and US Coal Market Outlook
Today is Tuesday, October 20, 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.
Economy
PMI Pulse: October
The global economy gained momentum in September, with worldwide output rising at its fastest pace since the surge after COVID-19 lockdowns ended and new orders growing at the quickest rate since October 2021. This growth was driven by strong investment in technology, particularly AI, which has boosted manufacturing in the US, Taiwan, mainland China and Japan. Additionally, a rebound in consumer spending from earlier lows has helped broaden the economic upturn.
Despite this positive trend, some economies — including the UK, Italy, Australia, Canada and Brazil — are beginning to show signs of slowing growth due to rising costs, political uncertainty and higher borrowing expenses. These challenges highlight that sustained robust global growth is not guaranteed, as headwinds in some regions could temper overall recovery.
Private Markets
Listen: The Growing Role of Private Capital in Movies, Music and AI
In this episode of the "MediaTalk" podcast, Crayhill Capital Management's co-founder and managing partner, Carlos Mendez, joined host Mike Reynolds to talk about the enduring appeal of media assets such as "South Park" and top music labels. Mendez highlighted that such assets generate resilient, long-term cash flows because their royalties follow predictable decay curves. This makes them attractive to institutional investors seeking stable returns.
While AI is reshaping production workflows in the media sector, Mendez said it still falls short of creating content that captivates audiences and delivers lasting value. The biggest risk facing media finance is not technological disruption, but the rising cost of capital.
Energy & Commodities
Export markets buoy US coal prices
Coal market prices rallied in September, driven by stronger natural gas prices and robust export demand. While US coal exports are expected to increase year over year, overall coal volumes are projected to decline as domestic thermal demand remains sensitive to gas prices. Elevated coal stockpiles in 2026 may further limit demand heading into 2027.
High coal stockpiles and competitive gas pricing are expected to constrain coal production through 2027. Although natural gas prices are forecast to normalize after 2027, the US coal market will face continued pressure from expanding solar and wind generation in markets with favorable economics and state policies. The S&P Global Market Indicative Power Forecast projects significant coal plant retirements and reduced utilization through 2035, with coal’s share of total generation expected to drop to 7.2% by 2035 from 16.3% in 2027.
In case you missed it
- Ozinga has completed construction of North America's largest low-carbon cement mill in East Chicago, Indiana, which is expected to produce 1 million metric tons of slag cement annually.
- Brazil exported approximately 1.57 million metric tons of soybean oil in the first eight months of 2026, surpassing shipments for all of 2025, as the country's expanding crushing industry increased soybean oil production to meet strong domestic demand from the biodiesel sector.
- Covestro seeks to consolidate polycarbonate production at its Antwerp site in Belgium from four operational lines to one and discontinue the production of feedstock bisphenol-A, the company said Oct. 15.
Upcoming events
- Novel and promising, but bottlenecked: Q4 2026 Supply Chain Outlook | October 22 (Webinar)
- Global And Asia-Pacific Reinsurance Sector Update | October 28 (Webinar)
- World Biofuels, Ethanol & Feedstocks Conference | November 3-5 (Spain)