U.S. May CPI data is scheduled for release Wednesday at 8:30 a.m. ET, with Wall Street expecting a 0.5% monthly increase and 4.2% year-over-year inflation. Core CPI is projected at 2.9% annually after a 0.3% May rise, as concerns build that higher oil prices are feeding through the broader economy.

U.S. stocks fell on Tuesday, with the S&P 500 down 0.9%, the Nasdaq Composite off 1.8%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average lower by 84 points. The pullback was led by chip names, as the iShares Semiconductor ETF sank nearly 6% and dragged technology shares lower even as oil slipped to around $86 a barrel.

The EU's MiCA transitional period expires on July 1, 2026, after which crypto-asset service providers without a valid license cannot legally access the EU single market. Ahead of the deadline, only 14 firms are authorized to operate a crypto trading platform across the entire EU, while 10 member states have issued no MiCA authorizations. Users may face account migrations or wind-downs, and on regulated EU platforms USDT is effectively blocked while USDC remains compliant.

At IATA’s annual meeting in Rio de Janeiro, airline CEOs focused on surging fuel costs, weakening profitability and reliability problems in new-generation engines. Executives said booking demand has largely held up even as fares rise, while aircraft orders continue because delivery slots for popular models remain scarce.

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative proposed Section 301 tariffs of up to 12.5% on 59 countries and the European Union, arguing that trading partners have failed to curb imports made with forced labor. International Labour Organization estimates put forced-labor victims at 27.6 million people daily and illegal profits at about $236 billion annually. Trade and legal experts said the investigation moved unusually fast for such a complex topic and could face court challenges, while the U.S. has also struggled with enforcement.

Bitget drew about $191 million in net inflows over the last seven days, placing it second among centralized exchanges behind OKX. The move came after Bitget introduced Stocks 2.0 on June 4, enabling USDT-based trading of tokenized U.S. stocks and ETFs. Over the same window, Bybit posted net inflows while Gate.io, HTX, and Bitstamp recorded net outflows.

Allegations outlined in a New York Times investigation say CFTC enforcement staff faced suspensions and internal probes after raising compliance questions about Trump-connected prediction-market applicants. The report also claims digital-asset enforcement slowed sharply in Trump's second term, while Trump-adjacent tokens such as the TRUMP memecoin have remained highly volatile amid regulatory uncertainty.

In May 2026, the crypto sector recorded $3.52B raised across 83 VC rounds, alongside $5.55B of M&A value led by Bullish's $4.2B acquisition of Equiniti. Late-stage and strategic financings accounted for $3.10B (about 88% of VC capital), highlighted by Kalshi's $1.2B Series F and a $670M strategic stake in Dunamu. Investor participation also rebounded to 255 unique backers during the month.