fix(yahoo): read a symbol's news from Yahoo search when its quote feed is empty (#1467, #1469)

- an empty quote feed falls back to the search articles tagged with the symbol
- when search has no article tagged with the symbol, or neither source answers, Yahoo news is unavailable, so a configured next vendor serves the call
- articles from search never make an empty window read as no news

tests/test_news_lookahead.py

@@ -106,7 +106,11 @@ def test_global_news_empty_after_filter_is_informative(monkeypatch):
     assert "unavailable" in out and "not an absence" in out
 
 
-def _ticker_with(articles, monkeypatch):
+def _ticker_with(articles, monkeypatch, search_news=(), search_quotes=("AAPL",)):
+    """A quote feed answering ``articles``, and a search answering the rest.
+
+    By default the search knows the symbol but has no articles, i.e. Yahoo answered.
+    """
     class FakeTicker:
         def __init__(self, *a, **k):
             pass
@@ -114,7 +118,17 @@ def _ticker_with(articles, monkeypatch):
         def get_news(self, count=20):
             return articles
 
+    searched = []
+
+    class FakeSearch:
+        def __init__(self, query, **k):
+            searched.append(query)
+            self.news = list(search_news)
+            self.quotes = [{"symbol": s} for s in search_quotes]
+
     monkeypatch.setattr(ynews.yf, "Ticker", FakeTicker)
+    monkeypatch.setattr(ynews.yf, "Search", FakeSearch)
+    return searched
 
 
 @pytest.mark.unit
@@ -163,17 +177,135 @@ def test_coverage_gap_boundaries(dates, expect_gap):
 
 @pytest.mark.unit
 def test_ticker_news_empty_feed_for_a_past_window_is_unavailable(monkeypatch):
+    from tradingagents.dataflows.errors import VendorUnavailableError
+
     _ticker_with([], monkeypatch)
-    out = ynews.get_news_yfinance("AAPL", "2026-08-07", "2026-08-14")
-    assert "unavailable" in out and "not an absence" in out
+    with pytest.raises(VendorUnavailableError):
+        ynews.get_news_yfinance("AAPL", "2026-08-07", "2026-08-14")
 
 
 @pytest.mark.unit
 def test_ticker_news_null_feed_is_handled(monkeypatch):
-    # Yahoo can return None instead of a list; that is unavailability, not an error.
+    # Yahoo can return None instead of a list; that is unavailability, not a crash.
+    from tradingagents.dataflows.errors import VendorUnavailableError
+
     _ticker_with(None, monkeypatch)
-    out = ynews.get_news_yfinance("AAPL", "2026-08-07", "2026-08-14")
-    assert "unavailable" in out and "Error" not in out
+    with pytest.raises(VendorUnavailableError):
+        ynews.get_news_yfinance("AAPL", "2026-08-07", "2026-08-14")
+
+
+def _tagged(title, day, *tickers):
+    return {"title": title, "publisher": "P", "link": "l",
+            "providerPublishTime": _epoch(day), "relatedTickers": list(tickers)}
+
+
+@pytest.mark.unit
+def test_an_empty_quote_feed_falls_back_to_the_articles_search_tags_with_the_symbol(monkeypatch):
+    today = datetime.now(UTC).strftime("%Y-%m-%d")
+    searched = _ticker_with([], monkeypatch, search_news=[
+        _tagged("ABOUT AAPL", today, "AAPL", "MSFT"),
+        _tagged("ABOUT GIS", today, "GIS"),
+    ])
+    out = ynews.get_news_yfinance("AAPL", today, today)
+    assert searched == ["AAPL"]
+    assert "ABOUT AAPL" in out and "ABOUT GIS" not in out
+
+
+@pytest.mark.unit
+def test_a_quote_feed_with_articles_is_not_searched(monkeypatch):
+    today = datetime.now(UTC).strftime("%Y-%m-%d")
+    searched = _ticker_with([_tagged("FEED", today)], monkeypatch)
+    out = ynews.get_news_yfinance("AAPL", today, today)
+    assert "FEED" in out and searched == []
+
+
+@pytest.mark.unit
+def test_news_neither_yahoo_source_answers_is_a_vendor_outage(monkeypatch):
+    from tradingagents.dataflows.errors import VendorUnavailableError
+
+    today = datetime.now(UTC).strftime("%Y-%m-%d")
+    _ticker_with([], monkeypatch, search_quotes=())
+    with pytest.raises(VendorUnavailableError):
+        ynews.get_news_yfinance("AAPL", today, today)
+
+
+@pytest.mark.unit
+def test_a_yahoo_news_outage_moves_to_the_next_configured_vendor(monkeypatch):
+    from unittest.mock import patch
+
+    from tradingagents.dataflows import router
+    from tradingagents.dataflows.config import get_config, set_config
+
+    _ticker_with([], monkeypatch, search_quotes=())
+    calls = []
+
+    def other_vendor(*a, **k):
+        calls.append(a)
+        return "OTHER VENDOR NEWS"
+
+    saved = dict(get_config()["data_vendors"])
+    set_config({"data_vendors": {**saved, "news_data": "yfinance,alpha_vantage"}})
+    try:
+        with patch.dict(router.VENDOR_METHODS, {"get_news": {
+            "yfinance": ynews.get_news_yfinance, "alpha_vantage": other_vendor,
+        }}):
+            out = router.route_to_vendor("get_news", "AAPL", "2026-10-01", "2026-10-02")
+    finally:
+        set_config({"data_vendors": saved})
+    assert out == "OTHER VENDOR NEWS" and len(calls) == 1
+
+
+@pytest.mark.unit
+def test_search_results_never_count_as_an_absence_of_news(monkeypatch):
+    # Search returns a sparse, relevance-picked sample: nothing in a window it
+    # reaches is still no proof that no news was published.
+    today = datetime.now(UTC).strftime("%Y-%m-%d")
+    _ticker_with([], monkeypatch, search_news=[
+        _tagged("NEWER", today, "AAPL"), _tagged("OLDER", "2026-01-05", "AAPL"),
+    ])
+    out = ynews.get_news_yfinance("AAPL", "2026-03-01", "2026-03-08")
+    assert "No news found" not in out
+    assert "unavailable" in out and "not an absence" in out
+    assert "NEWER" not in out and "OLDER" not in out
+
+
+@pytest.mark.unit
+def test_a_symbol_yahoo_has_no_articles_for_is_left_to_the_next_vendor(monkeypatch):
+    # With its quote feed down, Yahoo serving no article about a symbol it knows
+    # (every non-US listing today) says nothing about the company's news.
+    from tradingagents.dataflows.errors import VendorUnavailableError
+
+    today = datetime.now(UTC).strftime("%Y-%m-%d")
+    _ticker_with([], monkeypatch, search_quotes=("SHEL.L",),
+                 search_news=[_tagged("ABOUT SHEL", today, "SHEL")])
+    with pytest.raises(VendorUnavailableError, match="SHEL.L"):
+        ynews.get_news_yfinance("SHEL.L", today, today)
+
+
+@pytest.mark.unit
+def test_search_tags_are_matched_whatever_their_case(monkeypatch):
+    today = datetime.now(UTC).strftime("%Y-%m-%d")
+    _ticker_with([], monkeypatch, search_news=[_tagged("ABOUT AAPL", today, "aapl")])
+    assert "ABOUT AAPL" in ynews.get_news_yfinance("AAPL", today, today)
+
+
+@pytest.mark.unit
+def test_a_search_with_articles_has_answered_even_without_listing_the_symbol(monkeypatch):
+    today = datetime.now(UTC).strftime("%Y-%m-%d")
+    _ticker_with([], monkeypatch, search_quotes=(),
+                 search_news=[_tagged("ABOUT AAPL", today, "AAPL")])
+    assert "ABOUT AAPL" in ynews.get_news_yfinance("AAPL", today, today)
+
+
+@pytest.mark.unit
+def test_a_search_yahoo_answers_with_not_found_is_an_outage(monkeypatch):
+    from tradingagents.dataflows.errors import VendorUnavailableError
+
+    _ticker_with([], monkeypatch)
+    monkeypatch.setattr(ynews, "yf_retry", lambda fn: [] if "get_news" in repr(fn.__code__.co_names) else None)
+    with pytest.raises(VendorUnavailableError):
+        ynews.get_news_yfinance("AAPL", "2026-10-01", "2026-10-02")
+
 
 
 @pytest.mark.unit

tests/test_symbol_normalization_paths.py

@@ -67,11 +67,20 @@ def test_news_lookup_normalizes_symbol(monkeypatch):
         def get_news(self, count):
             return []
 
+    class FakeSearch:
+        def __init__(self, query, **k):
+            seen["searched"] = query
+            self.news = [{"title": "Gold", "publisher": "P", "link": "l",
+                          "providerPublishTime": 1736150400, "relatedTickers": ["GC=F"]}]
+            self.quotes = [{"symbol": "GC=F"}]
+
     monkeypatch.setattr(ynews.yf, "Ticker", FakeTicker)
+    monkeypatch.setattr(ynews.yf, "Search", FakeSearch)
     monkeypatch.setattr(ynews, "yf_retry", lambda fn: fn())
 
     out = ynews.get_news_yfinance("XAUUSD", "2025-01-01", "2025-01-10")
 
     assert seen["symbol"] == "GC=F"   # news queried with the canonical symbol
+    assert seen["searched"] == "GC=F"
     assert "XAUUSD" in out            # the user's ticker stays in the report
     assert "GC=F" in out              # provenance noted

tradingagents/dataflows/vendors/yahoo/news.py

@@ -8,6 +8,7 @@ from dateutil.relativedelta import relativedelta
 
 from tradingagents.dataflows.config import get_config
 from tradingagents.dataflows.date_window import coverage_gap, in_window
+from tradingagents.dataflows.errors import VendorUnavailableError
 from tradingagents.dataflows.symbols import normalize_symbol
 from tradingagents.dataflows.vendors.yahoo.common import yf_retry
 
@@ -53,21 +54,48 @@ def _extract_article_data(article: dict) -> dict:
     }
 
 
+def _search_news(canonical: str, limit: int) -> tuple[list, bool]:
+    """Yahoo search's articles tagged with ``canonical``, and whether it knows the symbol.
+
+    Search answers when the quote feed is empty, but its articles are a
+    relevance-picked sample, and some are tagged loosely; only those tagged with
+    the symbol are about it.
+    """
+    search = yf_retry(lambda: yf.Search(canonical, news_count=limit))
+    if search is None:  # Yahoo answered "not found": its search is down
+        return [], False
+    tagged = [
+        a for a in (search.news or [])
+        if canonical in (t.upper() for t in a.get("relatedTickers") or [])
+    ]
+    knows = any((q.get("symbol") or "").upper() == canonical for q in search.quotes or [])
+    return tagged, knows or bool(search.news)
+
+
+def _format_articles(articles: list[dict]) -> str:
+    out = ""
+    for data in articles:
+        out += f"### {data['title']} (source: {data['publisher']})\n"
+        if data["summary"]:
+            out += f"{data['summary']}\n"
+        if data["link"]:
+            out += f"Link: {data['link']}\n"
+        out += "\n"
+    return out
+
+
 def get_news_yfinance(
     ticker: str,
     start_date: str,
     end_date: str,
 ) -> str:
-    """
-    Retrieve news for a specific stock ticker using yfinance.
+    """News about ``ticker`` published in the window, from Yahoo Finance.
 
-    Args:
-        ticker: Stock ticker symbol (e.g., "AAPL")
-        start_date: Start date in yyyy-mm-dd format
-        end_date: End date in yyyy-mm-dd format
-
-    Returns:
-        Formatted string containing news articles
+    The symbol's quote feed comes first. When it is empty, Yahoo search serves
+    the articles tagged with the symbol; when it has none, or neither answers,
+    Yahoo news is unavailable, which is not an absence of news, and a configured
+    next vendor is tried. Search results are a sample, so finding none in the
+    window never reads as "no news".
     """
     article_limit = get_config()["news_article_limit"]
     # Query Yahoo with the canonical symbol, like every other yfinance path —
@@ -75,38 +103,35 @@ def get_news_yfinance(
     # returns no news. Keep the user's ticker in the report header.
     canonical = normalize_symbol(ticker)
     resolved = "" if canonical == ticker else f" (resolved to {canonical})"
-    news = yf_retry(lambda: yf.Ticker(canonical).get_news(count=article_limit)) or []
+    subject = f"news for {ticker}{resolved}"
+    feed = yf_retry(lambda: yf.Ticker(canonical).get_news(count=article_limit)) or []
+    articles = [_extract_article_data(a) for a in feed]
+    if not feed:
+        found, answered = _search_news(canonical, article_limit)
+        if not answered:
+            raise VendorUnavailableError(f"Yahoo Finance returned no news response for {canonical}")
+        if not found:
+            # With the quote feed empty, no tagged article says nothing about the
+            # company's news (Yahoo tags no article with most non-US listings).
+            raise VendorUnavailableError(f"Yahoo Finance has no news articles tagged {canonical}")
+        articles = [_extract_article_data(a) for a in found]
 
     start_dt = datetime.strptime(start_date, "%Y-%m-%d")
     end_dt = datetime.strptime(end_date, "%Y-%m-%d")
+    # Keep only articles within the requested window (look-ahead safe).
+    in_range = [a for a in articles if in_window(a["pub_date"], start_dt, end_dt)]
+    if in_range:
+        return f"## {ticker}{resolved} News, from {start_date} to {end_date}:\n\n{_format_articles(in_range)}"
 
-    news_str = ""
-    filtered_count = 0
-
-    for article in news:
-        data = _extract_article_data(article)
-
-        # Keep only articles within the requested window (look-ahead safe).
-        if not in_window(data["pub_date"], start_dt, end_dt):
-            continue
-
-        news_str += f"### {data['title']} (source: {data['publisher']})\n"
-        if data["summary"]:
-            news_str += f"{data['summary']}\n"
-        if data["link"]:
-            news_str += f"Link: {data['link']}\n"
-        news_str += "\n"
-        filtered_count += 1
-
-    if filtered_count == 0:
-        gap = coverage_gap(
-            (_extract_article_data(a)["pub_date"] for a in news),
-            start_date, end_date, "Yahoo Finance news", f"news for {ticker}{resolved}",
-        )
-        return gap or f"No news found for {ticker}{resolved} between {start_date} and {end_date}"
-
-    return f"## {ticker}{resolved} News, from {start_date} to {end_date}:\n\n{news_str}"
-
+    if not feed:
+        return (f"<Yahoo Finance news unavailable for {start_date}..{end_date}: Yahoo search "
+                f"returns only a sample of recent articles about {canonical}, so this is not "
+                f"an absence of {subject}>")
+    gap = coverage_gap(
+        (a["pub_date"] for a in articles),
+        start_date, end_date, "Yahoo Finance news", subject,
+    )
+    return gap or f"No news found for {ticker}{resolved} between {start_date} and {end_date}"
 
 
 def get_global_news_yfinance(
@@ -163,14 +188,7 @@ def get_global_news_yfinance(
         if len(in_window_news) >= limit:
             break
 
-    news_str = ""
-    for data in in_window_news[:limit]:
-        news_str += f"### {data['title']} (source: {data['publisher']})\n"
-        if data["summary"]:
-            news_str += f"{data['summary']}\n"
-        if data["link"]:
-            news_str += f"Link: {data['link']}\n"
-        news_str += "\n"
+    news_str = _format_articles(in_window_news[:limit])
 
     # Nothing fell inside the window -> say so rather than return an
     # empty-bodied report (#993).