- Despite moderate, cautious optimism at the start of the session, sentiment on Wall Street deteriorated as trading progressed. Small gains turned into meaningful declines. Nasdaq and Russell futures are down the most, by around 0.8%. S&P 500 and Dow are ending the week somewhat better, though still in the red, with declines of roughly 0.7% and 0.4%, respectively.
- The U.S. has decided to temporarily suspend the enforcement of sanctions—via the Treasury Department—against some Russian oil tankers.
- Statements from the U.S. administration regarding further developments in Iran remain inconsistent, but a large part of the market appears to be clinging to the hope that the Pentagon still has the situation relatively under control and that the closure of the Strait of Hormuz is temporary. In this context, speculation about a possible ground invasion of Iran is appearing more frequently.
- PCE inflation came in close to market expectations. Core PCE rose to 3.1%, while headline PCE cooled to 2.8%. Personal spending also rose above expectations, reaching 0.4% in January.
- Q4 GDP QoQ came in at only half of the expected 1.4%, printing at 0.7%. A slowdown is also visible in durable goods orders, which posted 0% growth in January.
- Adobe is down about 6% after the company’s CEO announced plans to step down without naming potential successors.
- Concerns over energy prices and potential rate hikes are pushing European indices lower. The STOXX 600 ends the session down 0.6%.
- UK economic growth continues to slow, reaching 0.8% YoY. Industrial and manufacturing output in the UK also came in below expectations.
- Inflation in France was lower than expected, at 0.9% YoY.
- Zalando rose 6% following strong results and better-than-expected guidance.
- In FX, the U.S. dollar is strengthening noticeably—investors’ inflation concerns appear to outweigh growth worries. NZD and AUD are among the biggest losers versus the USD, down around 1%. The euro, CAD, and pound are down close to 0.7%.
- In agricultural commodities, wheat is up about 2%, while coffee is down more than 2%.
- In energy, oil remains at significantly elevated levels. Brent ends the week above $100 per barrel, while WTI is notably lower at around $95 per barrel. Natural gas (NATGAS) is down more than 3%.
- Both industrial and precious metals are selling off.
- The biggest industrial-metal decliners are aluminium (down 2.8%) and nickel (down more than 2%).
- Among precious metals, platinum and silver post the largest losses—around 4%. Silver holds near $80 per ounce, gold remains around $5,000, and platinum near $2,000.
- Risk sentiment appears moderately supportive for crypto markets. Bitcoin gains more than 1% and is attempting to reach the $71,000 level. Ethereum is doing better, up around 1.7% with prices near $2,100. Solana gains even more, rising 3% and holding around $88.
AUDUSD loses nearly 1% 📉
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