- The session on the US market ended with a solid sell-off. The sell-off spread across almost the entire US stock market, ending the day with solid losses. The S&P 500 finally fell by 0.5%, the Nasdaq retreated by 1.2%, while the Dow Jones was the only one to remain relatively calm and ended the day with a symbolic increase.
- The technology sector remained under significant pressure, with Nvidia suffering particularly badly. The reason for the correction was market fears of a bubble bursting in artificial intelligence.
- As a reminder, two days ago Nvidia published a report in which it boasted record revenues and profits, partly as a result of huge investment spending by BigTech companies. Markets fear that the current level of revenues may be difficult to maintain, as may high investment spending.
- Although there are signs of some progress in the talks coming out of the Middle East, there are still no concrete breakthroughs that could significantly change the geopolitical and market situation. Markets remain cautious, expecting firm declarations and real decisions, not just diplomatic signals of “constructive dialogue.”
- Inflation in the Tokyo slowed to 1.8% y/y in February, falling below the Bank of Japan's 2% target for the first time in 16 months, although core indicators (excluding fresh food and energy) continue to point to persistent price pressure.
- Japan: Retail sales exceeded forecasts in January, signaling resilience in consumption, while industrial production disappointed relative to expectations, pointing to a mixed picture of economic activity at the start of the year.
- The People's Bank of China (PBOC) set today's USD/CNY reference rate at 6.9228 against an estimate of 6.8428. In addition, the BoC lifted its currency risk reserve to cool the yuan.
- Asian indices are down slightly today, mainly due to a correction in the technology sector on Wall Street, but February is still ending strongly in positive territory, especially in Korea and Japan. Other markets in the region were mixed, with Australia's ASX 200 remaining stable, Chinese indices losing ground, and Hong Kong's Hang Seng rising slightly.
- Corporate news from Wall Street: Block announced the reduction of more than 4,000 jobs (40% of its current workforce), transforming itself into smaller AI-supported teams to increase operational efficiency. Investors responded positively to both the restructuring and the financial results, which translated into a roughly 25% increase in the share price after the close of trading.
- In the precious metals market, gold is rising slightly and testing the $5,200 level, while silver is up more than 2% and is once again hovering around the $90 mark.
- The sentiment on the cryptocurrency market is slightly positive. Bitcoin is up more than 0.2% and testing the USD 67,800 level, while Ethereum is also gaining about 0.2%, reaching USD 2,040.
Daily summary: Semiconductors, US dollar and oil put pressure on Wall Street
PayPal shares slide 5% as Semafor denies Stripe acquisition rumors📉
US dollar strengthens, pressuring EUR/USD, silver and Bitcoin 📉
Oil surges almost 2% amid US - Iran tensions 📈
