Market wrap: European indices outperform US stocks ahead of the opening bell on Wall Street 📉

US stock futures fell on Friday as investors waited for President Trump’s decision on the next Federal Reserve chair. Markets are increasingly pricing in Kevin Warsh as the likely Fed pick, following reports he may be Trump’s choice. However, European stocks are performing well, with German DAX up almost 0,5% (supported by 4% Adidas shares rebound) and slightly gaining British FTSE and French CAC40. 

S&P 500 futures dropped almost 1%, Nasdaq 100 futures sank 1.2%, and Dow futures slid 0.7%, pointing to another risk-off session (especially for tech). The most important macro data scheduled for today will be US PPI at 12:30 PM GMT and Chicago PMI 1:45 PM GMT

• Kevin Warsh is viewed as relatively hawkish, with a history of being tougher on inflation, although he has recently supported rate cuts, aligning more with Trump’s messaging.

• Trump reportedly met Warsh at the White House on Thursday and said he would announce his Fed nominee on Friday morning.

• The US dollar strengthened as betting shifted toward Warsh, while Treasury yields moved higher, led by the 30-year yield (+5 bps).

• Gold and silver sold off sharply, cooling what had been an overheated rally.

  • Gold fell heavily (roughly 4–7% intraday, depending on the moment).

  • Silver plunged dramatically (over 10%, with some reports noting even deeper drops).

  • Platinum also dropped steeply (around 10%+).

• Beyond the Fed story, trade tensions are back in focus:

  • Trump threatened a 50% tariff on Canadian aircraft imports.

  • He also warned the US could decertify new jets from companies like Bombardier, citing certification barriers against US Gulfstream jets.

  • Mexico may face new levies after Trump pledged tariffs on countries supplying oil to Cuba.

• Big Tech earnings were mixed, and Apple’s report did little to lift sentiment:

  • Apple shares were flat premarket after beating profit expectations, supported by record iPhone sales.

  • CEO Tim Cook warned that a global memory shortage could pressure future margins.

• Sandisk (SNDK.US) surged 20% premarket after strong results and upbeat guidance, extending a massive YTD rally. Earnings pare share came in almost 100% higher than expected.

  • The company cited surging demand tied to AI-driven memory and storage needs, with a big jump in its data center segment.

• The day’s key earnings to watch include Exxon and Chevron (before the open), plus American Express and Verizon.

• Despite the volatility, major US indexes were still mostly up for the week, and all were tracking January gains, with the Dow slightly lagging.

• Perplexity reportedly signed a $750M, three-year cloud deal with Microsoft Azure, expanding beyond its longtime reliance on AWS and gaining access to frontier models via Microsoft’s Foundry ecosystem.

Charts of the US500 and DE40 (D1 interval)

Source: xStation5

Source: xStation5