Oil prices stabilized on Thursday (February 12th), as the market reassigned a risk premium to US-Iran tensions despite US inventory data showing swelling domestic supplies. This movement confirms one thing: geopolitical headlines are still more "noise" than signals of a short-term surplus. As of 3:50 PM WIB, Brent was at $69.60/barrel (+0.29%) and WTI was at $64.83/barrel (+0.31%). The gains were moderate, but enough to keep prices near the psychological $70 level for Brent. From a geopolitical perspective, market focus is on the potential for escalation in the Middle East. Recent reports...
Asia-Pacific markets traded largely lower Thursday as investors await the Bank of Korea policy decision. Japan's Nikkei 225 slid 0.52%, while the Topix tumbled 0.33%. South Korea's Kospi lost 0.43% and the small-cap Kosdaq dipped 0.15%. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.1%. Australian rare earths producer Lynas Rare Earths plans to raise about A$750 million ($488 million) through a discounted share sale to boost its processing and exploration activities. The miner will issue stock at A$13.25, about a 10% discount compared to its last close. The company also announced that its shares have...
The S&P 500 ticked higher on Wednesday as investors turned their eyes to Nvidia earnings, which could be a make-or-break moment for the bull market. The broad market index ended the day up 0.2% at 6,481.38, setting a fresh all-time closing high. The Nasdaq Composite closed up 0.2% at 21,590.14 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 147 points, or 0.3%, to finish at 45,565.11. Shares of Nvidia, which account for roughly 8% of the S&P 500 and has the biggest weight in the benchmark according to FactSet data, were little changed. The market has been largely looking past Trump's...
Europe's STOXX 600 recovered slightly on Wednesday after a selloff in the previous session, as investors eyed political risks in France and awaited earnings from artificial intelligence chip leader Nvidia. The pan-European STOXX 600 index closed up 0.1%, a day after registering its largest drop in nearly a month. Most other regional bourses, however, closed in the red. France's CAC 40 bounced back 0.4% from a three-week low hit in the previous session's selloff sparked by concerns over a potential collapse of Prime Minister Francois Bayrou's government next month. Three main opposition...
US stocks were relatively close to the flatline on Wednesday, extending the tight range of trading this week to remain close to record highs as markets positioned for the release of Nvidia's results after today's closing bell, a bellwether for global artificial intelligence demand and confidence. The three main indices were close to the flatline. Nvidia was flat as it is expected to report a 37% growth in earnings in its second financial quarter, but markets will also scrutinize CEO Huang's rhetoric on the outlook of AI revenues after markets showed concerns of frothiness in tech stocks, in...
The Hang Seng Index plunged 323 points, or 1.3%, to close at 25,202 on Wednesday (August 27), reversing early gains and marking a second day of declines as selling swept across sectors. Sentiment worsened after several Chinese brokerages and asset managers reportedly reduced financing and limited purchases amid growing risks from the recent surge in Chinese stocks. Trading volume on Chinese stock exchanges reached CNY 3.1 trillion on Tuesday, the second-highest in history. Investors also grew cautious ahead of Nvidia's earnings release today and Friday's PCE index. Data-wise, China's...
European markets opened higher Wednesday as traders gear up for a quarterly earnings report from chipmaker Nvidia The Nasdaq-listed stock has become a bellwether for the global technology sector, particularly regarding the progress of the artificial intelligence boom, as its major corporate customers include Microsoft, Google, Meta and Amazon Its value has soared in recent years, giving it the biggest weighting in the S&P 500 and an outsized influence on U.S. market performance. The company will report after U.S. markets close on Wednesday. France's CAC 40 index rebounded 0.4%...
The Nikkei 225 Index rose 0.3% to close at 42,520 while the broader Topix Index slipped 0.07% to 3,070 on Wednesday, with Japanese shares showing mixed performances as investors awaited Nvidia's earnings report, expected to offer fresh insight into the durability of the artificial intelligence trade. Sentiment was also pressured by political uncertainty after US President Donald Trump's unprecedented removal of Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, a move that heightened concerns about the US central bank's independence. Domestically, investors looked ahead to key economic data due later...
The Hang Seng Index opened 101 points higher, or 0.39%, at 25,626 points. The China Enterprises Index rose by 33 points, or 0.36%, to 9,181, while the Hang Seng Tech Index advanced 32 points, or 0.55%, to 5,814. Technology stocks demonstrated steady performance, with Tencent up 0.5%, Xiaomi Group rising 0.7%, and Kuaishou gaining 0.6%. Meanwhile, Alibaba, Meituan, and JD.com remained unchanged. Financial stocks showed mixed results. HSBC Holdings gained 0.7%, AIA Group rose 0.3%, but Ping An Insurance dropped 0.7%, and Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing added 0.5%. Automotive stocks...
Gold rises in the early Asian trade. There's a broad commodities uptrend, driven by macro uncertainty, a weaker dollar, and persistent demand for "hard" assets, says Fawad Razaqzada, market analyst...
Oil extended declines after OPEC+ agreed to a bigger-than-expected production increase next month, raising concerns about oversupply just as US tariffs fan fears about the demand outlook.
Brent...
The Japanese Yen (JPY) weakened against its US counterpart and reversed part of Friday's recovery from the lowest level since July 23 following Bank of Japan (BOJ) Governor Kazuo Ueda's remarks....