US equities futures and European contracts inched upward ahead of testimony from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. Investors also focused on China’s policy meeting after officials announced an ambitious 5% growth target. Equities in Hong Kong rebounded Wednesday, driven by Chinese tech giants Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. and Tencent Holdings Ltd., while JD.com Inc. surged ahead of its fourth-quarter results. Mainland China stocks fell after fluctuating throughout the day. A press conference with senior officials on Wednesday may provide more details around the government’s effort to boost consumption. Central bank Governor Pan Gongsheng will brief journalists, alongside Commerce and Finance ministry chiefs and the new top securities regulator. Elsewhere, Japan’s biggest bank expects the central bank to exit negative interest rate in two weeks and is positioning itself accordingly. Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc.’s view is much more definitive than the swap market, which rates the chances of Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda changing policy this month at about 50%. In corporate news, JM Financial Ltd. plunged in Mumbai after India’s central bank barred its unit from extending loans against shares and bonds, including financing subscriptions to initial public offerings. US benchmark indexes lost traction on Tuesday after a rally that has spurred concern about sky-high valuations, with caution prevailing before Powell heads to Capitol Hill for his semiannual testimony before Congress. Powell is expected to reiterate the lack of urgency to cut rates at his testimony. Wall Street also weighed data showing the US service sector cooled — even as orders and business activity picked up. The S&P 500 dropped 1%, while the Nasdaq 100 slipped almost twice as much. Tesla Inc. extended a two-day selloff to 11%, while Apple Inc. suffered its fifth straight loss. Treasury 10-year yields steadied Wednesday after falling six basis points to 4.15% in the previous session with Australian and New Zealand yields tracking those moves. A gauge of dollar was little changed. Meanwhile, Bitcoin rebounded. It hit a record Tuesday for the first time in more than two years, before rapidly retreating as traders took some profits. Gold was little changed after also surging to a record high in the previous session, as expectations for US rate cuts and geopolitical tensions pushed it higher. Such moves are threatening to send mixed messages about the appetite for risk across global markets. In commodities, oil steadied after a decline as a report showed US inventories are continuing to expand, a sign supply may be running ahead of demand. US After Hours CRWD +25.7%, BASE +12.8%, CDRE +4.1%, BOX +3.4% higher on earnings; MRNS -23.8%, ODD -11.7%, JWN -9.9%, NVEI -7.5% lower on earnings.
Nikkei -0.02% Hang Seng +1.38% CSI -0.33% Shanghai -0.22% Shenzen +0.21%
Eur$ 1.0861 CNH 7.2128 CNY 7.1994 JPY 149.78 GBP 1.2707 CHF 0.8840 RUB 90.9281 TRY 31.7205 WTI$ 78.43 Gold 2,129 +0.08% BTC 65,931 +4.11% ETH 3,769 +6.96%
S&P +0.09% Nasdaq +0.28% EuroStoxx +0.02% FTSE +0.11% Dax +0.06% SMI +0.01%
Macro :
- Sinking Solar Prices Seen as Threat to US Manufacturing
- Convertible Protection-Buying Bullish For Stocks: ECM Watch
Keep an eye on :
Keep an eye on :
- ADKO AV : Addiko FY Dividend per Share EU1.26
- BCG LN : Baltic Classifieds Group Holder Antler Offers Shares
- BARN SW : Chocolate Makers' Prices May Beat Consensus as Cocoa Surges 80%
- BAVA DC : Bavarian Nordic Maintains 2024 Revenue Forecast
- BATS LN : British American Tobacco chief embraces new UK vape tax
- CHRO SS : ChromoGenics Offers SEK15 Million Shares via Vator Securities, Offering of 2.51m Shares Prices at SEK6.44/Share
- CLARI FP : Clariane Seeks Buyer for Belgian, Dutch Operations: Tijd
- CLASB SS : Clas Ohlson 3Q Operating Profit Misses Estimates Clas Ohlson Feb. Sales +17%
- CRBN NA : Corbion Names Peter Kazius as New CFO
- CVC IPO : CVC Capital Mulls Reviving IPO Plans as Soon as April: Sky
- DHL GY : Deutsche Post AG 2024 Ebit Forecast Misses Estimates
- DIE BB : D'Ieteren FY Adjusted Pretax Profit EU970.8M Vs. EU757.9M Y/y
- ELI BB : Elia Group FY Ebitda Misses Estimates
- EQT SS : EQT’s Galderma Seeks to Raise $2.3 Billion in Swiss Listing
- EQT SS : Galderma Targets Equity Raise of About $2.3b in Swiss IPO (1)
- FCT IM : Fincantieri in Talks to Buy Leonardo’s Wass Unit, MF Reports
- HMB SS : H&M Forms Recycled-Polyester Venture With Northvolt Founders
- IDR SM : Indra to Create New Space Unit, Seeks Partner for Minsait Unit
- LDO IM : Fincantieri in Talks to Buy Leonardo’s Wass Unit, MF Reports
- LSEG LN : Blackstone, Thomson Reuters Group Offer 21.5m LSE Group Shares
- LSEG LN : Blackstone, Thomson Reuters Group Offer 21.5m LSE Group Shares
- LHA GY : Lufthansa’s Austrian Unit Cancels 150 Flights in Union Spat
- MOR GY : MorphoSys, Bilfinger to Join MDAX; Rational, Vitesco to Leave
- NHY NO : Norsk Hydro Names Trond Olaf Christophersen Acting CFO
- NOS PL : NOS FY Net Income Beats Estimates
- PCELL SS : PowerCell Gets SEK35m Order After Product Design Approved
- SAABB SS : *FRANCE’S NAVAL GROUP SET TO WIN €2.5BLN DUTCH SUBMARINE DEAL
- SCR FP : Scor 4Q Net Income Misses Estimates
- STG DC : Scandinavian Tobacco 4Q Pretax Profit Misses Estimates
- SY1 GY : Symrise Sees 2024 Ebitda Margin About 20%, Est. 20.3%
- SYNSAM SS : Synsam Holder Theia Holdings Offers 20m Shares: Terms
- TEMN SW : Temenos Reschedules Annual Report Publication to April 15
- UBXN SW : U-blox FY Revenue Misses Estimates
- VMO US : Vimeo Said to Get Interest From App Developer Bending Spoons (1)