Market Update 12/02/2025

Stock Market Performance:
US stocks showed mixed results, with Nasdaq down 0.2% while the Dow Jones rose 0.3%. Wall Street started weak but recovered to flat by midday. European markets generally closed higher, with Germany’s DAX leading the gains at 0.6%, and the STOXX index up 0.1%. In Asia-Pacific markets, Chinese stocks fell, with the Hang Seng Index down 1.1% and the Shenzhen Index down 0.5%. Australia’s ASX 200 closed flat, with gains and losses across sectors offsetting each other. Japanese markets were closed for a holiday.

Currency Markets:
The US dollar weakened overall, with major currencies generally gaining against it. EUR/USD rose on positive French unemployment data, while GBP/USD declined due to Bank of England comments. USD/JPY bucked the trend, rising to a high of 152.60. AUD/USD traded in a narrow range but briefly approached 0.6300 following comments by Ukrainian President Zelensky about possible territorial exchanges with Russia (according to a Guardian interview). USD/CAD was little affected by Canadian building permit data.

Bonds and Commodities:
The US 10-year Treasury yield edged up to 4.51%. Brent crude oil found support above $76.50 per barrel.

Economic Data:
The US NFIB Small Business Optimism Index came in below expectations at 102.8 (forecast 104.7). Canadian building permits for December increased by 11.0%, better than expected.

Central Bank Developments:
Federal Reserve Chair Powell stated there’s no rush to adjust interest rates and that policy is prepared for risks, leading to higher yields.

Geopolitics:
Ukrainian President Zelensky hinted at possible territorial exchanges with Russia, causing a slight increase in risk sentiment and short-term impacts on currency markets.