Market Update 21/02/2025

U.S. Markets:
Wall Street experienced a weak night. Late in the trading session, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.3%, the Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.8%, and the S&P 500 declined 0.7%. Throughout the trading day, U.S. stocks continued to decline, mainly influenced by the situation in Ukraine and economic data. The U.S. 10-year Treasury yield slightly decreased to 4.5%, reflecting increased investor demand for safe-haven assets.

Commodity Markets:
Oil prices rose 1.2% to $76.90 per barrel, indicating that energy demand remains strong. Brent crude oil prices saw buying support above $76.25 per barrel.

Foreign Exchange Markets:
The U.S. dollar was broadly weaker. The USD/JPY rate broke below the 150 level, reaching a low of 149.40. AUD/USD was near its high of 0.6403 before the Asian open, then climbed to 0.6370 following strong January employment data, but later fell to a low of 0.6329. Eventually, AUD/USD broke through 0.6400, reaching a high of 0.6403. NZD/USD rose to 0.5767. EUR/USD increased to 1.04985, and GBP/USD rose to 1.26625. USD/CAD fell to 1.41705.

Asian Stock Markets:
On Thursday, Asian stock markets generally declined. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 1.6%, Japan’s Nikkei Index dropped 1.2%, and China’s Shenzhen Component Index decreased 0.3%. Australia’s ASX Index slid 1.1%, with financial, healthcare, and real estate sectors all falling 2.0%.

European Stock Markets:
European stock markets opened facing the impact of weak German Producer Price Index for January (month-on-month -0.1%, expected 0.6%). The UK’s FTSE 100 Index fell 0.3%, while Germany’s DAX Index, the European Stoxx Index, and France’s CAC Index saw small gains.

Economic Data:
Australia’s January employment data was strong (44,000 increase month-on-month, expected 20,000). U.S. weekly initial jobless claims were slightly higher than expected at 219,000 (expected 215,000). The U.S. Philadelphia Fed February Business Outlook Survey fell to 18.1, lower than the previous 44.3 but higher than the expected 14.3. The U.S. January Leading Indicators decreased 0.3%, lower than the expected 0.1% decline.

Political News:
Ukraine accused Russia of airstrikes on gas infrastructure, while Trump showed increasing impatience with the situation. A scheduled press conference with Ukrainian President Zelensky and U.S. envoy Kellogg was canceled at the request of the U.S., leading to further declines in Wall Street stocks after the news was released.