| Name | Daily Close | Daily Change | Daily Change (%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dow | 44,627.59 | 71.25 | 0.16% |
| S&P 500 | 6,144.15 | 14.57 | 0.24% |
| Nasdaq | 20,056.25 | 14.99 | 0.07% |
| VIX | 15.27 | -0.08 | -0.52% |
| Gold | 2,949.60 | 0.6 | 0.02% |
| Oil | 72.18 | 0.33 | 0.46% |
US MARKET
Major stock indexes gained on Monday, rebounding after a slide driven by concerns over inflation and US tariff threats. The S&P 500 rose 0.7%. The Nasdaq 100 climbed 1.3%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.4%. The Magnificent Seven Total Return Index advanced 0.9%. The Russell 2000 Index gained 0.4%.
More broadly, the yield on 10-year Treasuries gained one basis point to 4.50%. The Dollar Spot Index rose 0.2%. Gold hit a record high at US$2,900 an ounce.
The advance in equities was led by the market’s most-influential group – technology. Nvidia Corp. extended a five-day surge to 15% while Meta Platforms Inc. rose for a 16th consecutive session. Materials producers were also on the spotlight amid President Donald Trump’s plans to impose 25% tariffs on all US imports of steel and aluminium. United States Steel Corp. and Alcoa Corp. climbed at least 4.4%.
Recent flows data, both prime broker and ETF based, present a picture partly of waning concerns / uncertainty regarding tariffs. Goldman Sachs Group Inc.’s prime brokerage report for the week ended on Feb. 7. Hedge funds emerged as big buyers of US stocks last week in the wake of stronger-than-expected earnings reports, shifting away from a previously bearish stance. They acquired US equities at the fastest pace since November 2024, and resulting in the heaviest net buying of single stocks in more than three years. The activity was heaviest in the information technology sector.
AUSTRALIAN EQUITY MARKET WRAP
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index closed down 0.34%, or 28.6 points, to 8482.80 after earlier falling as much as 0.6%. The negative movement came on the back of Friday U.S. declines (tariff concerns, higher inflation expectations, strong jobs report) in addition to the announcement on Monday about Trump’s tariff plans for aluminium and steel exports. Investor angst about Trump’s tariff plans for aluminium and steel exports – and the impact on global growth – initially weighed on the index, before investors reckoned with the fact that less than 1% of China’s steel exports went to the US in 2024.
From a sector perspective, 8 of 11 sectors finishing in the red. IT, Telco, Materials & Energy and Consumer Discretionary were hardest hit based on a combination of stock specific earnings, higher U.S. bond yields (IT, Telco), and new tariff announcements (Materials). Defensive sectors performed well (Healthcare, Utilities, Staples).
In relation to earnings results, JB-Hi-Fi was a notable result, ending the day down 4.2%. The key driver was the point made in the earnings call that discounting in the retail sector was weighing slightly on gross margins. The stock has had a phenomenal run over the last 12-months (+70%) given the consumer back-drop. The market reaction partly reflects markets questioning whether it can continue to run so hard from a fundamental perspective.
ASX futures are pointing up 27 points or 0.3% to 8461. Reporting results on Tuesday are Breville, CSL, Seven Group and Seven West Media.
The AUD/USD rate increased marginally by 0.1% to 0.6280.