Public Markets 3h Briefing
×Commodity Markets
Gold wsj.com edged higher in early Asian trading on possible position adjustments, though the precious metal dipped for a second day bloomberg.com on reduced expectations of near-term Fed rate cuts. Meanwhile, oil bloomberg.com gained as traders weighed the odds of a US-Iran nuclear agreement ahead of talks.
Equities
Asian stocks bloomberg.com looked set to climb after a technology-led rally on Wall Street, while the Nasdaq wsj.com bounced back following an AMD-Meta deal on AI chips. In Japan, a new corporate governance revision may unlock $840 billion bloomberg.com in cash held by listed companies, potentially driving another wave of stock market buying.
Corporate Earnings
HSBC bloomberg.com faces an earnings test with revenue prospects and a subsidiary buyout in focus as shares hover near record highs. Cava wsj.com reported a 21% revenue rise in Q4, driven by higher prices and new restaurant openings, while Lucid wsj.com cut its US workforce by 12% and reported wider losses. HP wsj.com dialed down fiscal-year expectations due to rising memory chip costs, sending shares lower after hours wsj.com.
Healthcare & Finance
Elevance Health bloomberg.com executive Catherine Gaffigan highlighted utilization as a key driver of rising healthcare costs. PayPal investing.com extended its rally after a report suggested Stripe may be interested in acquiring all or parts of the company. Meanwhile, bond traders are betting on Fed cuts bloomberg.com continuing into 2027 instead of raising rates.