By Lars Mucklejohn
The latest updates on the FTSE 100 and London’s financial markets from City A.M.’s newsroom in the heart of the City of London.
US stocks rebounded on Tuesday, snapping a three-day losing streak, largely driven by a strong comeback in Big Tech stocks.
Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped by 0.76 per cent to 39,112.16, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite showed gains, rising 0.39 per cent to 5,469.30 and 1.26 per cent to 17,717.65, respectively.
Nvidia, an AI chip company, saw a significant increase of 6.8 per cent, bouncing back after three days of declines, contributing to the broader chip sector’s strong performance, with the Philadelphia Semiconductor index climbing 1.8 per cent.
Chips played a major role in helping the S&P 500 technology index recover from a three-day slump. Alphabet and Meta Platforms also boosted the communication services index, with gains of 2.7 per cent and 2.3 per cent, respectively.
In early Asian trading, S&P 500 futures rose 0.31 per cent and Nasdaq futures edged up 0.14 per cent. Over in Europe, EURO STOXX 50 futures increased by 0.14 per cent. The FTSE 100 ended Tuesday down 0.4 per cent, but futures indicated a flat start for Wednesday, with a slight rise of 0.08 per cent to 8,295.5 points.
In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei N225 and Taiwan’s TWII surged, led by chipmakers, following the tech rally in the Nasdaq.
Conversely, Chinese stocks fell, with the blue-chip CSI300 Index and the Shanghai Composite Index both down 0.2 per cent, heading for a 4 per cent decline for the month. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index also dipped by 0.16 per cent.
In the commodities market, oil prices were steady in Asian trading, with Brent crude futures at $85.02 per barrel and US West Texas Intermediate crude futures at $80.9 per barrel.
Gold prices eased to $2,318 per ounce but remain up 12 per cent for the year, having hit a record high of $2,449.89 last month.
FedEx shares surged after-hours on an optimistic forecast and a $2.5 billion share buyback plan for the current fiscal year. They reported $1.47 billion in fourth-quarter net income on $22.1 billion in revenue and announced $2.5 billion in stock repurchases for fiscal 2025, driving a 15 per cent increase in shares Tuesday evening.
Rivian’s stock surged over 35 per cent as Volkswagen plans a $5 billion investment in a software partnership to enhance its electric vehicle lineup, gaining immediate access to Rivian’s EV software to address internal rollout challenges.
Australia’s CPI surged to 4 per cent in May, driven by higher housing and transportation costs. Despite lower fuel prices monthly, year-on-year comparisons rose sharply to 9.3 per cent from April’s 7.4 per cent.
The RBA maintained its benchmark rate at 4.35 per cent last week but cautioned about potential future tightening, with market odds of an August quarter-point hike increasing to 30 per cent from 12 per cent pre-inflation data.
Investors are keeping a close eye on the US housing market, with the Department of Commerce set to report that new home sales were mostly unchanged in May, holding steady at 640,000. Later in the day, the US Treasury will auction off five-year bonds.
Over in Germany, GfK will release its July survey results on consumer confidence.
