Daily Updates

US stocks closed lower overnight, as market sentiment was dented by a forecast downgrade for major retailer, Walmart, which was seen as another piece of evidence that US consumer demand might be weakening.

US stocks saw further marginal gains overnight, taking the S&P 500 to a new record high. The increases were muted by new tariff threats from US President Donald Trump yesterday morning. US Treasury yields declined slightly, as the FOMC minutes confirmed that the Committee participants were in no rush to cut rates further, but some of them saw a case for a slowdown in Fed balance sheet run-off.

US investors came back from their long weekend in a mixed mood, but the S&P 500 nudged 0.2% higher to a fresh record high following a choppy session. Financial markets look set for some volatility today, after US President Donald Trump announced that he will likely impose tariffs of around 25% on cars, semiconductors, and pharmaceutical products on 2 April.

It was a quiet day in the global financial markets, with US investors away for the Presidents’ Day holiday. The AUD/USD is steady, while Commonwealth bond yields are slightly up ahead of the RBA Board meeting, with a 25bps cut widely expected by market participants.

The S&P 500 dipped in and out of negative territory on Friday before closing the day flat, while US Treasury yields declined as the bigger-than-expected drop in US retail sales in January saw traders drag forward their pricing for the next fed funds rate cut from October to September.

US equities bounced back last night, while US Treasury yields dropped and the greenback depreciated sharply, as US President Donald Trump announced plans to introduce ‘reciprocal’ tariffs on trading partners, albeit not immediately.