S&P 500 Faces February Loss as Europe, Asia Rally: Markets Wrap
(Bloomberg) — The S&P 500 is set for a monthly loss after a whirlwind February in which twin fears of a bubble in the artificial-intelligence trade and of the technology’s disruptive power drove sharp swings.
Futures on the US benchmark were 0.2% lower after Thursday’s selloff in chipmakers erased the gauge’s gains for the week. Europe’s Stoxx 600 was on track for an eighth consecutive monthly advance, its longest such streak in more than a decade. MSCI Inc.’s Asia-Pacific index headed for its best February on record.
The disruptive potential of AI has rattled US equities for weeks in what traders have dubbed the “AI scare trade.” The technology’s bellwethers have also lost momentum after powering S&P 500 gains for years, prompting investors to rotate into markets abroad and companies tied to broader economic growth.
“The outperformance highlights the possibility of a lingering overvaluation in some asset classes in the US, as well as doubts about the independence of the Federal Reserve’s future monetary policy,” said Guillermo Hernandez Sampere, head of trading at asset manager MPPM. “Barring an economic downturn in Europe, the outperformance should continue.”
Treasuries were little changed on Friday, with the 10-year note on track for its best month in a year after yields tumbled 24 basis points in February to around 4.00%. The dollar was headed for a fourth straight monthly loss. Gold traded flat, with prices headed for a seventh consecutive monthly advance.
Corporate Highlights:
Netflix Inc. dropped out of the fight to buy Warner Bros. Discovery Inc., clearing the way for rival bidder Paramount Skydance Corp. to clinch its $111 billion deal for the historic Hollywood studio. Jack Dorsey’s Block is cutting 4,000 employees, reducing its workforce by nearly half, in a move the financial technology firm is describing as a bet on artificial intelligence changing the future of labor productivity. Dell Technologies Inc. shares jumped in extended trading after the company gave an outlook for sales of its artificial intelligence servers that exceeded estimates. BASF SE expects roughly flat earnings this year as the German manufacturer continues its cost-savings push in a difficult chemicals market. Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
S&P 500 futures fell 0.3% as of 6:54 a.m. London time Nasdaq 100 futures fell 0.2% The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 0.2% Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 1.1% The Shanghai Composite rose 0.4% Euro Stoxx 50 futures were little changed Currencies
The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed The euro was little changed at $1.1805 The Japanese yen rose 0.2% to 155.88 per dollar The offshore yuan fell 0.1% to 6.8527 per dollar The British pound was little changed at $1.3469 Cryptocurrencies
Bitcoin rose 0.4% to $67,716.91 Ether rose 0.3% to $2,036.83 Bonds
The yield on 10-year Treasuries was little changed at 4.00% Japan’s 10-year yield declined four basis points to 2.110% Australia’s 10-year yield declined five basis points to 4.65% Commodities
Spot gold was little changed West Texas Intermediate crude rose 0.8% to $65.70 a barrel This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.
–With assistance from Neil Campling and James Hirai.
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