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 marked by twin fears of a bubble in the artificial-intelligence trade and of the technology’s disruptive power.
Futures on the US benchmark were 0.3% lower after Thursday’s selloff in chipmakers erased gains for the week. Europe’s Stoxx 600 was on track for an eighth straight 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 extended gains on Friday, with the 10-year note on track for its best month in a year after yields tumbled 25 basis points in February to below 4.00%. The dollar was set for a fourth straight monthly loss. Gold traded flat, with prices headed for a seventh consecutive monthly advance. Oil rose.
The cross-asset moves reflect sustained demand for havens amid policy uncertainty from the Trump administration, elevated geopolitical tensions and questions about the strength of US economic growth.
Later Friday, producer-price data for January is expected to show a slowdown from the prior month, though Bloomberg Intelligence sees components that feed into the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge coming in hot.
Among individual stocks, Netflix Inc. was a standout in premarket trading, rising 7% after dropping out of the bidding for Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. Dell Technologies Inc. surged 12% following a strong sales forecast for its AI servers. Block Inc. jumped 19% after saying it will reduce its workforce by nearly half in a bet that artificial intelligence will reshape productivity.
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. Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena SpA plans to return about €16 billion ($19 billion) to investors through 2030 as Chief Executive Officer Luigi Lovaglio seeks to reap benefits from the acquisition of Mediobanca SpA. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and Equinix Inc. have agreed to acquire atNorth Holding AB, a pan-Nordic data center operator owned by Partners Group Holding AG. Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
The Stoxx Europe 600 rose 0.2% as of 9:46 a.m. London time S&P 500 futures fell 0.3% Nasdaq 100 futures fell 0.2% Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.4% The MSCI Asia Pacific Index was little changed The MSCI Emerging Markets Index fell 0.6% Currencies
The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed The euro was little changed at $1.1804 The Japanese yen was little changed at 156.12 per dollar The offshore yuan fell 0.2% to 6.8555 per dollar The British pound was little changed at $1.3488 Cryptocurrencies
Bitcoin was little changed at $67,452.52 Ether fell 0.7% to $2,016.73 Bonds
The yield on 10-year Treasuries declined two basis points to 3.99% Germany’s 10-year yield was little changed at 2.68% Britain’s 10-year yield declined two basis points to 4.26% Commodities
Brent crude rose 1.2% to $71.58 a barrel Spot gold was little changed This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.
–With assistance from Neil Campling and James Hirai.
©2026 Bloomberg L.P.
