US markets weren’t sure which direction to go in overnight. The blue-chip Dow Jones index made some progress but the tech-heavy Nasdaq and S&P500 moved in the other direction.
A US Justice Department subpoena issued as part of an investigation into Nvidia’s antitrust practices involving its AI-chip customer allocations cut the stock 1.7%, having lost US$279 billion from its market value on Tuesday.
Apple also fell 0.9% and Amazon 1.7% but Alphabet lifted 0.39% and Tesla 4.18% after a strong sales lift in the Chinese market.
Dollar Tree slumped 22.2% after trimming annual sales and profit forecasts, and Verizon Communications fell 3.4% on reports the telecom is in advanced talks to acquire rival Frontier Communications.
Overall, the Dow lifted 0.1% or 38 points but the Nasdaq slipped 0.3% or 52 points and the S&P500 fell 0.2%.
In Europe, major indexes fell in overnight trading. Tech stocks fell in step with the Nasdaq, shedding 3.2% to a one-month low.
Eurozone producer prices fell less than the expected 2.5%, notching a 2.1% decline.
The FTSE300 slid 1.1% to hit a two-week low and the FTSE100 lost 0.4%
Currencies and commodities
The US dollar fell in overnight trading. The Euro gained from US$1.1040 to near US$1.1085, the Aussie from US$0.6695 to US$0.672 and the Japanese Yen from 145.31 yen per US dollar to near 143.75 yen.
Oil prices continued to slide on mixed signals from crude producers. Brent fell US$1.05 (1.4%) to hit its lowest point since June 2023 at US$72.70 per barrel while US Nymex fell US$1.14 (1.6%) to US$69.20 per barrel.
Base metals also suffered. Copper futures fell 0.3%, aluminium 0.1% and iron ore took a beating, down US$7.62 (7.6%) to US$92.93 per tonne, the lowest level since 2022, amid growing concerns about China's struggling steel industry.
Gold rose on a weaker US dollar, adding US$3.00 (0.1%) to US$2,526 per ounce as spot gold traded near US$2,495 per ounce.
On the small cap front
The ASX Small Ordinaries shed 2.55% yesterday, mirroring the ASX200’s slightly less dramatic 1.91% fall.
You can read about the following and more throughout the day on our website.
- Provaris Energy Ltd (ASX:PV1, OTC:GBBLF) has kicked off a co-operative work program with Uniper for regional hydrogen supply to Germany, aiming to supply 40,000 tonnes per year of RFNBO-compliant hydrogen.
- Far East Gold Ltd (ASX:FEG, OTC:FEGDF) has secured Hsing Yip Gold (Hong Kong) Mine Company Limited, a subsidiary of major miner Xingye, as a strategic investor, with $14 million in funding in return for a 19.99% stake in FEG’s stock.
- Nova Minerals Ltd (ASX:NVA, OTCQB:NVAAF) has collected bulk antimony samples from its Stibium and Styx prospects for metallurgical test work on the highly sought-after critical mineral at the Estelle Gold and Critical Minerals District.
- Prescient Therapeutics Ltd (ASX:PTX, OTC:PSTTF) has received a renewed share price target of 11.6c per share base case and 16.4c per share in an optimistic case from Pitt Street Research.