Overnight stock market
The three major U.S. stock indexes closed down collectively, with the Dow down 1.47%, the Nasdaq down 2.1 percent, and the S&P 500 down 1.81 percent. The semiconductor sector weakened, with Qualcomm down 5.38%, NXP down more than 5% and Asmay down 3.45%. Internet tech stocks were mostly lower, with Apple down 2.4 percent, Microsoft down 2.8 percent and Google down more than 2 percent. European stocks rose and fell, with Germany's DAX up 0.05%, France's CAC40 down 0.41% and Britain's FTSE 100 up 0.38%.
After U.S. inflation data released Thursday hit its highest level in 40 years, St. Louis Fed President Bullard said he now expects to raise interest rates by one percentage point in the next three Fed policy meetings. Interest rate futures markets show a 60% chance of a 50 basis point rate hike in March, causing U.S. stocks to fall as a result.
Commodity markets
As of the close, U.S. WTI crude futures closed up 0.42 percent at $90.04 a barrel; Brent crude futures fell 0.08 percent at $91.48 a barrel; and oil prices held steady as markets weighed in on possible aggressive and unexpected rate hikes and a sharp rise in energy demand.
LME aluminum fell 0.87% to $3237/ton, while LME copper rose 1.33% to $10192/ton. Aluminum prices have retreated from their highest level in more than 13 years after a surge in inventories reinforced the prospect that supply is not as tight as feared. Copper and other base metals rose as strong inflation data from the United States prompted investors to buy aggressively to hedge against the risk of rising prices.
In precious metals, Comex futures closed down 0.51% at $1827.3 an ounce; Comex futures closed down 0.58% at $23.20 an ounce.
Market news
[The "Normandy Model" Quadripartite Talks to Mediate the Ukraine Crisis Were Held in Berlin, Germany]
On the afternoon of February 10, local time, representatives of government advisers from Germany, France, Russia and Ukraine held a new round of "Normandy model" four-country talks in Berlin, Germany, to mediate the Ukrainian crisis. Previously, the representatives of the four countries held their first round of meetings in Paris, France, on January 26. This is also the first time that the "Normandy model" four-nation talks have been revived after many years of shelving. Before the start of the closed-door talks, German federal government deputy spokesman Buschner said: "All participants are willing to work to reduce the current differences of opinion in order to make further progress." He also reiterated Germany's willingness to actively promote the "Normandy model" and shoulder a special responsibility to contribute, together with France, to easing tensions in Ukraine and its surrounding areas.
[Director of Russia's Foreign Intelligence Agency: Ukraine is preparing for war]
On February 10, Russia's foreign intelligence chief, Nareshkin, told the media that Ukraine was preparing for war intensively and was making no secret of it. All of Ukraine's militant armed forces are already concentrated on the line of contact with Donbass, and hundreds of tons of military equipment and ammunition are being transported to Ukraine from U.S. military bases in Europe, from Britain and Canada. A team of advisers and instructors for NATO special forces is being formed. There was even news of the existence of multinational extremist teams.
[British Prime Minister Visits Poland to Consult on Russia-Ukraine Tensions]
On February 10, local time, British Prime Minister Johnson visited Poland and held talks with Polish Prime Minister Morawiecki and President Duda respectively, and the leaders of the two countries mainly consulted on the regional tensions caused by the current escalation of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict. Moravitsky and Johnson discussed the importance of maintaining the United Front, a NATO ally, in the face of Russia's "hostile behavior," and the heads of government agreed that European security is essential for global stability, stressing the importance of diplomatic dialogue with Russia, while coordinating the participation of more countries in the ongoing sanctions package against Russia.
[US polls show 58% of Americans disapprove of Biden's work under president]
On February 10, local time, a poll conducted from January to February showed that 58% of poll participants in the United States currently disapprove of the way Biden handled his work during his presidency, and only 41% expressed support. According to CNN's analysis, the surge in COVID-19 cases caused by widespread inflation and the Omilton strain has hit Biden's rating hard in the past two months. Since the beginning of December, support for his handling of the economy has fallen by 8 percentage points to 37 percent, while support for his handling of COVID-19 has fallen by 9 percentage points to 45 percent.
[U.S. January CPI rises 7.5% year-on-year to a new high since February 1982]
On the 10th local time, the US Department of Labor released data showing that due to strong consumer demand and supply shortages related to the epidemic, the US Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose by 7.5% year-on-year, reaching the highest since February 1982 due to the pressure on prices. Economists say that means U.S. inflation is above 5 percent for the eighth consecutive month, which would pose a challenge to the Fed, which has been trying to slow price increases without dampening growth.
[France to build six new nuclear reactors, the first one expected to be put into service in 2035]
On the 10th local time, French President Macron delivered a speech expounding France's plan to redevelop nuclear power. He said France will build six new European pressurized water nuclear reactors, and the first one is expected to be operational in 2035. At the same time, he also asked EDF to study a feasible plan for the construction of eight more nuclear reactors. Macron also hopes that SÉles nationale de France will conduct research to increase the service life of existing nuclear reactors to more than 50 years on the basis of ensuring safety, on the other hand, France will no longer shut down existing nuclear reactors as long as safety conditions permit.
【Protest against rising energy prices Lights out of landmark buildings in about 3,000 towns in Italy】
On the evening of February 10, local time, in order to protest the increase in local spending caused by high energy prices, under the organization of the Italian National Association of Towns, about 3,000 Italian towns participated in the anti-high energy price lights-out activities, shutting down the lighting facilities of local landmark buildings for half an hour or an hour. The city of Rome extinguished the city's illumination for an hour that night. Rome's mayor and former Italian Minister of Economy and Finance, Roberto Gualtieri, said high energy prices are expected to add an additional budget burden of 40 million to 50 million euros a year to the city of Rome, and if the state does not provide subsidies, the municipality will be in trouble. He hoped that the government would amend the new energy decree and allocate sufficient financial resources.
[European Commission releases macroeconomic forecast report: Spain will become the second fastest economic growth in the EU this year]
According to the macroeconomic forecast report released by the European Commission on February 10, local time, Spain's GDP is expected to grow by 5.6% in 2022, a slight increase compared with the European Commission's previous economic growth forecast, and Spain will also become the second fastest growing economy in the EU, second only to Malta. The European Union also predicts that the Spanish economy will grow by 4.4% in 2023, which is still far below the Spanish government's forecast for the country's economic recovery.
【Turkey's central bank foreign exchange reserves reached 75.716 billion US dollars】
According to data released by the Turkish central bank on February 10, as of February 4, the Turkish central bank's foreign exchange reserves increased by 4.08 billion US dollars from the previous week to 75.716 billion US dollars. Meanwhile, Turkey's central bank's gold reserves grew by $362 million to $38.939 billion.
[WHO: If countries remain vigilant, Africa is expected to contain COVID-19 within the year]
On February 10, local time, the WHO Regional Office for Africa held an online press conference in Brazzaville, the capital of congo (Brazzaville). According to the content of the press conference, the African continent has experienced four waves of epidemics in the past two years, and the response capacity of countries to each wave of epidemics has gradually improved. If vigilance against COVID-19 is maintained and measures continue to be implemented, the Continent will have the potential to contain the outbreak within the year.
【BlackRock Fourth Quarter 13F Position Disclosure: Steady Increase in Large Technology Stocks】
According to the 13F filing for the fourth quarter released on Thursday, the top five stocks bought by BlackRock in the fourth quarter were Microsoft, NVIDIA, Tesla, Qualcomm and Broadcom, and the reduction of holdings PayPal, Walt Disney, JPMorgan Chase and so on. The first heavy stock is Apple, with a shareholding ratio of 4.61%, and the second heavy stock is Microsoft, with a shareholding ratio of 4.44%.
[SEC proposes to require hedge funds to accelerate disclosure of 5% interests held]
Under the new rules proposed by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), hedge funds and other investors need to disclose the large stake they have bought in a company faster. If you hold a 5% or more stake in a company, the current rule is 10 days to disclose, and according to the plan announced by the SEC on Thursday, this window will be shortened to 5 days.
[Fed Bullard: Tend to add 100 basis points by July 1]
St. Louis Fed President Bullard Bullard said Thursday he supported raising interest rates by a full percentage point in early July, including a 50 basis point hike for the first time since 2000, to tackle the hottest inflation in the United States in nearly four decades. "I hope to see a 100 basis point hike by July 1st... I was already hawkish, but I raised interest rate expectations significantly because I thought the committee should act. ”