Nvidia plans to invest billions in OpenAI. – dado ruvic/Reuters
U.S. stock futures were pretty much flat after all three major indexes hit record highs on Monday, propelled by Nvidia’s plan to invest billions in OpenAI. International stock markets were mixed early on Tuesday, gold pushed to record highs and the dollar was steady.
Ahead, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell is due to speak, with investors keen to hear further clues on how the Fed aims to balance the risks of a weaker labor market against inflation. Flash September PMIs are rolling in.
—In Europe, the pan-European Stoxx Europe 600 gained 0.2% shortly after the open, reflecting modest gains across national indexes. In Amsterdam, semiconductor equipment maker ASM International slipped 4.6% after it cut its earnings guidance. Meanwhile, Sweden’s Riksbank cut its policy rate to 1.75% from 2.00% and signaled it could hold at that level for some time.
—France’s September composite PMI estimate came in below forecasts while Germany’s exceeded expectations.
—Stock markets in Asia ended mixed; South Korea’s Kospi ended up 0.5% driven by gains in semiconductors and pharma, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gave up earlier gains to end down 0.9%. Markets in Japan were closed. China’s benchmark Shanghai Composite declined 0.2%.
—The DXY dollar against a basket of major currencies was steady early in European trade after it hit a three-and-a-half-year low last week, from which it has since recovered. With Fed Chair Powell speaking later, most analysts think he won’t diverge from last week’s press conference where he said further rate moves would be cautious and data-dependent. The DXY index was last at 97.308.
—U.S. Treasury yields were flat to marginally lower. The two-year Treasury yield was flat at 3.599%, the 10-year yield was at 4.140%, down 0.4 basis point, and the 30-year yield was at 4.756%, down 0.6 basis point, according to Tradeweb.
—Gold prices continued to push higher, setting a record high. In early trade, futures rose 0.4% to $3,788.80 a troy ounce after touching $3,795.10 earlier in the session as traders await Powell’s speech for further policy cues. Meanwhile, Fed Gov. Stephen Miran made the case that interest rates are too high in light of a weaker labor market. The precious metal is up 43.5% this year, driven by strong safe-haven demand, ETF inflows, a softer dollar, and continued diversification by central banks away from dollar holdings.