Thursday 13th March 2025: Global Markets Mixed as U.S. Inflation Eases and Tech Stocks Rebound

Global Markets:

•  Asian Stock Markets : Nikkei down 0.03%, Shanghai Composite down 0.40%, Hang Seng down 0.88% ASX down 0.48%
• Commodities : Gold at $2948.35 (0.10%), Silver at $33.5 (-0.48%), Brent Oil at $70.75 (-0.05%), WTI Oil at $67.58 (-0.14%)
• Rates : US 10-year yield at 4.296, UK 10-year yield at 4.7245, Germany 10-year yield at 2.8765

News & Data:

• (USD) Core CPI m/m 0.2%  to 0,3% expected
• (USD) CPI m/m 0,2%  to 0.3% expected
• (USD) CPI y/y 2.9%  to 2.9% expected
• (CAD) Overnight rate  2.75%  to 2.75% expected

Markets Update:

Asia-Pacific markets showed mixed trends Thursday after a soft U.S. inflation report helped two of Wall Street’s three benchmarks recover from recent losses. The U.S. consumer price index rose 0.2% month-on-month in February, bringing annual inflation to 2.8%. Vishnu Varathan, head of macro research at Mizhuo Bank, called it “welcome relief” but noted it’s premature for the Federal Reserve to ease its stance.

In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei 225 was flat, while the Topix index edged up 0.18%. Seven & i Holdings climbed 3.6% as Canadian convenience store giant Alimentation Couche-Tard continued efforts to acquire the 7-Eleven operator with a $47 billion bid—the largest-ever foreign buyout in Japan. However, Seven & i has remained resistant, citing regulatory concerns. South Korea’s Kospi and Kosdaq both declined, reversing earlier gains. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 1.2%, while China’s CSI 300 dropped 0.54%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 lost 0.48%, marking its third consecutive day of declines.

Indian stocks gained after inflation cooled to 3.61% in February. Nomura economists predict inflation will stay below 4% in early 2025. The Nifty 50 and BSE Sensex were up 0.15% and 0.16%, respectively. Investors are watching how subdued demand, higher crop output, and lower manufacturing costs will impact inflation trends in the coming months.

On Wall Street, the Nasdaq surged 1.22% as tech stocks rebounded. Nvidia soared 6.4%, AMD rose over 4%, Meta gained 2%, and Tesla jumped more than 7%. The S&P 500 added 0.49%, while the Dow slipped 0.2%. The broader market rally was fueled by investor optimism following the inflation report, which eased concerns about a looming recession.

Upcoming Events: 

• 12:30 PM GMT – USD Core PPI m/m
• 12:30 PM GMT – USD PPI m/m
• 12:30 PM GMT – USD Unemployment Claims

The post Thursday 13th March 2025: Global Markets Mixed as U.S. Inflation Eases and Tech Stocks Rebound first appeared on IC Markets | Official Blog.