Overnight US stocks | The three major indices closed lower this week, with tech stocks generally down. Both US and Brent crude oil prices closed above the $90 mark.

According to Tongtong Finance APP, due to soaring oil prices, February’s non-farm employment data unexpectedly declined, and the unemployment rate rose. On Friday, the three major indices closed lower, recording declines for the week as well: the Dow fell about 3%, the S&P 500 dropped approximately 2%, and the Nasdaq declined 1.24%.

[U.S. Stocks] At the close, the Dow dropped 453.19 points, a 0.95% decrease, to 47,501.55; the Nasdaq fell 361.31 points, a 1.59% decrease, to 22,387.68; the S&P 500 declined 90.69 points, a 1.33% decrease, to 6,740.02. Tech stocks broadly declined, with Nvidia (NVDA.US) down over 3%, Amazon (AMZN.US) down 2.62%, Apple (AAPL.US) down 1.09%, Tesla (TSLA.US) down 2.17%, Google (GOOG.US, GOOGL.US) down 0.87%, Microsoft (MSFT.US) down 0.42%, and Meta Platforms (META.US) down 2.38%.

[European Stocks] Germany’s DAX30 index fell 177.53 points, down 0.75%, to 23,596.56; the UK FTSE 100 declined 127.53 points, down 1.22%, to 10,286.41; France’s CAC40 dropped 52.31 points, down 0.65%, to 7,993.49; the Euro Stoxx 50 decreased 57.44 points, down 0.99%, to 5,725.45; Spain’s IBEX 35 fell 160.14 points, down 0.93%, to 17,085.06; Italy’s FTSE MIB declined 441.05 points, down 0.99%, to 44,167.50.

[Asian Markets] Nikkei 225 rose 0.62%, South Korea’s KOSPI edged up slightly, and Indonesia’s Jakarta Composite Index fell 1.62%.

[Cryptocurrency] Bitcoin dropped over 3.6%, to $68,330.49; Ethereum fell over 4.2%, to $1,984.77.

[Crude Oil] WTI rose 12% on Friday, closing below $91 per barrel, marking the largest single-day gain in nearly six years. Brent crude settled near $93 per barrel. Barclays said on Friday that if Middle East conflicts persist for several weeks, Brent could test $120 per barrel. Barclays added, “These figures may seem high, especially considering the market’s generally pessimistic outlook at the start of the year, but we reaffirm that current fundamentals are stronger, and risks are greater than during the Russia-Ukraine conflict — we saw oil prices reach these levels during that conflict.”

[US Dollar Index] The dollar index fell on the 6th. It declined 0.34% to close at 98.982. At the New York close, 1 euro exchanged for 1.1606 USD, up from 1.1583; 1 British pound exchanged for 1.3400 USD, up from 1.3328. The USD/JPY rate was 157.74, down from 157.77; USD/CHF was 0.7770, down from 0.7827; USD/CAD was 1.3596, down from 1.3697; USD/SEK was 9.1855, down from 9.2657.

[Metals] Spot gold rose 1.8%, to $5,174.77; spot silver increased 2.7%, to $84.509.

[Macro News]

U.S. February Non-Farm Payrolls Unexpectedly Declined, Unemployment Rate Rises to 4.4%. Due to healthcare worker strikes and severe winter weather, the U.S. unexpectedly saw job reductions in February, with the unemployment rate rising to 4.4%. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that non-farm employment decreased by 92,000 jobs last month, with January’s data revised down to a gain of 126,000. Market forecasts ranged from a decrease of 9,000 to an increase of 125,000 jobs. Aside from the strike involving 31,000 healthcare workers at Kaiser Permanente and the impact of harsh weather, the employment decline also represented a correction from January’s strong growth. Economists noted that January’s job gains were driven by updates to the Business Death Model (used by BLS to estimate job changes from business openings and closures). Strikes in California and Hawaii have ended. However, after hitting a low in 2025, the labor market has begun to stabilize. Economists say these fluctuations are due to uncertainties caused by Trump’s large-scale tariffs.

Consumer Market Also Faces Cold Snap: U.S. Retail Sales Unexpectedly Contract in January. Data shows U.S. retail sales declined in January, hindered by weak auto dealer activity and winter weather disruptions. The Commerce Department reported on Friday that unadjusted retail sales fell 0.2% in January, after remaining flat in December. Excluding auto sales, the figure was essentially unchanged. Seven out of thirteen categories saw declines, with auto sales down 0.9%, and decreases also seen in apparel stores, gas stations, and health and personal care stores. A prolonged winter storm brought heavy snow and ice to the Midwest and East Coast, likely hampering shopping activity. The Arctic cold front caused the most flight cancellations since the pandemic and left over one million households and businesses without power.

Federal Reserve’s Harker: Interest Rate Policy Likely to Remain Steady for Some Time. Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester said on Friday that she sees no need to adjust monetary policy in the current environment of high inflation. In a speech at the U.S. Monetary Policy Forum in New York, she stated that balancing high inflation and a soft labor market, along with last year’s rate cuts, puts current policy in a favorable position, with the Fed’s rate target having a neutral effect on the economy. Mester said, “In my baseline scenario, I believe policy should remain on hold for quite some time, waiting for evidence that inflation is declining and the labor market is further stabilizing.” She added, “But other scenarios are also plausible, so I see risks on both sides for rates.”

Federal Reserve’s Collins: No Urgent Need to Change Monetary Policy; Rate Cuts Require Clear Evidence of Inflation Decline. Fed Governor Michelle Bowman indicated that job growth may accelerate but is likely to remain moderate overall. She sees no urgent need to change the current policy stance, citing supportive financial conditions for economic expansion. Recent tariff developments could add inflationary pressures. She expects inflation to gradually return to the 2% target and foresees the Fed’s rate target remaining “for some time.” The economic outlook remains relatively benign, though inflation risks are skewed to the upside. The labor market appears to be stabilizing. Now is a time for patience and caution in rate policy. To cut rates again, clear evidence of inflation easing is needed. She expects the economy to grow “steadily,” with inflation easing later this year. Escalating Middle East conflicts add to economic uncertainty.

Federal Reserve’s Bowman: Labor Market May Need More Support. Fed Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman hinted that the weaker-than-expected February employment report suggests she is inclined to support further rate cuts. After the report, she said, “I was fine with holding steady at the January meeting, but now that we see the labor market, maybe that was an exception,” referring to January’s strong job growth. She added that the new data “confirms that the labor market remains soft and needs some support from our policy rate.” The Fed will hold its next policy meeting in Washington on March 17-18.

Saudi Arabia Strengthens Direct Contact Channels with Iran to Ease Middle East Tensions. According to European officials cited by media, Saudi Arabia has increased direct contacts with Iran in an effort to curb regional conflicts. These officials said that recently, Saudi officials have more urgently used diplomatic secret channels with Iran to ease tensions and prevent escalation. Several European and Middle Eastern countries reportedly support these efforts. Officials added that talks involve security agencies and diplomats, but it is unclear if higher-level officials are involved, and Iran has so far shown little willingness to negotiate with the U.S. or Israel.

OpenAI Launches AI Security Tool That Could Disrupt Traditional Cybersecurity Firms. OpenAI announced a new AI agent designed to help security teams identify and fix vulnerabilities in large databases, potentially reducing demand for traditional cybersecurity companies. In a statement Friday, OpenAI said this tool, called Codex Security, can detect security flaws and suggest fixes before errors are exploited. The company claims it is intended for “large-scale deployment” and to provide “easy-to-implement patches,” allowing developers to focus on higher-level tasks. The firm also revealed that the tool has been used to scan and identify security vulnerabilities in open-source code repositories. This product competes with Anthropic PBC’s Claude Code Security, which also detects vulnerabilities and recommends fixes. Last month, the release of Claude’s new security tool caused cybersecurity stocks to fall, with CrowdStrike and Cloudflare dropping 8% each.

[Stock News]

Oracle (ORCL.US) and OpenAI End Plans to Expand Flagship Data Center; Meta (META.US) Considering Acquisition, Nvidiа (NVDA.US) Facilitating. Reports indicate Oracle and OpenAI have terminated their plans to expand the flagship data center. Due to funding negotiations stalling and OpenAI’s changing needs, the Texas Abilene AI data center expansion was canceled. After the breakdown, Meta is considering leasing the site, with Nvidia paying a $150 million deposit and facilitating the deal to ensure its chips are used instead of AMD’s. The campus is part of the “Stargate” project announced during Trump’s administration, some of which is already operational. Oracle and OpenAI had planned to increase capacity from 1.2 GW to 2.0 GW, with a 4.5 GW partnership still ongoing. The site experienced outages due to winter weather, but Oracle and developer Crusoe say the partnership remains strong. Negotiations between Meta and Crusoe are ongoing, and Meta is advancing several other AI data center projects.

Strategy (MSTR.US) Publishes Top Asset Management Holdings: Vanguard Holds 8.12%, Morgan Stanley 2.08%. Bitcoin treasury company Strategy posted the top ten holdings of global asset managers on X platform, including: The Vanguard Group with 8.12% (market value $3.183 billion); Capital Research & Management with 7.7% ($3.019 billion); BlackRock Fund Advisors with 3.64% ($1.428 billion); Capital Research & Management with 2.62% ($1.026 billion); SSGA Funds Management with 2.29% ($897 million); Morgan Stanley with 2.08% ($815 million); UBS Securities with 2.02% ($793 million); Amundi Asset Management SASU with 1.77% ($693 million); Geode Capital Management with 1.46% ($573 million); Norges Bank Investment Management with 1.32% ($517 million).