20 Feb 2026, 06:45 by Newsquawk Desk
- APAC stocks followed suit to the predominantly negative mood on Wall Street, where risk appetite was subdued amid private credit fund concerns and geopolitical risks.
- Hang Seng retreated on return from the Lunar New Year holidays, with the big tech names leading the declines in the index, while mainland markets and the Stock Connect remained shut and won't open until next Tuesday.
- USD/JPY lingered near the prior day's best levels north of 155.00,...
19 Feb 2026, 11:32 by Newsquawk Desk
- US President Trump and his advisors have reportedly indicated that the USMCA could be scrapped, NY Times reports. Instead, the US could have bilateral deals with Canada and Mexico.
- European equities lower as Airbus misses on 2026 aircraft deliveries; US equity futures slip.
- Antipodeans gain following recent losses; DXY flat after Wednesday's advances.
- Bonds hold a bearish bias, continuing the pressure seen in the prior session due to various...
19 Feb 2026, 06:49 by Newsquawk Desk
- APAC stocks traded higher following the positive handover from the US and with South Korea outperforming amid tech strength on return from the Lunar New Year holidays.
- FOMC's January meeting minutes showed a broad agreement to hold rates, but views diverged on the path ahead.
- US senior official told Axios that the round of talks with Iran in Geneva was "a hamburger stuffed with nothing" and is one of the reasons why Trump is close to making a decision on the issue...
18 Feb 2026, 11:53 by Newsquawk Desk
- The Trump administration is closer to a major war with Iran than people realise, Axios reports citing sources; a military operation would likely be a massive, weeks long campaign that will be a joint US-Israeli attack. European equities entirely in the green, with IBEX leading the way; US equity futures continue to extend Tuesday's gains.
- DXY firmer, Kiwi hit post-RBNZ while Cable holds afloat following UK inflation.
- Gilts choppy post-CPI; USTs slightly lower ahead...
18 Feb 2026, 06:48 by Newsquawk Desk
- APAC stocks traded higher in continued thin conditions as many regional bourses remained closed for holidays.
- RBNZ kept the OCR at 2.25%, as expected, and the central bank refrained from any hawkish surprises; NZD heavily underperforms.
- US VP Vance said in some ways Iran talks went well, while he added that Iranians are not yet willing to acknowledge some of President Trump's red lines.
- US Special Envoy Witkoff said the US facilitated the...
17 Feb 2026, 11:54 by Newsquawk Desk
- US-Iran talks have gotten underway; the latest is that the nuclear negotiations have entered the stage of discussing technical issues, Al Jazeera reports citing Iranian TV.
- Iran announced its readiness to reduce uranium enrichment, Al Hadath reports citing Iran's ambassador in Cairo; added "The contradiction of the US statements is proof of its lack of seriousness in the negotiations"
- European stocks are broadly in the green; Basic Resources weighed on by...
17 Feb 2026, 06:47 by Newsquawk Desk
- APAC stocks traded mixed amid the extremely thinned conditions due to the Lunar New Year holiday and in the absence of a lead from the US, where markets were closed for Washington's Birthday/Presidents Day.
- Nikkei 225 retreated shortly after the open with SoftBank and heavy industry stocks leading the declines, as the post-election euphoria petered out following the recent underwhelming GDP data. USD/JPY pulled back with pressure seen as risk sentiment in Japan deteriorated shortly after...
16 Feb 2026, 06:52 by Newsquawk Desk
- APAC stocks began the week in the green but with gains limited following a lack of major fresh catalysts from over the weekend and amid thinned conditions owing to holiday closures in the region and North America.
- Nikkei 225 traded indecisively, with the index constrained by disappointing Japanese preliminary Q4 GDP data
- European equity futures indicate a mildly positive cash market open with Euro Stoxx 50 futures up 0.1%, after the cash market...
13 Feb 2026, 14:24 by Newsquawk Desk
- SUN: Japanese Prelim. GDP (Q4)
- MON: US Holiday (Washington's Birthday/Presidents Day); Eurogroup Meeting; Swedish Unemployment (Jan), EZ Industrial Production (Dec)
- TUE: RBA Minutes (Feb); UK Unemployment/Wages (Dec), German ZEW (Feb), US ADP Weekly, Canadian CPI (Jan), NY Fed (Feb), Chinese Lunar New Year (Hong Kong markets closed from 17th-19th Feb)
- WED: RBNZ Announcement, FOMC Minutes (Jan); Japanese Trade Balance (Jan),...
13 Feb 2026, 11:28 by Newsquawk Desk
- US President Trump plans to roll back tariffs on metal and aluminium goods, according to FT.
- European equities shrug off the selloff seen stateside; Tech rebounds while Basic Resources lag; US equity futures hold steady.
- DXY slightly firmer and USTs rangebound heading into US CPI; JPY underperforms.
- Precious metals recover following Thursday's slump, whilst Copper lags on the back of weaker risk sentiment; Crude...
13 Feb 2026, 06:46 by Newsquawk Desk
- APAC stocks were mostly lower as the region took its cue from the losses stateside, where tech underperformed as AI-disruption concerns re-emerged, and logistics/industrials stocks were also pressured after Algorhythm Holdings (RIME) released its AI freight scaling tool.
- US President Trump said we have to make a deal with Iran and could reach a deal over the next month.
- US President Trump reiterated he is going to China in April and that Chinese President Xi will...
12 Feb 2026, 11:42 by Newsquawk Desk
- China's Commerce Ministry announces a tariff of up to 11.7% (prev. 42.7%) on EU dairy products; effective from February 13th.
- European equities broadly in the green; Financials lead as Schroders (+28.5%) gets acquired by Nuveen; US equity futures are entirely in the green.
- G10s mostly firmer against the USD; AUD takes a slight breather.
- Gilts lead after soft GDP though BoE pricing largely unaffected; USTs tread water ahead of Friday's...
11 Feb 2026, 11:34 by Newsquawk Desk
- China is reportedly considering probing wine from France; could consider launching anti-dumping duty to French wine, and potentially take counter measures against the EU if it adopt duties.
- European bourses are trading on the backfoot; FTSE 100 outperforms on the back of firmer commodity prices; US equity futures mixed.
- DXY slightly lower heading into US NFP, JPY continues to gain, AUD bid after RBA's Hauser said inflation is "too...
11 Feb 2026, 06:46 by Newsquawk Desk
- APAC stocks traded higher but with some of the gains in the region capped after the weak handover from the US and with the NFP report on the horizon, while participants also digested earnings and data in thinned conditions, with Japanese markets shut for a holiday.
- Ukrainian President Zelensky plans spring elections alongside a referendum on the peace deal after a US push.
- US President Trump said he might send a second carrier to strike Iran if talks fail and stated...
10 Feb 2026, 11:22 by Newsquawk Desk
- European bourses are mostly firmer, US equity futures are flat/incrementally higher.
- DXY is flat awaiting Retail Sales/ECI, JPY bid alongside JGB stabilisation whilst NOK gains post-inflation.
- Fixed rebounds from Monday's pressure into data & supply; Gilts outperform as PM Starmer pushed back on calls to resign.
- WTI and Brent mildly lower, XAU remains above USD 5k/oz; Copper muted heading into Chinese festive...
10 Feb 2026, 06:50 by Newsquawk Desk
- APAC stocks were mostly higher as the region took impetus from the gains on Wall Street, where the S&P 500 approached closer towards its record levels, and the Nasdaq outperformed as the tech rebound persisted.
- US President Trump and Chinese President Xi’s summit is reportedly set for the first week of April, POLITICO reported, but the White House later clarified that the Trump-Xi meeting has not been finalised.
- The EU is reportedly readying options to give...
09 Feb 2026, 11:07 by Newsquawk Desk
- China is reportedly urging banks to curb USTs exposure amid market risk, Bloomberg reports, citing sources; guidance does not apply to China's state holdings of US Treasuries.
- Japanese PM Takaichi’s LDP party won a landslide victory at the snap election on Sunday, securing a super majority; JPY bid, JGBs lower and Nikkei 225 soars.
- European bourses are broadly firmer, whilst US equity futures move lower; Nikkei 225 soars post-LDP...
09 Feb 2026, 06:50 by Newsquawk Desk
- APAC stocks began the week higher after last Friday's rally on Wall St, where the DJIA topped the 50k level for the first time.
- The Nikkei 225 also hit a fresh record high after PM Takaichi's landslide election victory and supermajority.
- China is reportedly urging banks to curb US Treasuries exposure amid market risk, Bloomberg reports, citing sources; guidance does not apply to China's state holdings of US...
06 Feb 2026, 14:12 by Newsquawk Desk
- SUN: Japanese Average Cash Earnings, Japanese Snap Election
- MON: Swiss Consumer Confidence (Jan), Mexican Inflation (Jan), US Consumer Inflation Expectations (Jan), Australian Household Spending (Dec)
- TUE: EIA STEO; Norwegian prelim. CPI (Jan), US NFIB (Jan), Weekly ADP, ECI (Q4), Export/Import Prices (Dec)
- WED: BoC Minutes (Jan), OPEC MOMR; ECB Wage Tracker (post-meeting); Chinese Inflation (Jan), Norwegian GDP (Q4), US NFP...
06 Feb 2026, 11:16 by Newsquawk Desk
- European bourses were initially lower, but now mixed whilst US equity futures are firmer; AMZN -7.7% pre-market.
- DXY is mildly lower, G10s are broadly firmer across the board with outperformance in the Antipodeans.
- USTs hold onto recent gains, Bunds digest ECB speak whilst Gilts take a breather.
- Crude prices dip as US and Iran informal talks enter the second round; Metals pare back earlier losses as high volatility...
06 Feb 2026, 06:48 by Newsquawk Desk
- APAC stocks were ultimately mixed after the global market rout rolled over into the region following the continued tech woes stateside and weak US labour market data.
- US equity futures were lower but off worst levels with headwinds seen after Amazon shares dropped 10% post-earnings.
- European equity futures indicate an uneventful cash market open with Euro Stoxx 50 futures up 0.1% after the cash market closed with losses of 0.8% on...
05 Feb 2026, 11:18 by Newsquawk Desk
- European bourses are broadly on the backfoot; US equity futures mixed, but the NQ outperforms, as chip names benefit from Alphabet boosting AI spending.
- DXY is mildly firmer, with G10s lower to varying degrees; Aussie hampered by pressure in metals, GBP lags into BoE.
- Fixed income benchmarks are mixed; USTs incrementally firmer, whilst Gilts underperform on political woes.
- Crude benchmarks slip with US-Iran meeting confirmed, Spot gold moves...
05 Feb 2026, 06:50 by Newsquawk Desk
- APAC stocks were mostly lower following the continued tech selling stateside and flip-flopping regarding US-Iran talks, while commodities were pressured overnight with silver prices dropping by a double-digit percentage.
- Earnings saw Alphabet shares fall 2.0%, ARM Holdings slip 8.6%, and Qualcomm slump 10.3% after market.
- US President Trump said not much doubt that interest rates will be lowered and thinks that Warsh wants to cut rates...
04 Feb 2026, 11:21 by Newsquawk Desk
- NVIDIA (NVDA) AI chip sales to China are reportedly stalled by a US security review, and Chinese customers are, meanwhile, not placing H200 chip orders.
- European bourses are broadly firmer, US equity futures are mixed with mild underperformance in the NQ.
- DXY trades flat ahead of US data, JPY underperforms as focus turns to a landslide LDP victory.
- Fixed income benchmarks are mixed; USTs are flat whilst Bunds are...
04 Feb 2026, 06:51 by Newsquawk Desk
- APAC stocks were ultimately mixed as the region partially shrugged off the downbeat handover from Wall Street.
- NVIDIA (NVDA) AI chip sales to China are reportedly stalled by a US security review, and Chinese customers are, meanwhile, not placing H200 chip orders.
- US House voted (217-214) to pass the USD 1.2tln spending package to fund the government, which was sent to US President Trump, who then signed the bill to end a partial government shutdown, as...