Hello,

A quiet week for economic releases was dominated by corporate and geopolitical news. Global equities opened lower as the market digested fresh tariff announcements over the weekend. Mounting concerns around AI spending and monetisation shifted sentiment towards more cash-generative companies and tangible investments as the so-called “HALO (Hard Assets, Low Obsolescence) Trade” took hold. Materials and Utilities both gained 3.2% while IT stocks fell 2.1%.

A key focal point was Nvidia’s Q4 earnings on Wednesday. The chipmaker delivered revenues of $68.1 billion, up 73% on the year, but the result triggered a sell-off across AI-linked names such as Broadcom and Oracle. Nvidia itself fell 5.5%, its worst day since April. Meanwhile, OpenAI announced on Friday that it had raised $110 billion in its latest funding round, valuing the company at $730 billion.

On the geopolitical front, last week began with tensions between the US and Iran near boiling point as US military presence continued to build in the Middle East. Over the weekend, war broke out in the region, and global equities opened lower this morning in response.

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