Kamal Ghorui
Wall Street opened on a subdued note Monday as big technology stocks weighed on US indices, even as gold and silver prices clawed back part of their recent losses, according to AP.The S&P 500 slipped 0.2%, putting it on track for a fourth straight modest decline. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 173 points, while the Nasdaq Composite also dropped 0.2% in early trade. Nvidia and other large technology stocks pressured the market, as their chips remain central to global artificial intelligence expansion.The moves followed global volatility overnight. US futures had earlier weakened, with S&P 500 futures down 0.7%, Dow futures off 0.4%, and Nasdaq futures falling 0.7%, amid uncertainty over President Donald Trump’s nominee for the next Federal Reserve chair and renewed concerns about a potential AI market bubble.Precious metals recovered part of last week’s sharp losses. Gold rose 1.3% to about $4,800 per ounce, while silver jumped 5.9% to $83.19, though both remained below recent highs after Friday’s sharp correction.Bitcoin stabilised after a steep fall, rising about 1.5% to just above $78,000, though crypto-linked stocks remained under pressure. Coinbase fell 3.7% in early trade, while bitcoin holder Strategy, formerly MicroStrategy, dropped 7.6%.Oil prices were sharply lower after tumbling more than 5% overnight. US benchmark crude fell $3.19, or 4.9%, to $62.02 per barrel, while Brent crude declined $3.16 to $66.16 per barrel. Natural gas prices dropped 17% after recent weather-driven gains.Investors are also tracking a heavy week of corporate earnings and US labour market data, including the January jobs report due later in the week.Shares of Walt Disney Co edged up less than 1% after the company reported strong first-quarter results, supported by box-office performances of “Zootopia 2” and “Avatar: Fire and Ash.” Disney Entertainment revenue rose 7%, while Experiences division revenue grew 6%.Markets are also assessing the potential policy stance of Kevin Warsh, Trump’s nominee for Federal Reserve chair, whose nomination requires Senate approval. Concerns that the Fed’s independence could be tested have helped support gold prices and weaken the US dollar over the past year.In global markets, Asian indices saw sharper declines earlier in the session. South Korea’s Kospi closed 5.3% lower at 4,949.67, with Samsung Electronics falling 6.3% and SK Hynix dropping 8.7%. Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 1.3%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng dropped 2.2%, and China’s Shanghai Composite declined 2.5%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 1%, while Taiwan’s Taiex slipped 1.4%.European markets traded higher midday, with Germany’s DAX up 0.8%, France’s CAC 40 rising 0.6%, and the UK’s FTSE 100 gaining 0.7%.Separately, geopolitical tensions remained in focus after Trump said Iran should negotiate a “satisfactory” deal to prevent it from obtaining nuclear weapons, adding that talks were ongoing. The comments helped ease concerns about potential oil supply disruptions, analysts said.
