NFLX and KO on Deck as Gold and Markets Shine 21/10/2025

HOT stories for today

Market wrap:

• The three major U.S. stock indexes advanced on Monday, driven by a rally in Apple shares and renewed optimism that the U.S. government shutdown may soon be resolved. National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett told the third-longest in U.S. history, “is likely to end sometime this week,” adding that the White House is prepared to take stronger action if no deal is reached. Apple’s stock closed at a record high following robust iPhone 17 sales reports from the U.S. and China, while shares of Australian critical metals companies surged after an $8.5 billion U.S. minerals agreement. AWS services recovered after a daylong outage that had disrupted major websites. 
• Trade tensions between the U.S. and China also remained in the spotlight. President Donald Trump has threatened to impose an additional 100% tariff on Chinese imports beginning November 1, though his positive remarks about a potential trade accord with Beijing have eased concerns about an intensifying trade war. Trump said Monday he expects to reach a fair agreement with Chinese President Xi Jinping during their upcoming meeting later this month in South Korea. Meanwhile, investors are closely watching a pivotal week for third-quarter earnings, with major companies set to report in the coming days. Netflix and Coca-Cola are scheduled to release results on Tuesday, followed by Tesla on Wednesday.

Gold glitters like never before

• Gold’s short-lived dip last week quickly reversed as buyers poured back into the year’s leading safe-haven asset.After falling 2% on Friday amid renewed U.S.-China trade tensions, gold prices surged 3.5% Monday to a record $4,359.40 an ounce for the most active contract, the biggest one-day gain since April 2020, according to Dow Jones Market Data.“It’s kind of amazing,” said Thomas Winmill, portfolio manager at the Midas Discovery Fund, which invests in gold miners and was up about 164% for the year through Friday.
• Winmill attributed the rally to factors including the fragile cease-fire in Gaza, central banks buying the dip, and stronger institutional demand in a supply-limited market. He expects the uptrend to continue, noting that most mined gold is “already spoken for” and that global central banks are diversifying away from the U.S. dollar. The dollar is down roughly 9% against a basket of major currencies so far in 2025, while gold has gained about 65% year to date, according to FactSet. Winmill added that higher prices are encouraging new mining projects and reviving older operations that were unprofitable when gold traded near $2,000 an ounce. Also on Monday, the SPDR Gold Shares ETF rose 3.5%, closing above $400 for the first time in history.

Stocks on the move:

• ZION (4.65%): Zions Bancorp rose after hours. The recently troubled regional bank beat earnings-per-share estimates at $1.48, with quarterly revenue up 8.7%. The bank formally recorded a $50 million charge-off from two corporate loans and fronted $10 million in cash but said it has begun a lengthy legal process to recover losses.
• HOOD (6.0%): Robinhood jumped after several major investors increased their holdings, according to regulatory filings.
• AMD (3.9%): Advanced Micro Devices climbed after Bank of America raised its price target to $300 from $250 and reiterated its buy rating.
• ORCL (-4.1%): Oracle fell after analysts noted a lack of new catalysts following a recent management meeting. JPMorgan downgraded the stock to neutral from overweight, citing significant capital needs and limited visibility into its financing plans.

Watchlist: RTX, DHR, ORCL, STX, HOOD, COIN, NFLX, GE, KO, PM

Key Economic Events Today:

EST time

09:00 am: USD FOMC Member Waller Speaks


Earnings

BMO (Before Market Open): JPMorgan Chase ($JPM), Wells Fargo ($WFC), Johnson & Johnson ($JNJ), Citigroup ($C), Goldman Sachs Gr ($GS), BlackRock ($BLK), Domino’s Pizza ($DPZ).

AMC (After Market Close): Netflix ($NFLX), Intuitive Surgical ($ISRG), and Texas Instruments ($TXN).


The TEFS Analyst team wishes you a successful day!