Megacaps lifted the market 24/12/2024

HOT stories for today

 

Stocks on the move:

• MicroStrategy (MSTR -8%): The software company led by Michael Saylor announced its latest Bitcoin purchase, acquiring over 5,000 BTC for approximately $561 million.
• Arm Holdings (ARM -4%): Over the weekend, a U.S. federal court sided with Qualcomm, upholding its licensing agreement with Arm after a week-long trial over breach allegations.
• Intuitive Machines (LUNR +7%): The space exploration company secured additional contracts from NASA’s Near Space Network for Direct-to-Earth (DTE) services.
• Rigetti Computing (RGTI +16%): The quantum computing firm unveiled its 84-qubit Ankaa-3 processor, aiming to accelerate advancements in algorithmic research.

Today’s action

• Asia-Pacific markets displayed a mixed performance on Christmas Eve, following overnight gains in U.S. benchmarks driven by tech stocks. Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 0.29% after minutes from the Bank of Japan’s October meeting revealed members’ agreement to raise rates if economic and inflation targets were met. Japanese automaker Honda jumped 12.69%, while Nissan climbed over 5% following their announcement of formal discussions to merge.
• S&P 500 futures hovered near the flatline Monday night after all three major U.S. indexes started the holiday-shortened week on a positive note. Futures tied to the broad-market index traded slightly below the flatline, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures remained steady, and Nasdaq 100 futures edged down by nearly 0.2%. Markets are set to close early today at 1 p.m. and will remain closed tomorrow for Christmas Day.

Wahtclist: NVDA, META, HMC, NVO, MSFT, GOOGL, TSLA
 

Bitcoin

• Bitcoin’s value slid early Monday, dropping below the $94,000 threshold. Over the past 24 hours, a total of $271.22 million in crypto positions—both long and short—have been liquidated. The leading cryptocurrency, Bitcoin (BTC), has declined 2.1% against the U.S. dollar as of Dec. 23, contributing to an 11.5% loss over the past week.

• On Monday, BTC’s market cap is $1.84 trillion, representing 57% of the $3.24 trillion global cryptocurrency market. The 2.1% dip wiped roughly $3,000 off its price. Market activity remains subdued, likely reflecting the start of the holiday week, with BTC’s trading volume at $57 billion as of Monday morning. Across the broader crypto market, global trading volume has hit $155 billion. Key trading pairs for BTC include tether (USDT), USD, FDUSD, USDC, and KRW, while crypto enthusiasts speculate on the market’s next moves amid the ongoing decline.
  Watchlist: Bitcoin: 93 000-108 000, Ethereum: 3300-4200, Solana: 180-265

Forex

• The Japanese Yen (JPY) remains under pressure near a multi-month low against the US Dollar (USD) during the early European session on Tuesday. The Bank of Japan's (BoJ) dovish stance and a positive risk tone weigh the safe-haven currency, while Fed hawkishness supports USD/JPY. However, fears of potential intervention limit the pair's upside.
• Meanwhile, EUR/USD softened to around 1.0400 in early Asian trading on Tuesday. The Fed’s indication of fewer rate cuts in 2025 amid slowing disinflation supports the US Dollar, while comments from ECB President Christine Lagarde about Eurozone inflation nearing 2% provide limited support for the Euro. Trading volumes remain subdued ahead of the holiday week.
  Watchlist: EUR/USD: 1.0300-1.0650, USD/JPY: 149-158

Basic Materials

• WTI crude oil prices remained steady, trading around $69.30 per barrel during Asian hours on Tuesday, as subdued activity ahead of the Christmas holiday limited movement. Prices found support from robust U.S. economic data and a 2.6% year-over-year increase in India’s November crude oil imports, totaling 19.07 million metric tons.
• Gold prices edged higher on Tuesday but lacked strong momentum, remaining below the earlier multi-day peak. Support for the safe-haven metal came from ongoing geopolitical tensions and trade war concerns. However, the Federal Reserve's hawkish stance—indicating a slower pace of interest rate cuts in 2025—boosted the US Dollar near a two-year high, capping gains for the non-yielding XAU/USD.
  Watchlist: GOLD 2530-2790, US Oil: 65.00-73.00

The TEFS Analyst team wishes you a successful day!