- Asian Stocks Give Up Tariff-Led Gains, China Drags: Markets Wrap
Chinese shares led losses in Asia, with regional markets struggling to build on the risk-on momentum driven
by earlier bets of less expansive tariffs in April. A widely watched gauge of Chinese technology shares in Hong
Kong slumped as much as 3.8%, the most in three weeks, with Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. and Xiaomi Corp.
among the biggest losers. US and European equity-index futures edged lower. Cryptocurrencies declined
and Treasuries ticked up in Asian trading after gains in the prior session. - The S&P 500 gained 1.76%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.42% and the Nasdaq
Composite rallied 2.27%
U.S. stocks jumped Monday on relief that Trump tariffs might not be as severe as expected. Markets rallied,
driven by Trump’s hint that countries could get a “break” from reciprocal tariffs. But it’s unlikely to be a
sustained upward trend, given the wild swings in the types, and the unpredictable executions, of Trump
tariffs. - Oil prices little changed as investors weigh impact of Trump tariffs
Oil prices barely moved on Tuesday as investors weighed the impact of U.S. tariffs on countries buying oil and
gas from Venezuela against the effect of tariffs on industries such as automobiles on the global economy
and oil demand. Brent crude futures were up 1 cent at $73.01 a barrel by 0121 GMT. U.S. West Texas
Intermediate crude rose 1 cent to $69.12. Both benchmarks gained more than 1% on Monday after U.S.
President Donald Trump announced a 25% tariff on countries importing oil and gas from Venezuela. Last
week, the U.S. issued new sanctions intended to hit Iranian oil exports. The Trump administration also on
Monday extended a deadline to May 27 for U.S. producer Chevron to wind down operations in Venezuela.
Meanwhile, OPEC+, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies including Russia, will
likely stick to its plan to raise oil output for a second consecutive month in May, four sources told Reuters,
amid steady oil prices and plans to force some members to reduce pumping to compensate for past
overproduction. Investors were also monitoring talks to end the war in Ukraine, which could increase supply
of Russian crude to global markets. - Gold inches lower as Trump eases tariff threats, Fed cautious on rate cut
Gold edged down on Tuesday after U.S. President Donald Trump stated that not all of his proposed tariffs
would take effect on April 2, boosting risk sentiment, while a Federal Reserve official signaled a cautious
stance on rate cuts this year. Spot gold was down 0.1% at $3,010.64 an ounce, as of 0224 GMT. U.S. gold
futures were steady at $3,015.00. Bullion, seen as a hedge against geopolitical and economic uncertainties,
often thrives in a low-interest-rate environment. Markets will next look to the Personal Consumption
Expenditures (PCE) index, the Fed’s preferred inflation measure, due on Friday. Meanwhile, funds that invest
in gold miners are set to attract their largest net monthly inflows in more than a year in March, as record
high gold prices improve firms’ profit outlooks and boost cash flow. - Fed’s Bostic Now Sees Just One Rate Cut This Year Due to Tariffs
Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta President Raphael Bostic said he now sees just one interest-rate cut as likely
this year, rather than two, with tariff hikes impeding progress on disinflation. Bostic now sees price growth
returning to the Fed’s 2% goal at some point in early 2027. That’s in line with his colleagues’ forecasts
published at last week’s policy meeting. Officials in September had estimated they’d reach their target in 2026.
The fresh projections also showed policymakers favored a half percentage point of cuts this year,
unchanged from December, according to the median forecast. However, more officials penciled in just one
cut or no cuts at all. Nonetheless, he now sees US gross domestic product expanding by 1.8% this year, down
from 2.1% in December. He expects the unemployment rate to end the year at around 4.2% or 4.3%, which
he said is “still quite strong by historical standards. Chair Jerome Powell, speaking last week after the Fed left
rates unchanged, reiterated that officials are in no hurry to adjust rates, saying the US economy is on solid
footing despite sagging consumer sentiment. - Bond Market Looks to Inflation Data to Back Steeper Yield Curve
Bond investors are driving a wedge into the Treasury market in anticipation of slower economic growth and
faster inflation, spurring demand for shorter-term Treasuries at ever-lower yields while longer-term yields
drift higher. The next test comes with Friday data expected to show inflation remains elevated. Five-year
yields fell eight basis points last week, breaching 4% after Federal Reserve policymakers lowered their
forecasts for US economic growth, bolstering wagers on interest-rate cuts this year. As 30-year bond yields
climbed on Friday, they exceeded five-year yields by nearly 60 basis points, the widest margin since
September. A highlight of this week’s busy economic data calendar is personal income and spending data for
February, on Friday. The report includes the inflation gauge the Fed aims to have average 2% over the long
run. It was 2.5% in January and economists expect it to remain there, while the core rate excluding food and
energy is seen accelerating to 2.7% from 2.6%. This week also brings the last Treasury coupon auctions of the
month — a combined $183 billion of new two-, five- and seven-year notes. - Alibaba-affiliate Ant combines Chinese and U.S. chips to slash AI development costs
German parliament passes historic debt reform, paving the way for higher defense spend
Alibaba-affiliate Ant Group is using both Chinese and U.S.-made semiconductors to make its artificial
intelligence development more efficient, according to a source familiar with the matter. The combination of
chips not only reduces the time and cost of training AI models, but also limits reliance on a single supplier
such as Nvidia, the source said. The company on Monday also announced “major upgrades” to its AI solutions
for healthcare, which it said were being used by seven major hospitals and healthcare institutions. The
healthcare AI model is built on DeepSeek’s R1 and V3 models, Alibaba’s Qwen and Ant’s own BaiLing. Ant’s
healthcare-specific model is able to answer questions about medical topics, and can also help improve
patient services, according to the company statement. The U.S. has sought to restrict China’s AI development
by limiting Chinese businesses’ access to the most advanced semiconductors used for training models. Nvidia
can still sell its lower-end chips to China. - Tesla Shares Surge Over 10% as Investors Bet on China Self-Driving Push, Eased Trade Tensions
Tesla shares closed trading Monday at $278.39 per share, more than 40% lower than the stock’s 52-week
high of $488.54 per share, which it hit in mid-December. The shares jumped 10% as of early afternoon
trading on March 24, ending a prolonged nine-week slide that had slashed the stock’s value by nearly 50%
from its recent peak. Tesla is getting closer to introducing its Full Self Driving, or FSD, technology into China.
the possible legislative approval might open major market expansion for Tesla in the nation, the biggest car
market in the world. The decision of President Donald Trump to reduce previous tariff threats, which had
affected the larger automobile and tech industries, also raised investor hope. The development suggested a
brief relaxation in U.S.-China trade hostilities, hence boosting risk-on attitude. - Saylor’s Strategy Scoops 6,911 Bitcoin as Holdings Pass 500K
Strategy adds 6,911 Bitcoin, crossing 500,000 total as Saylor ramps up buying even amid global market
uncertainty. Michael Saylor’s Strategy, up 10.43% on Monday just went even deeper into Bitcoin. The
company snapped up another 6,911 BTC last week for around $584 million, according to a March
24 SEC filing. That brings its total stack to a jaw-dropping 506,137 Bitcoin—worth over $44 billion at current
prices. Strategy funded the buy with proceeds from a recent stock sale. It raised $592.6 million by selling
nearly 2 million shares of common stock. That fresh capital was quickly deployed into more Bitcoin, with each
coin purchased at an average of $84,529. - United Airlines Stock Rises as Airline Raises Credit Card, Club Access Fees
United Airlines stock surged Monday after the carrier rolled out new features and raised the fees for its
Chase co-branded credit cards. Co-branded credit cards are a profit engine for the four major U.S. airlines,
which all lost money last year on strictly transporting passengers. The carrier also increased the cost of
accessing its United Club airport lounges. Despite their surge Monday, United shares are down more than
18% thus far in 2025. - Nvidia, AMD, Meta lead tech stock rally as tariff news, AI breakthroughs boost sector
Tech stocks led a US stock market rally on Monday, with headlines on more targeted tariff plans from
President Trump and a new AI breakthrough from Jack Ma’s Ant Group helping boost the sector to start the
week. Shares of Meta (META) and Nvidia (NVDA) rose 3.7% and 3.1%, respectively, while AMD (AMD) stock
rose 6.9% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) gained 2.3% to kick off the final full week of trading
for the month of March. Monday’s broad market rally followed reports late Sunday that Trump would narrow
the number of US trading partners subject to reciprocal tariffs on April 2. The administration is also
reportedly set to limit some industry-specific tariffs that were set to take effect, including those on cars and
chips. - BYD Co.’s sales last year surpassed $100 billion, beating Tesla Inc.’s revenue, with a reported revenue
of 777 billion yuan, up 29%
BYD Co.’s sales last year surpassed the $100 billion mark, leapfrogging Elon Musk’s Tesla Inc., as the Chinese
auto giant wows consumers with a range of electric and hybrid cars packed with high-tech features.
Shenzhen-based BYD reported revenue of 777 billion yuan ($107 billion) for the 12 months ended Dec. 31, up
29%, according to a filing late Monday, beating estimates for 766 billion yuan. Tesla’s 2024 revenue was
$97.7 billion. The Chinese EV maker’s net income rose 34% to 40.3 billion yuan, beating analyst estimates for
39.5 billion yuan.
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