Alphabet spells trouble for Nvidia

Chris Beauchamp IG

After yesterday's tech surge, today's session has seen Nvidia laid low by competition worries, says Chris Beauchamp, Chief Market Analyst at investing and trading platform IG.

Nvidia piles on the tech woes

The world’s largest company is feeling the heat today, dragging the Nasdaq down with it. Nvidia’s dominant position is unlikely to be fundamentally threatened in the short-term, but markets are all about forward expectations, and it certainly seems like Alphabet is poised to snatch market share away from Jensen Huang’s empire. The news comes after Softbank’s slump overnight on fears that its bet on OpenAI is about to come seriously unstuck, leaving tech indices under pressure even as the Dow, small caps and European markets enjoy a solid day. Such rotation in market leadership is ultimately healthy, but can lead to some tricky moves underneath the surface.

Sterling nears $1.32 ahead of Reeves’ big day

The news that bearish bets on sterling continue to increase comes as the pound enjoys a stellar day against the dollar, but this looks more like greenback weakness than a sudden surge of irrepressible optimism about the UK economy as the clock ticks down to the long-awaited/dreaded Budget. Fed speakers continue to line up behind a December cut, while today’s US data suggests the bank may have room to ease policy when it meets next month.

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Chris Beauchamp

EUR/USD hits two-day highs near 1.1820

EUR/USD picks up pace and reaches two-day tops around 1.1820 at the end of the week. The pair’s move higher comes on the back of renewed weakness in the US Dollar amid growing talk that the Fed could deliver an interest rate cut as early as March. On the docket, the flash US Consumer Sentiment improves to 57.3 in February.

GBP/USD reclaims 1.3600 and above

GBP/USD reverses two straight days of losses, surpassing the key 1.3600 yardstick on Friday. Cable’s rebound comes as the Greenback slips away from two-week highs in response to some profit-taking mood and speculation of Fed rate cuts. In addition, hawkish comments from the BoE’s Pill are also collaborating with the quid’s improvement.

Gold climbs further, focus is back to 45,000

Gold regains upside traction and surpasses the $4,900 mark per troy ounce at the end of the week, shifting its attention to the critical $5,000 region. The move reflects a shift in risk sentiment, driving flows back towards traditional safe haven assets and supporting the yellow metal.

Crypto Today: Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP rebound amid risk-off, $2.6 billion liquidation wave

Bitcoin edges up above $65,000 at the time of writing on Friday, as dust from the recent macro-triggered sell-off settles. The leading altcoin, Ethereum, hovers above $1,900, but resistance at $2,000 caps the upside. Meanwhile, Ripple has recorded the largest intraday jump among the three assets, up over 10% to $1.35.

Three scenarios for Japanese Yen ahead of snap election

The latest polls point to a dominant win for the ruling bloc at the upcoming Japanese snap election. The larger Sanae Takaichi’s mandate, the more investors fear faster implementation of tax cuts and spending plans.

XRP rally extends as modest ETF inflows support recovery

Ripple is accelerating its recovery, trading above $1.36 at the time of writing on Friday, as investors adjust their positions following a turbulent week in the broader crypto market. The remittance token is up over 21% from its intraday low of $1.12.