OPENING CALL

Stock futures were higher on Monday with investor mood improving after the S&P 500 posted its worst session of the year last Friday on signs of weakness in the U.S. economy.

Investors will look to Nvidia earnings on Wednesday and inflation data due Friday for direction this week.

"The stock market's next move may very well be determined by what takes place over the next few days," Bellwether Wealth said.

"That's because the three most important factors for markets right now are earnings, artificial intelligence and inflation, all of which will be addressed over the next few trading sessions."

In Europe, the DAX was outperforming neighboring indices after conservative Friedrich Merz won the German election with a clear margin.

Stocks to Watch

Alibaba plans to invest more than $52 billion on artificial intelligence and cloud infrastructure over the next three years. The stock was down 2.8%.

Berkshire Hathaway's fourth-quarter operating earnings rose 71% on strength in the company's large insurance operations and higher investment income. Shares were up 1.4%.

Domino's Pizza rose 1% ahead of fourth-quarter earnings. Analysts expected it to post earnings of $4.90 a share on revenue of $1.48 billion.

Shares of Just Eat soared more than 50% in Amsterdam after technology investor Prosus agreed to buy it for $4.3 billion. Prosus shares fell.

Watch For:

Chicago Fed National Activity Index for Jan; earnings from Domino's Pizza and Zoom Communications

Today's Top Headlines/Must Reads:

- Stocks Have a Big, Expensive Problem

- How the Internet Made In-Store Shopping Miserable

- What Do Mass Federal Layoffs Mean for the Labor Market?

MARKET WRAPS

Forex:

The dollar was unlikely to move in a straight line in the week ahead, ING said.

Markets are keen to close bets on a stronger dollar following softer U.S. economic data and amid optimism over a Russia-Ukraine peace deal, ING added.

However, the dollar could receive support from the prospect of U.S. tariffs on Canada and Mexico that were delayed until March.

The dollar could also rise if data Friday show U.S. inflation accelerated in January.

"There are many irons in the fire, and markets don't have the privilege of looking much beyond daily developments."

Dollar purchases ahead of month-end rebalancing of portfolios looked weak, Barclays said.

The dollar has come off its recent peak as positive sentiment surrounding the currency has retraced.

This largely increases asset values in dollars outside the U.S. and raises the need to buy dollars at month-end for rebalancing.

The euro traded at high levels given the risks surrounding Germany's election result , Monex Europe said.

Merz has pledged to remake the country's security arrangements and achieve independence from the U.S. after his Christian Democrats won Sunday's election.

A fractious EU-U.S. relationship is "hard to see as euro positive."

ING said the euro was unlikely to rise much further following Sunday's German election, with the currency instead driven primarily by U.S. tariff news and U.S.-Russia-Ukraine peace talks.

Commerzbank said the outcome of the German election isn't a big deal for the currency market.

"The fact that anything euro positive emerged at all is rather surprising and shows that there was a residual fear in the currency market of a destructive result."

Bonds:

The 10-year Treasury yield could move lower in the coming months, alongside anticipated rate cuts by the Fed, Mediolanum International Funds said.

" In the near term, we expect 10-year U.S. Treasury yields to fall toward 4% by the summer, as uncertainty around tariffs has dampened the U.S. growth outlook."

At the same time, some progress in reducing the budget deficit could further support a downward move in yields.

Mediolanum expects the Fed to deliver three rate cuts of 25 basis points each this year but acknowledges that the risks are skewed towards fewer rate cuts.

UOB Global Economics & Markets Research said the 10-year Treasury yield's downside risk is increasing .

The yield decisively broke below the bottom of the daily Ichimoku cloud last Friday, which together with the weekly moving average convergence divergence indicator turning negative, suggests rising downside risk in the 10-year yield.

The level to watch is 4.335%, the top of the weekly Ichimoku cloud, followed by the 55-week exponential moving average, which is now at 4.265%, UOB added.

Energy:

Oil slid and is under increasing downward pressure as sentiment sours, ING said.

Friday saw a sharp selloff as investors cut positions in Brent, with trade and tariff concerns, alongside a push for a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine weighing on the market.

There is also intensifying speculation about OPEC+ production. The group is currently cutting supply by 2.2 million barrels a day and is scheduled to hike output from April, though there are suggestions OPEC+ is considering a delay.

Any such delay would lead to a change in oil balance, leaving the market relatively tighter than expected, according to ING.

Metals:

Gold futures rose, holding close to record highs as geopolitical and trade tensions boosted safe-haven demand.

The precious metal recorded its eighth consecutive week of gains and a fresh high in recent days on fears that the U.S. could unwind its support for Ukraine in the war against Russia, ANZ Research said.

Additional support has come from a softer dollar, which recorded its third straight weekly loss--increasing gold's safe-haven appeal to investors.

Base metals slid, though the complex is broadly up on week as a weaker dollar boosts investor appetite, ANZ said.

The sector is also seeing dislocation in preparation for tariffs and sanctions on certain metals.

TODAY'S TOP HEADLINES

Bundle of Disney+, Hulu and Max Has a Strong Hold on Viewers. It's Even Stickier Than Netflix.

Streamers rolled out a bevy of bundled services last year, hoping they would find ways to keep customers longer. So far, that strategy is working.

A bundle that Disney and Warner Bros. Discovery launched last July that offers Disney+, Hulu and Max at a discount has shown early signs of success in keeping customers subscribed, according to new data from subscription analytics firm Antenna. The package gives subscribers access to shows such as "The White Lotus" and "The Pitt" on Max, Hulu's "The Bear" and "Bluey" on Disney+.

Alibaba to Spend More Than $52 Billion in AI, Cloud Over Next Three Years

Alibaba Group plans to invest more than $52 billion on AI and cloud infrastructure over the next three years, in a bid to seize more opportunities in the artificial-intelligence era.

The spending of at least 380 billion yuan, equivalent to $52.41 billion, will surpass the company's AI and cloud computing investment over the past decade, Alibaba said in a post Monday on its news site.

Tesla, Uber Head Toward a Showdown in Austin

The battle over self-driving cars and the future of ride-hailing is slated to start in Austin, Texas, in just a few weeks.

How it goes can help investors figure out how trillions of dollars in market value will be allocated.

How Porsche, Volvo and Rivian Are Injecting Unique Driving Styles Into Self-Driving Cars

A Porsche programmed with aggressive, sporty moves; a Volvo tuned to a more cautious pace; an autonomous Rivian that takes the scenic route, on-road or off.

In the future, cars won't only drive autonomously: Using software and artificial intelligence, their makers will give them distinct driving styles.

German Business Confidence Remains Weak at Start of New Political Era

Business sentiment in Germany held at a weak level this month, with companies keeping a wait-and-see approach surrounding the economic impact of Sunday's elections and potential trade tariffs from the U.S.

The Ifo Institute's business-climate index remained at 85.2 in February, the same as January, albeit a little worse than expected by economists polled by The Wall Street Journal.

U.S. Dockworkers Vote on Labor Deal This Week

Unionized dockworkers will vote this week on a labor contract that retailers and manufacturers hope will secure peace on the waterfront through September 2030, banishing fears of a repeat of a three-day strike in October that hobbled U.S. trade.

Workers are widely expected to ratify the new contract on Tuesday, which International Longshoremen's Association leaders are heralding as a "historic" win with a 62% pay increase and "full protection against automation" across East Coast and Gulf Coast ports.

German Shares Rise on Election Outcome

German shares ticked higher after election results looked set to usher in a business-friendly government that would support the country's limp economy.

In early morning trade, Germany's DAX rose 0.5%, while shares in midcap companies, which do most of their business domestically, showed the largest gains. The MDAX rose 1.8% and the SDAX 0.7%, with few shares in minus.

DOJ Slip-Ups Show Challenges of Defending Trump's Freewheeling Approach

WASHINGTON-A judge posed what he thought was a straightforward question: As the government laid off federal employees en masse, was it required to give advance notice to newly hired workers who were still in their probationary periods?

"Your honor, I don't have the answer to that precise question off the top of my head," said Justice Department lawyer Abhishek Kambli, representing the Trump administration in a hearing last week.

GOP Email System Infiltrated by Chinese Hackers Last Summer, New Book Reveals

WASHINGTON-As the Republican National Committee was gearing up for its convention in Milwaukee, it was also quietly dealing with a serious security breach of its internal communications by hackers with ties to the Chinese government, according to people familiar with the matter.

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February 24, 2025 06:12 ET (11:12 GMT)

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