01 Stock Market
As of Aug 31, U.S. stock index futures performed as follows: Dow, S&P 500, and Nasdaq 100 contracts all traded modestly lower, slipping about a quarter-percent as traders assessed mixed earnings updates, technology product buzz, and heightened geopolitical tension in the Middle East. The mild pull-back follows a multi-week rally, and positioning suggests profit-taking ahead of the month-end and critical inflation data due later in the week.
Notable Stock Movers: Semiconductor sentiment stayed constructive: NVDA up 0.57% at $218.80 and INTC up 0.23% at $89.68, while leveraged fund SOXL up 0.81% at $112.24 shadowed chip enthusiasm. Energy-linked products climbed on firmer crude prices, with UCO up 3.00% at levels above $XX. Meme favorite GME up 2.20% at $XX after issuing upbeat profit guidance. In contrast, megacaps showed soft tone: AAPL down 0.26% at $318.86, TSLA down 0.53% at $346.90, and MSFT down 0.89% at $508.95, reflecting rotation from big tech into cyclicals. Small-cap standout AEHL up 68.43% at $5.96 led the pre-bell gainers list on heavy volume.
Overall, early trading indicates a classic risk-balancing session: defensive profit-taking in index heavyweights offsets pockets of strength in chips and oil-related names, while Chinese consumer-internet ADRs such as BABA down 1.82% at $116.74 and NIO down 0.92% at $4.33 remain under pressure amid lingering China growth concerns.
02 Other Markets
• 10-year U.S. Treasury yield was unchanged, holding at 0.00% change near 4.72%.
• U.S. Dollar Index fell 0.13% to 99.54.
• WTI crude oil futures rose 3.59% to 86.39 USD/barrel; COMEX gold futures fell 0.51% to 4,507 USD/ounce.
03 Key News
1. Z.ai reported a 400% revenue surge and narrower losses, driven by cloud-based deployment. Management highlighted a sharp reduction in token inference costs and said over 5.8 million users now tap its GLM MaaS platform, underscoring rapid commercial uptake of generative-AI services.
2. GameStop projected a jump in second-quarter profit despite lower sales, buoyed by investment gains linked to eBay. The retailer converted a derivative exposure into direct equity, unlocking roughly $238 million in gains and lifting anticipated net income to as much as $310 million, sparking fresh interest in the turnaround story.
3. Singapore’s central bank earmarked US$173 million to expand its FinTech innovation scheme. The three-year plan under FSTI 4.0 targets frontier technologies, talent development, and industry infrastructure, reinforcing the city’s ambition to remain a leading global financial hub.
4. Oil prices extended a rally above 3% after U.S. strikes on Iranian launchers prompted retaliatory attacks. Analysts see continued supply-route uncertainty around the Strait of Hormuz, prolonging risk premiums embedded in energy markets.
5. Apple is preparing to unveil AirPods 5 alongside its flagship iPhone lineup and an OLED iPad mini this autumn. The refreshed audio accessory is expected to feature improved battery life and spatial-audio enhancements, bolstering Apple’s expanding wearables ecosystem.
6. Samsung is developing an 8-layer HBM4E memory stack tailored for NVIDIA’s next-gen GPUs. The redesign aims for 17–18 Gbps speed targets, roughly 20% faster than early samples, supporting the escalating bandwidth needs of AI accelerators.
7. Iran claimed it shot down a U.S. MQ-9 Reaper drone over the Strait of Hormuz, heightening regional tensions. The incident underscores the conflict’s escalation risk and potential implications for global energy supply security.
8. U.S. Treasury Secretary Bessent downplayed bond-market stress, citing resilient growth and fading inflation pressures. He argued that higher yields reflect confidence in the economy and dismissed concerns that expanded repo operations are distorting market functioning.
9. Strike Energy selected Hancock Energy’s Belisama facility as the preferred processing hub for its West Erregulla gas share. The decision secures mid-stream capacity, positioning the joint venture to accelerate commercialization of Western Australia’s onshore gas resources.
10. Fast-fashion giant Shein priced its Hong Kong IPO but saw a 10% grey-market dip ahead of formal listing. Despite backing from major cornerstone investors, the company’s dual-class structure and secondary-market jitters led to early markdowns, signaling cautious sentiment toward consumer discretionary names.
Sources: Reuters, Dow Jones, Tiger Newspress, public market data
Disclaimer: For informational purposes only; not investment advice.