The S&P and Nasdaq hit record highs, Tesla plummeted by 7%, chip stocks outperformed the market again, AMD reached a new high, and Bitcoin continued its rally, surging above $67,000.

On Wednesday and Thursday this week, Federal Reserve Chairman Powell will testify before both houses of Congress, and on Friday, the US will release the February non-farm payroll report. Investors are eagerly awaiting speeches from Fed officials like Powell and key data releases to glean clues about interest rate prospects. The recent record highs of major US stock indices have paused. Some analysts suggest that for the S&P to hit a record high for the eighth consecutive week, Powell may need to make an encouraging statement about rate cuts, and any unexpected impact on market expectations for a rate cut as early as June due to jobs data.

Currently, the market expects the Fed to cut interest rates three times this year.

Several blue-chip tech stocks dragged down the market on Monday, with only Nvidia among the "Seven Sisters" of tech giants not falling during trading. After the China Passenger Car Association announced that Tesla's wholesale sales in China in February plummeted by 19% year-on-year and nearly 16% month-on-month to a more than one-year low, Tesla saw a sharp decline. It experienced its largest daily drop since the release of its fourth-quarter earnings report, following accusations of abusing its monopoly position to restrict competitors like Spotify and being fined a whopping $1.8 billion by the EU. Apple also accelerated its decline to a four-month low.

On the other hand, chip stocks continued to outperform the market overall, with Nvidia and AMD hitting new all-time highs. After surpassing the $2 trillion market cap milestone for the first time last Friday, Nvidia's market value has now exceeded Saudi Aramco, making it the world's third-largest company by market value. Some artificial intelligence (AI) concept stocks continued to rise. AI "demon stock" Super Micro Computer (SMCI), which will be included in the S&P 500 index, surged by double digits.

Furthermore, New York Community Bank (NYCB), which collapsed last Friday due to significant internal control deficiencies, continued to plummet by over 20%. The regional bank was downgraded by two international credit rating agencies, with Fitch lowering it to junk status BB+ and Moody's further downgrading it to B3, which was already downgraded to junk status last month. Fitch believes that the weaknesses revealed by the bank prompt a reassessment of its control over loan loss provisions, especially in commercial real estate loans.

In the bond market, following weak ISM data and a significant speech by Federal Reserve Governor Waller hinting at a reversal of Quantitative Tightening (QT), US Treasury bond prices, which had surged after the announcement, fell back, causing yields to rise slightly, moving away from the two-week low set last Friday. In the currency market, ahead of the European Central Bank's monetary policy meeting on Thursday, the euro continued to rise against the US dollar to a more than one-week high, while the US dollar index continued to fall from the more than one-week high set before the release of US ISM data last Friday. Bitcoin continued its strong upward trend from last week, rising above $5,000 during the session and breaking through $67,000, setting a new high for the first time in over two years, approaching the historical high set over two years ago. According to a report from Wall Street News, Bitcoin prices have been soaring recently, with record inflows into spot Bitcoin ETFs, and BlackRock's ETF IBIT reaching a milestone of $10 billion in just seven weeks since its listing.

In the commodity market, as the market expects the Fed to start cutting interest rates in the second half of the year, gold futures closed above $2,100 for the first time in history, setting new historical highs for two consecutive trading days. Despite OPEC+ countries like Saudi Arabia and Russia voluntarily extending production cuts until the end of June this year over the weekend, international crude oil failed to hold onto the rebound from last Friday, falling from its four-month closing high. Some analysts mentioned that reports last week repeatedly suggested that OPEC+ might extend supply cuts until the end of June. Due to the impact of the warm winter weather in the northern hemisphere, negative demand factors on Monday outweighed the impact of the OPEC+ production cut extension.

Tech giants: Only Nvidia among the "Seven Sisters" didn't fall, Tesla dropped nearly 8%, Nvidia's market value surpassed Saudi Aramco

The three major U.S. stock indexes opened lower collectively, with a midday turnaround. The S&P 500 index initially fell by nearly 0.2%, then rose by over 0.2% at midday, before turning lower again towards the end of the session. The Nasdaq Composite Index opened lower and continued to decline, falling by 0.3% in the morning, rising by less than 0.1% after hitting a daily high at midday, and then falling to a daily low towards the end of the session. The Dow Jones Industrial Average opened with a drop of over a hundred points, falling by over 170 points, or more than 0.4% in the morning, briefly turning higher at midday.

In the end, the three major indexes closed with two consecutive declines. The S&P fell by 0.12% to 5130.95 points, the Nasdaq fell by 0.41% to 16207.51 points, dropping from the closing historical highs set over the past two days, and the Dow fell by 97.55 points, or 0.25%, to 38989.83 points, after a rebound over the past two days.

The small-cap Russell 2000 index, dominated by value stocks, fell by 0.1% after hitting a high since April 2022 in the past two days. The tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 index fell by 0.42% after setting consecutive closing historical highs, while the Nasdaq Technology Market Cap Weighted Index (NDXTMC) rose by 0.02%, barely setting a new high for three consecutive trading days.

In the major sectors of the S&P 500 on Monday, four sectors closed lower: communication services, including Google, fell by 1.5%; non-essential consumer goods, including Tesla, dropped by nearly 1.3%; energy fell by around 1.1%; and healthcare fell by over 0.1%.

Major U.S. stock indexes fell together on Monday, with the Nasdaq leading the decline. In the seven sectors that closed higher, utilities led the gains with nearly a 1.7% increase, followed by interest rate-sensitive real estate up nearly 1.1%, materials up 0.7%, and other sectors up less than 0.4%.

Among tech giants including Microsoft, Apple, NVIDIA, Alphabet (Google's parent company), Amazon, Meta (Facebook's parent company), and Tesla, only NVIDIA opened higher and maintained its upward trend without falling. Tesla fell over 7.8% at midday, closing down nearly 7.2%, dropping from the high closing level since last Friday's rebound to the low closing level since February 13, marking the largest daily decline since the announcement of the fourth-quarter earnings report on January 25.

Among the FAANMG six tech stocks, Apple, which was heavily fined by the EU, fell 3% in early trading and closed down 2.5%, marking a four-day decline to a low not seen since November 1, 2023; Alphabet also fell over 3% in early trading and closed down nearly 2.8%, hitting a low not seen since December 15, 2023; Meta, which hit consecutive closing highs for two days, fell over 1% in early trading and closed down 0.8%; Microsoft, which rose for three consecutive days to a high since February 9, fell nearly 0.8% in early trading but turned higher, closing down 0.1%; Amazon, which hit consecutive closing highs for two days since November 2021, fell 0.4% in early trading but quickly turned higher, then fell at midday, closing down nearly 0.4%; Netflix, which hit consecutive closing highs for two days since December 2021, closed down nearly 0.6%.

Chip stocks rose for three consecutive trading days, outperforming the broader market. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index and the Semiconductor Industry ETF SOXX rose nearly 1.1% and nearly 1% respectively, setting new historical highs for three consecutive days. NVIDIA rose over 5.7% at midday, closing up 3.6%, surpassing a market value of over $2.1 trillion, overtaking the $2.01 trillion market value of Saudi Aramco, becoming the world's third-largest listed company after Apple and Microsoft. AMD rose 4.1% in early trading, closing up 1.3%, both hitting intraday historical highs and setting new closing highs for three consecutive days; after Taiwan's stock market hit a historical high, TSMC's US stock also hit a historical high, rising 6% in early trading and closing up 3.2%; at the close, Intel rose over 4%, Qualcomm rose over 2%, while Arm fell over 2%.

Some AI concept stocks rose against the market trend. After the S&P Global Index announced its inclusion in the S&P 500 Index to replace Whirlpool last Friday, Super Micro Computer (SMCI) opened with a rise of over 10%, rising over 20% during the day and closing up nearly 18.7%. At the close, BigBear.ai (BBAI) rose 25%, while SoundHound.ai (SOUN) rose nearly 7% in early trading but turned lower, closing down 6.8% with less than a 2% increase; C3.ai (AI) rose over 4.6% in early trading but turned lower, closing down 5%; Palantir (PLTR) closed down over 3%, Adobe (ADBE) closed down 0.5%. The overall performance of popular Chinese concept stocks has declined. The Nasdaq Golden Dragon China Index (HXC) fell by about 4%, dropping after halting a two-day decline last Friday, hitting a new low since February 20th. Chinese concept ETFs KWEB and CQQQ fell by over 3% and 1% respectively. The three new energy vehicle companies all saw declines by the closing bell, with Li Auto down by 13.6%, XPeng down by 8%, and Nio down by 7.8%. Among other individual stocks, by the closing bell, JD.com fell by nearly 5%, Pinduoduo by almost 4%, Alibaba and Baidu by over 3%, while NetEase and Tencent both dropped by over 1%, and Bilibili rose by over 5%.

Bank stocks showed mixed performances. The overall banking industry index KBW Bank Index (BKX) rose by over 2% during the day and closed with a 1.8% increase, rebounding to a high not seen since March 8, 2023. The regional banking index KBW Nasdaq Regional Banking Index (KRX) initially rose by nearly 1.6% in the morning but later turned downward, closing with a decline of over 0.6%, marking a two-day decline to a low not seen since February 13th. The regional bank stock ETF SPDR S&P Regional Banking ETF (KRE) also saw a slight decline at closing after an initial rise.

Among regional banks, New York Community Bank (NYCB), which fell by 25.6% last Friday, continued its downward trend after an initial drop, closing with a 23.1% decline. Western Alliance Bancorporation (WAL) turned downward in the morning and closed with a 2% decline, while Keycorp (KEY) rose by nearly 3% and Zions Bancorporation (ZION) rose by 1%.

In stocks with significant fluctuations, after Arkhouse Management raised its acquisition offer from $21 to $24 per share, equivalent to $6.6 billion, Macy's (M) rose by over 13.5%. Deckers Outdoor (DECK), which will replace Zion Bank in the S&P 500 Index, initially rose by 4% and closed with a nearly 2.6% increase. JetBlue Airways (JBLU) rose by 4.3% after officially abandoning the acquisition of Spirit Airlines, while Spirit Airlines (SAVE) fell by 10.8%. Following an upgrade by RBC to outperform the industry, expressing confidence in its 2024 EBITDA profit guidance and optimistic about the food delivery market opportunities, ride-hailing star Lyft (LYFT) rose by over 5% in the morning and closed with a nearly 4.5% increase. DoorDash (DASH), the American version of Meituan, saw an over 5% increase during the day and closed with a 3.9% rise after an upgrade by RBC to outperform the industry, highlighting the potential of its partnership with Lyft and others. After announcing a purchase order for 260 aircraft, establishing a potential $1 billion cost reduction plan, and not disclosing first-quarter and full-year revenue and profit guidance, American Airlines (AAL) rose by over 3% in the morning but turned downward towards the end of the session, closing with a 5.4% decline. In terms of European stocks, the pan-European index closed with slight fluctuations, generally stabilizing. The STOXX 600 index in Europe experienced a slight decline after hitting a historical high for two consecutive days, almost closing flat. The performance of major European stock indexes varied, with the German stock index, which hit a historical high for eight consecutive trading days, experiencing a slight decline. The UK stock index, which rose for two consecutive days, and the Italian stock index, which rebounded last Friday, both fell. Meanwhile, the French and Spanish stock indexes rose for two consecutive trading days.

In terms of sectors, the technology sector led the gains with an increase of over 0.7%. Among the constituents, ASML, the European chip stock with the highest market value listed in the Netherlands, rose by over 2.1%. The stock has risen by over 2% for two consecutive trading days, setting a new closing high. The healthcare sector rose by over 0.5%, benefiting from DNB Markets upgrading its rating on Catalent, a key outsourced manufacturer of the weight-loss drug Wegovy, from hold to buy. This led to a rise of approximately 3.1% in the stock price of Novo Nordisk, the Danish pharmaceutical company with the highest market value in Europe, reaching a historical high. On the other hand, the cyclical sector lagged behind, with basic resources in the mining sector falling by 1.2%, tourism by 1.1%, and retail by approximately 1%.

The yield on US 10-year Treasury bonds rebounded from a low level of over two weeks during the Asian market session. It briefly dropped below 4.19%, approaching the low of February 13th when it dropped below 4.18%. Subsequently, it rebounded and rose above 4.23% in pre-market trading, reaching around 4.21% by the end of the bond market session, with an increase of about 3 basis points during the day after two consecutive days of decline.

The 2-year US Treasury bond yield, which is more sensitive to interest rate prospects, briefly dropped below 4.53% during the European stock market session, rose above 4.60% in early US trading, and exceeded 4.61% at midday, reaching around 4.60% by the end of the bond market session. This marked an increase of about 7 basis points during the day after four consecutive days of decline.

The ICE US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the exchange rates of the US dollar against a basket of six major currencies including the euro, initially rose during the Asian and European stock market sessions but ultimately fell. In pre-market trading, it approached 104.00, with an increase of less than 0.1% during the day. However, it turned downwards before the US stock market opened, nearing 103.70 to set a daily low, with a decline of over 0.1% during the day, continuing to move away from the high near 104.30 reached on February 20th before the decline last Friday. At the close of the US stock market on Monday, the US Dollar Index was above 103.80, slightly down during the day for two consecutive declines. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index, which tracks the US dollar against ten other currencies, fell by less than 0.1%, marking a two-day decline to a low since February 8th.

Among non-US currencies, the Euro against the US dollar approached 1.0870 during the US stock market session, hitting a high since the Thursday two weeks ago, with an intraday increase of nearly 0.3%. The British Pound against the US dollar also reached close to 1.2710 during the US stock market session, hitting a high since February 22nd, with an intraday increase of over 0.4%. The Japanese Yen declined for two consecutive days, with the US dollar against the Japanese Yen turning higher in the early Asian session and maintaining its upward trend. It approached 150.60 before the US stock market session, rising by about 0.3% during the day, continuing to move away from the low of 149.20 reached on February 12th.

In the early Asian session, the offshore Chinese Yuan (CNH) against the US dollar rose above 7.21 to refresh the daily high at 7.2069. It turned lower during the Asian and European stock market sessions, and before the US stock market session, with the European stock market hitting a daily low of 7.2127, falling 58 points from the daily high. Before the US stock market session, it turned higher and maintained a slight increase, moving away from the low of 7.22 breached on February 28th and refreshed since February 16th. At 5:59 on March 5th Beijing time, the offshore Chinese Yuan against the US dollar was reported at 7.2101 yuan, up 12 points from the New York closing price last Friday, rebounding after falling last week, the second day of increase in the last eight trading days.

Bitcoin (BTC) rose above $65,000 in the early European session and continued to rise. During the US stock market session, it rose above $67,000 for the first time since November 2021, reaching above $67,400 at one point, rising more than $5,000 from the intraday low in the Asian session, an increase of over 8%. It repeatedly refreshed the new high since November 2021 set on Wednesday, approaching the intraday historical high of nearly $69,000 set in November 2021. At the close of the US stock market, it hovered around $67,100, rising nearly 7% in the past 24 hours.

Crude oil fell by over 1%, dropping from a nearly four-month high. International crude oil futures turned lower during the early Asian and European stock market sessions. Before the European stock market session hit a daily high, US WTI crude oil rose above $80.40, up over 0.5% during the day, while Brent crude oil rose above $84.00, up more than 0.6%. After a lower opening in the US stock market, US oil fell below $78.60 during midday trading, down nearly 1.8% intraday, and Brent oil fell below $82.60, down nearly 1.2% intraday. Last Friday, both rebounded crude oil prices closed lower. WTI crude oil futures for April fell by $1.23, a decrease of nearly 1.54%, to $78.74 per barrel; Brent crude oil futures for May fell by $0.75, a decrease of nearly 0.90%, to $82.80 per barrel. Both crude oils fell from their respective closing highs on November 6, 2023, set last Friday.

US WTI crude oil gave back about half of the gains from last Friday's rebound.

US gasoline and natural gas futures continued to fluctuate. NYMEX April gasoline futures fell by 1.1% to $2.5857 per gallon, dropping from the two-day consecutive high set on February 13; NYMEX April natural gas futures, which fell for two consecutive days, rose by 4.41% to $1.9160 per million British thermal units, reaching a high not seen since February 8.

London nickel rebounds to nearly a four-month high, London copper rises for three consecutive days, gold futures break through $2100, setting new historical highs for several consecutive days

Most London base metal futures rose on Monday. Leading the gains, London nickel rose by over 1.6%, erasing the decline from the three-day rise last Friday, reaching a high not seen since November 8, 2021. London tin, which fell for two consecutive days, also rose by over 1%, rebounding to a high not seen in over two weeks. London copper rose for three consecutive days, continuing to set new highs for over a week. London zinc, which fell last week, rebounded to a high not seen in a month. London lead, which fell for four consecutive days to a low not seen in over two weeks, also rebounded. Meanwhile, London aluminum fell from the one-month high set during the two-day rise.

New York gold futures rose during pre-market trading and continued to rise, with US stocks hitting a daily high of $2128.4, up nearly 1.6% intraday. Finally, COMEX April gold futures rose by 1.46% to $2126.3 per ounce, easing from the 2% increase last Friday, still setting a new closing record high set last Friday, closing above $2100 for the first time, rising for three consecutive trading days.

Spot gold rose to nearly $2120.00 during US stock market trading, reaching a new intraday high since December 4, 2023, approaching the intraday historical high set on December 4, 2023. It rose nearly 1.8% intraday, closing above $2110 when the US stock market closed, up over 1%.