Waiting for the Federal Reserve policy decision, US stocks opened slightly lower, with little change in the bond market, and Nvidia opened high but trended lower

On Wednesday, March 20th, before the Federal Reserve announced the FOMC monetary policy decision in the afternoon, the major U.S. stock indices showed little change. The Dow Jones opened lower and continued to decline, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq, which had opened slightly higher, also followed the Dow Jones in turning lower within half an hour of the opening.

The U.S. stock industry ETFs saw mixed movements in early trading. The semiconductor ETF rose by nearly 0.5%, while the internet stock index ETF, global technology stock ETF, and consumer discretionary ETF each rose by over 0.3%. However, the biotechnology index fell by over 0.6%, and the energy industry ETF and healthcare industry ETF each fell by around 0.5%.

NVIDIA opened higher but quickly turned lower, dropping by 0.6% after an initial 0.4% increase. The company's CEO, Jensen Huang, stated in a recent interview that the Blackwell chip is priced between $30,000 and $40,000, and the climb in artificial intelligence is just beginning, with unprecedented progress expected over the next 10 years.

Intel opened with a 1.5% increase, then turned lower by 1.6%. Reports indicated that the company is preparing to invest $100 billion in four states in the U.S., with the White House confirming up to $8.5 billion in funding support for the company. TSMC opened with a 1.5% increase, which later narrowed to 0.8%.

Chinese concept stocks outperformed the overall U.S. market. The Nasdaq Golden Dragon China Index rose by 0.5%.

In terms of key individual stocks, Pinduoduo surged by over 18% in pre-market trading, then narrowed its gains to over 3% after the opening. Its fourth-quarter financial report exceeded expectations, with adjusted net profit reaching 25.5 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 110%. Tencent ADR rose by over 2%, with a 36% year-on-year increase in net profit last year, and this year's buyback scale is expected to double to over 100 billion Hong Kong dollars.

On the news front, the Federal Reserve will release its interest rate decision, along with the "dot plot" containing interest rate expectations and a summary of quarterly economic projections. The market is closely watching for the number of rate cuts in 2024, when rate cuts may begin, the Fed's discussion on its balance sheet, and its views on the U.S. economy, including inflation and employment.

European stocks rose overall, but the French stock index, which is home to luxury goods, was the only one to decline. Previously, the luxury goods sector in European stocks suffered a heavy blow, with the profit warning for Asian operations causing Kering Group to plummet by 14%.

In other assets, before the Federal Reserve decision was announced, U.S. bond yields only slightly declined with little change. The U.S. dollar index rose by 0.5% and surpassed the 104 level, maintaining its position at a two-week high for several days. Spot gold also rose by 0.3% and returned above $2160.

International oil prices saw relatively deeper declines, with U.S. WTI crude oil falling by 1.6% to nearly $82, and Brent crude oil falling by 1.3% to nearly $86. Previously, they had lingered near their highest levels in about five months since November last year for two consecutive days. Bitcoin briefly fell below $61,000, but rebounded above $63,000 before U.S. stock market trading, still down by about $10,000 from the all-time high set last week

Opening Market Trends

Star tech stocks are mixed. AMD fell by over 1%, while Micron Technology dropped by 0.3%.

NVIDIA opened up by 0.4%. CEO Huang Renxun mentioned in a recent interview that the Blackwell chip is priced at $30,000 to $40,000, and the AI ​​climb has just begun. Unprecedented progress will be seen in the next 10 years.

Intel opened up by 1.5%. Reports indicate that the company is preparing to invest $100 billion in four states in the United States.

TSMC opened up by 1.5%. Tesla's domestically produced Model Y will increase by 5,000 yuan on April 1st, and the US stock market opened up by about 1%.

Most popular Chinese concept stocks are up.

Pinduoduo surged by 14% at the opening, with Q4 financial report showing adjusted net profit of 25.5 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 110%. Tencent Music rose by 4.3%, Bilibili rose by 3.2%, while XPeng dropped by 3.5%. Yesterday's Q4 performance showed narrowed net losses and an 8.9 percentage point increase in gross profit margin.

10-Year Treasury Yield Narrowly Fluctuates

Ahead of the interest rate announcement, traders increased short positions on US Treasuries, with the 10-year Treasury yield currently at 4.291%, up 0.16% intraday.

US Dollar Continues at High Levels

The US Dollar Index is currently at 104.13, up 0.31% intraday.

Gold and Crude Oil Both Decline

Brent crude and WTI crude both fell by over 1%.

Gold spot price fell by 0.14% intraday, now trading at $2154.44 per ounce.

Bitcoin remains stable

Bitcoin is currently trading at $63,600 per coin, with overall stable fluctuations.