Top News Highlights
On Tuesday before the market open, the three major U.S. stock index futures declined. As of now, Dow Jones futures are down 0.26%, Nasdaq futures are down 0.87%, and S&P 500 Index futures are down 0.45%.
Trading resumed after the holiday, with the Mag 7, software stocks declining in pre-market trading alongside index futures.
The Mag 7 fell during the pre-market trading session as traders returned to the market after a holiday. All members of the Mag 7 were down: $Apple(AAPL.US)$Down 0.3%,Microsoft (MSFT.US) Dropped by 0.62%, $Meta Platforms(META.US)$ Down 0.58%, $Amazon(AMZN.US)$Down 0.33%,$Tesla(TSLA.US)$down 1.23%, NVIDIA down 0.95%, $Google-C(GOOG.US)$down 1.71%.
Investors have expressed concerns over the elevated capital expenditures of large cloud service providers and questioned when returns will materialize. They are closely monitoring the disruptive impact of artificial intelligence on various industries, including software, as pre-market software stocks trended lower.
Most popular Chinese stocks traded higher in the pre-market session, $Hesai (HSAI.US)$ rising over 5%, Baidu (BIDU.US) Rose more than 1%, $Alibaba(BABA.US)$with Futubull AI rising nearly 1%.
Crude oil prices rose amid Iran's military exercises, boosting pre-market gains for U.S. oil stocks.Murphy Oil Corporation (MUR.US) 、 $EOG Resources (EOG.US)$ 、 Occidental Petroleum (OXY.US) rose more than 1%.
Gold prices were constrained by the negotiating signals released by Trump, with pre-market losses seen across U.S.-listed gold stocks. $Harmony Gold Mining Company (HMY.US)$Dropped more than 4%, $Coeur Mining, Inc. (CDE.US)$Falling more than 3%, $Newmont (NEM.US)$ Down nearly 3%.
Pre-market declines were observed in memory-related concept stocks. $Micron Technology(MU.US)$ 、 $SanDisk (SNDK.US)$ Dropped over 2%, $Western Digital (WDC.US)$ 、 $Seagate Technology (STX.US)$ fell more than 1%.
Individual Stock News
Apple suddenly announced an offline experience event: to be held simultaneously in three cities on March 4th.
Local time on Monday (February 16), $Apple(AAPL.US)$ Announced that the company will host an in-person event on March 4. According to invitations received by multiple media outlets, Apple stated: 'We cordially invite you to attend the Apple Experience Event held in Shanghai,' scheduled for '10:00 PM China Standard Time on March 4, 2026.'
In addition to Shanghai, Apple has also invited media to attend offline 'experience' events in New York and London. The New York event is set for '9:00 AM Eastern Time (ET) on March 4, 2026,' indicating that the events will take place simultaneously. As usual, Apple may broadcast a pre-recorded launch video and provide media with hardware demonstrations at all three locations. Analysts noted that when Apple launches new products, it typically conducts live broadcasts, as this represents a significant marketing opportunity.
Alibaba's pre-market shares rose nearly 1% following the open-sourcing of its latest large model, Qwen3.5-Plus.
$Alibaba(BABA.US)$ The open-sourcing of the latest large model, Qwen3.5-Plus, which matches the performance of Gemini 3 Pro, positions it as the world’s most powerful open-source model. Its core breakthroughs include a hybrid attention mechanism, an extremely sparse Mixture-of-Experts (MoE) architecture, native multi-token prediction, and system stability optimization, achieving stronger intelligence with less computational power. The model features visual agent capabilities, enabling it to understand screens and autonomously perform cross-application operations, even converting sketches into code. API pricing starts as low as 0.8 yuan per million tokens, just 1/18th of Gemini's cost.
The Wall Street Journal: Anthropic, through its partnership with Palantir, deployed Claude during the raid operation against Maduro in Venezuela.
During the U.S. military operation on January 3 this year, where Venezuelan President Maduro was forcibly detained and removed from the country, an artificial intelligence model named 'Claude,' developed by a U.S. company, was utilized. The Wall Street Journal reported that Anthropic, through its collaboration with $Palantir(PLTR.US)$ The collaboration involved deploying Claude during the Maduro Venezuela raid operation. Previously, the U.S. military had used this model to analyze satellite imagery and intelligence. Reportedly, the company behind 'Claude' is currently negotiating with the Pentagon. The company aims to ensure its technology is not used for mass surveillance of Americans or in autonomous weapons, while the Pentagon hopes AI companies will allow the U.S. military to use their models in any legally permissible scenario.
Hesai shares surged over 5% pre-market as Unitree's two humanoid robot models are equipped with Hesai's JT128 LiDAR.
$Hesai (HSAI.US)$ Official sources reported that both of Unitree's humanoid robots are equipped with Hesai's JT128 LiDAR. Dozens of Unitree G1 robots and one H2 robot showcased their "cyber kung fu" on stage alongside dozens of Hesai LiDAR units, exuding a strong sense of technology. The real-time coordination and ultra-low synchronization delay of the humanoid robots are powered by Unitree's self-developed AI fusion positioning algorithm combined with Hesai's JT series LiDAR. As the best-selling compact 360° LiDAR for embodied intelligent robots, Hesai's JT series has delivered over 200,000 units and has been successfully integrated into various embodied intelligent robot products.
General Mills fell over 3% pre-market after the company lowered its annual sales and profit forecast.
$General Mills (GIS.US)$ Shares dropped more than 3% pre-market after the company revised downward its annual core net sales and profit outlook on Tuesday due to weak consumer sentiment. The company now expects full-year sales to decline between 1.5% and 2%, compared to the previous range of a 1% decline to 1% growth. On a constant currency basis, adjusted operating profit and adjusted earnings per share are now projected to fall between 16% and 20%, compared to the previous range of a 10% to 15% decline.
$ZIM Integrated Shipping (ZIM.US)$ Shares surged 35% pre-market as German liner company Hapag-Lloyd announced a cash acquisition worth approximately $42 billion.
Danaher is nearing a deal to acquire U.S. medical technology company Masimo Medical for approximately $10 billion.
Danaher (DHR.US) Down over 5% pre-market, Masimo Medical (MASI.US) Shares surged over 33% as the Financial Times reported that Danaher is close to finalizing a nearly $10 billion acquisition of Masimo Medical. If negotiations proceed smoothly, an agreement to acquire Masimo Medical could be announced as early as Tuesday. The transaction reflects a significant premium over Masimo Medical’s market capitalization of nearly $7 billion at Friday’s close. As a leading manufacturer of pulse oximeters (devices used to measure blood oxygen levels), Masimo Medical has $Apple(AAPL.US)$ long been embroiled in intellectual property disputes, accusing Apple Watch of patent infringement. This acquisition of Masimo Medical will mark Danaher's largest transaction in over five years since its $21.4 billion purchase of biologics manufacturer Cytiva (formerly part of GE Healthcare Life Sciences).
BHP Group Ltd’s copper business posted profits surpassing iron ore for the first time, with net profit surging 28% in the first half.
Driven by the surge in copper prices amid the global electrification transition and record output from core mining areas, $BHP Group Ltd (BHP.US)$ BHP Group Ltd delivered robust financial growth during this fiscal quarter. In the reporting period, BHP achieved an underlying profit of USD 6.2 billion, representing a year-over-year increase of 22%, surpassing market analysts' consensus expectation of USD 6.03 billion. Meanwhile, the company's revenue expanded by 11% to USD 27.9 billion, with net profit attributable to shareholders climbing significantly by 28% year-over-year to USD 5.64 billion. Supported by strong cash flow performance, BHP announced an interim dividend of 73 cents per share, marking an increase of nearly 50% compared to 50 cents per share in the same period last year, maintaining a payout ratio at a high level of 60%.
Medical technology firm Medtronic fell nearly 3% in pre-market trading as its full-year guidance missed market expectations.
$Medtronic (MDT.US)$The stock dropped nearly 3% in pre-market trading. Third-quarter revenue reached USD 9 billion, an increase of 8.7% year-over-year, exceeding expectations by USD 110 million. Adjusted earnings per share were USD 1.36, beating estimates by USD 0.02. The company reiterated its organic revenue growth guidance for fiscal 2026 at approximately 5.5%, with adjusted earnings per share expected between USD 5.62 and USD 5.66, below the consensus estimate of USD 6.12. This outlook includes a potential tariff impact of about USD 185 million, consistent with prior guidance. Excluding the potential tariff impact, the forecast implies adjusted earnings per share growth of approximately 4.5% for fiscal 2026.
Global Macro
The negotiations between the US and Iran in Geneva have concluded, while Iran's military exercises are still ongoing.
According to The Wall Street Journal, Iranian officials proposed suspending uranium enrichment activities, transferring part of its uranium stockpile offshore, and reaching a commercial agreement with the United States to advance nuclear negotiations, thereby avoiding a potential U.S. strike. However, it remains uncertain whether these measures will satisfy President Trump unless Iran commits to completely halting uranium enrichment activities.
According to AP News, multiple semi-official Iranian news agencies reported that Iran has commenced live-fire drills near the Strait of Hormuz. Tasnim News Agency, which is closely linked to Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps, stated that missiles launched from within Iran and along its coast struck targets in the Strait of Hormuz.
Tim Waterer, a market analyst at KCM Trade, noted that multiple market holidays and the lack of new catalysts have kept equities on the defensive, with traders closely monitoring developments between the U.S. and Iran.
The Russian delegation has arrived at the venue for the Russia-U.S.-Ukraine trilateral talks in Geneva.
According to CCTV, the Russian delegation arrived at the venue for the trilateral talks among Russia, the U.S., and Ukraine in Geneva on the afternoon of the 17th local time. Meanwhile, the U.S. delegation left the U.S.-Iran negotiation venue after talks with Iranian representatives. Separately, according to market sources, a large delegation from the UK has arrived in Geneva to participate in the negotiations among Russia, the U.S., and Ukraine.
"Long Energy + Short Consumer Discretionary" -- The Hottest 'Pairs Trading Strategy' on Wall Street Right Now
Simon White, a macro strategist at Bloomberg, recently wrote that year-to-date, driven by the rebound in oil prices, U.S. energy stocks have surged over 20%, outperforming all other sectors, including technology stocks. At the same time, investors are shorting the consumer discretionary sector, which includes non-core AI companies such as Amazon and Tesla, as well as traditional retail stocks. Analysts suggest this trend reflects a reassessment of sector prospects by investors and a shift in preference toward physical asset allocation in an inflationary environment.
Cathie Wood: This Round of Market Volatility is Algorithm-Driven, Not Fundamentally Based
Cathie Wood, also known as 'Wooden Lady,' stated that recent sharp market fluctuations have been largely driven by algorithmic trading. Programmatic deleveraging and technical trading can easily trigger a domino effect of panic selling, resulting in irrational 'sell-first-ask-later' volatility. Those who sold may well regret their decision. She emphasized that artificial intelligence (AI) represents the greatest opportunity of a lifetime, with the current market being in an early stage akin to 1996. Aggressive capital expenditures by tech giants are deemed necessary. Wood believes that the productivity surge brought about by AI could drive inflation downward.
The most bearish sentiment on the US dollar in a decade! Institutions rush to hedge their US dollar positions.
Options data from CME Group shows that bearish bets on the US dollar have surpassed bullish positions this year, reversing the situation seen in Q4 2025. Bets on further depreciation of the dollar against the euro have reached levels only previously observed during the COVID-19 pandemic and in April last year after Trump announced so-called 'reciprocal tariffs.' Analysts pointed out that Trump's aggressive geopolitical actions and pressure on institutions like the Federal Reserve have raised concerns about the US's appeal as a global capital safe haven. Large asset management firms noted that the decline in the dollar reflects growing interest among real-money investors, such as pension funds, to hedge against further weakness or reduce exposure to dollar-denominated assets.
As 'AI Panic Trading' Emerges, Goldman Sachs Remains Optimistic About the Software Industry’s Earnings Outlook
In a report, a research team led by Goldman Sachs strategist Ben Snider wrote that forward-looking earnings estimates for software stocks over the next two years have risen by 5% in the past three months. They noted that industries perceived to be most threatened by artificial intelligence not only saw positive upward revisions to their 2026 earnings per share forecasts but also achieved double-digit growth in their fourth-quarter earnings from the previous year. Snider stated, 'Despite investor concerns over the past few weeks regarding AI-driven disruptions, software stocks at the core of these worries have generally reported earnings that exceeded consensus expectations, prompting analysts to raise their forecasts.'
Goldman Sachs: Hedge funds are bottom-fishing in the Asian market at the fastest pace in a decade.
Amid rising market optimism toward AI infrastructure companies, the net buying scale of hedge funds in emerging and developed Asian markets last week hit its highest level since Goldman Sachs began tracking the data in 2016. Exposure to Asian equities has risen to its highest level since at least 2016. According to a Goldman Sachs report, hedge funds turned net buyers of global equities last week for the first time in three weeks, with capital flowing into all major markets, though Asia stood out. Hedge funds concentrated their bullish trades in South Korea and China, while India saw 'moderate selling.'
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