Treasuries were volatile amid geopolitical uncertainty, with markets pricing in potential Fed rate hikes as energy-driven inflation risks increased.

U.S. stocks ended a volatile week mixed. Small- and mid-cap indexes snapped four-week losing streaks, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq posted their fifth straight weekly declines as large-cap tech remained under pressure. Geopolitical headlines and oil price swings drove sentiment.

U.S. Market Summary Indexes Extend Losing Streak, Energy Leads Broad Weakness NASDAQ, Dow corrections: Major indexes fell for a fifth straight week. NASDAQ -3.2%, S&P 500 -2.1%, Dow -0.9%. Style reversal: Growth stocks underperformed value; growth -13% YTD vs value slightly positive. Small beats large: $iShares Russell 2000 ETF(IWM)$ +0.5% weekly, $iShares Russell 1000 ETF(IWB)$ -2.0%. Burst of energy: Energy stocks $Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund(XLE)$ +6% weekly; +13% since Mar 1, +41% YTD, supported by oil & gas price gains. Sentiment slips: U.S. consumer sentiment dropped to 2026 low, reversing recent improvements. Yields rise again: 10-year U.S. Treasury yield hit 4.43%, highest in over 8 months. Jobs ahead: March jobs report due Friday; Feb saw 92,000 job losses, third decl

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Big Tech led the selloff. The “Mag7” index dropped nearly 3%, with $Meta Platforms, Inc.(META)$ down ~8% and $Alphabet(GOOG)$ falling over 3% after both companies were found liable in a social media addiction lawsuit.

Amid rising oil prices, fading hopes for a Middle East ceasefire, and shifting fundamental narratives for tech giants, the three major indices have all moved lower. $NASDAQ(.IXIC)$ , dragged down by tech stocks, has been the weakest and has officially entered a technical correction zone.

Over the next 30 days, several key factors are shaping the outlook: Escalating tensions in the Middle East are pushing investors away from risk assets, while increasing demand for defensive positioning. Ongoing military developments and rhetoric are raising the probability of further escalation, prompting institutions to rebalance portfolios. Central banks may rethink rate-cut paths as inflation risks resurface, keeping liquidity conditions tight. Trade policy uncertainty, including potential tariff increases, is adding another layer of systemic risk. Strong producer price data and shifting rate expectations have supported the U.S. dollar — yet gold has shown resilience amid capital rotation into safer assets like Treasuries.

Wonderful. All good

Buying based on "hot tips," chasing rallies, and doubling down on losing positions. It starts with a stock at $2.50, and by the time it hits $0.80, you’re fully loaded and trapped.

Thursday — Futures Market Monitor price fluctuations in energy, precious metals, and agricultural futures. International oil prices fell on March 25. At the close of trading that day, the WTI crude oil futures contract for the current month on the New York Mercantile Exchange fell $1.06 to settle at $91.29 per barrel, a drop of 1.15%.

While retail investors rarely get access to pre-IPO shares, "smart money" has already begun betting on secondary market funds with SpaceX exposure: $Fundrise Innovation Fund LLC(VCX)$ $ARK Space Exploration & Innovation ETF(ARKX)$ $ERShares Private-Public Crossover ETF(XOVR)$ $Baron First Principles ETF(RONB)$ $Destiny Tech100 Inc(DXYZ)$

After hitting a record high of $5,589 this January, gold prices plummeted to approximately $4,100 in less than two months—a 26.6% peak-to-trough retracement. This marks the most catastrophic monthly decline in 43 years. However, prices managed to claw back to $4,400 during pre-market trading.

Remember those highly praised strategists at Deutsche Bank, Citi, Goldman, and Morgan Stanley? Now in the face of absolute power, technical analysis turns into mysticism. 100% bottom-fishing success rate: Trump tells you to buy, ignore the earnings report. 100% crude oil short success rate: Trump says oil is too high — even if the Middle East is on fire, the shorts have to retreat. Middle East chaos: Even if the war worsens, if Trump says talks are coming, the market obeys.

Gold fell more than 8% intraday, breaking below $4,200 and reaching the $4,100 level. It has now declined for multiple consecutive days, wiping out all of this year’s gains.

Within the S&P 500 Index, energy was the best-performing sector by a wide margin as oil prices moved higher amid ongoing uncertainty surrounding Middle East supply risks. U.S. Treasury yields also mostly moved higher amid the heightened uncertainty, with the yield on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury note rising to around 4.38% as of Friday afternoon.

Neutral, nothing changed much

The two main drags were: Quick Commerce (Ele.me and instant retail) with continued widening losses, and the "All Others" segment posting a RMB 9.8bn loss that deteriorated further quarter-on-quarter. Morgan Stanley's response was "unchanged thesis" — core investment case intact — but near-term EPS estimates were revised lower, making the overall tone a modest negative revision.

Bearish Sentiment: Jumped from 46.4% last week to 52%, hitting its highest level since May last year. Bullish Sentiment: Slipped from 31.9% to 30.4%, its lowest point since last September. Neutral Sentiment: Stands at a mere 17.6%, also at the lower end of the historical range. Current market sentiment has moved beyond "caution" and is now leaning decisively toward pessimism.

Gold prices saw a sharp decline yesterday, dropping about 3.7%, followed by another 2% decline today. Within just two days, prices broke below the $5,000 and $4,900 levels, falling toward $4,800 and even briefly dipping under $4,700.