On Wednesday, January 21, the three major US stock index futures all fell ahead of the market open. As of the time of writing, Dow Jones futures were down 0.27%, S&P 500 futures declined 0.20%, and Nasdaq futures dropped 0.39%.
As of the time of writing, Germany's DAX index fell 1.09%, the UK's FTSE 100 index dropped 0.18%, France's CAC 40 index declined 0.38%, and the Euro Stoxx 50 index decreased by 0.95%.
As of the time of writing, WTI crude oil rose 0.27% to $60.52 per barrel. Brent crude increased by 0.17% to $65.03 per barrel.
Market attention is focused on President Trump's speech tonight at the Davos World Economic Forum, scheduled for 21:30 Beijing Time. The primary focus is on whether he will ease trade tensions with Europe, which were sparked by his "purchase of Greenland" concept. Following recent significant declines in US stocks, the market widely views this speech as a potential turning point for assessing whether transatlantic trade relations will deteriorate further. While the White House previously indicated Trump would focus on promoting US economic resilience and propose a policy allowing retirement savings to be used for home down payments, his recent threats of high tariffs against European nations rejecting the Greenland idea have shifted international investor focus squarely onto tariff policies.
Consequently, financial markets experienced volatility ahead of the speech, with US stock futures attempting to stabilize, while safe-haven demand pushed gold to a new historic high of $4,800 per ounce.
Wall Street is loudly asserting that political turmoil is merely noise, while earnings growth represents the true buying opportunity. The US is threatening to wage at least one economic war to seize control of Greenland; political uncertainty in Japan is disrupting global bond markets; furthermore, the Federal Reserve's independence remains under threat from the Trump administration. Despite stocks posting their largest single-day drop since October on Tuesday, Wall Street strategists maintain that the foundation for further market gains remains solid.
Their logic typically hinges on the view that risk assets have historically seen through geopolitical turmoil, unless such chaos triggers a sharp spike in oil prices. Although crude prices climbed on Tuesday, both Brent and WTI traded well below their long-term averages. Other bullish perspectives stem from corporate earnings, with fourth-quarter profit growth estimated at approximately 9%.
So far, the US Supreme Court has helped the Federal Reserve resist President Trump's various attempts to seize control. A courtroom debate scheduled for Wednesday local time will test the Supreme Court's resolve in defending the Fed's independence. The Justices will consider whether Trump can fire Fed Governor Lisa Cook over mortgage fraud allegations—charges which Cook herself denies. Notably, this hearing coincides with the Justice Department's criminal investigation into Fed Chair Jerome Powell, which has sparked bipartisan opposition.
Formally, the core dispute in the Cook case is whether Trump has the authority to temporarily remove her while related litigation is ongoing.
The primary underlying logic, according to analysts, is that global investors are increasingly uncertain about the prospects for geopolitics, macroeconomics, monetary policy, and fiat currency storage of wealth in 2026 at the start of the year. Furthermore, the failure of some companies to raise their 2026 earnings guidance during their reports has led investors to sell on strength, making "buy the rumor, sell the news" seem like the default action. To date, approximately 81% of S&P 500 component companies have reported actual profits exceeding fourth-quarter consensus expectations.
US Treasury Secretary Besant stated on Wednesday that she is not concerned about a sell-off in US Treasuries, linking the sell-off to volatility in Japanese government bonds and stating she has maintained contact with Japanese counterparts, assuring they will take measures to stabilize markets. Denmark's stance on US debt is as insignificant as the country itself. She called on European allies to understand that Greenland needs to become part of the US and hopes they will wait for President Trump's speech.
Amid the Greenland sovereignty crisis, a major crash in long-term Japanese government bond prices, and threats to Federal Reserve independence from Trump—all strongly supporting global safe-haven demand—the precious metal gold continues its record-breaking price surge. After a frenzied 70% rally in 2025, gold has maintained a spectacular bull run into early 2026. As of writing, spot gold broke through the significant technical level of $4,880 per ounce, last trading at $4,863.01, up 2.09% on the day. HSBC predicts gold could surpass the major $5,000 per ounce threshold in the first half of 2026.
Netflix (NFLX.US) fell over 7% in pre-market trading due to conservative first-quarter guidance and its plan for an all-cash acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery. While Netflix's Q4 results largely beat Wall Street expectations, its forecast for the coming months was cautious. Netflix expects Q1 2026 revenue of $12.16 billion, slightly below the expected $12.17 billion, citing increased programming expenses and costs associated with the Warner Bros. Discovery deal. To facilitate the all-cash acquisition, Netflix will suspend its stock buyback program.
Interactive Brokers (IBKR.US) reported Q4 profit exceeding expectations, driven strongly by its dual engines of trading and interest income. Interactive Brokers' Q4 performance surpassed market expectations, with continued double-digit growth in client trading volume. Profit growth this quarter was powered by robust activity in its two core engines—trading activity and interest income—alongside ongoing client base expansion and effective operational cost control, highlighting its operational resilience in volatile markets.
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ.US) issued a strong earnings outlook, projecting 2026 sales and profit above Wall Street's general expectations, even after absorbing a "hundreds of millions of dollars" impact from a drug price reduction and pricing agreement signed with the Trump administration earlier this month. In Q4 2025, J&J's sales and profit showed strong growth, exceeding Wall Street forecasts. J&J management expects full-year 2026 adjusted EPS in the range of $11.43 to $11.63, compared to the Wall Street consensus of approximately $11.45.
Halliburton (HAL.US) reported better-than-expected Q4 earnings, driven by growth in international market demand. The company's adjusted EPS reached $0.69, beating analyst expectations of $0.55. This performance was primarily fueled by strong international operations, where revenue grew 2.9% to $3.5 billion. Significant growth was noted in completion tool sales in Brazil, the North Sea, and the Caribbean, alongside strong software sales in Mexico. Although North American revenue remained flat at $2.2 billion, CEO Jeff Miller expressed expectations for a recovery in the North American market as macroeconomic fundamentals improve. Following the report, Halliburton's stock rose 1.81% in pre-market trading.
Berkshire Hathaway plans a near-total divestment of its stake in The Kraft Heinz Company (KHC.US). A recent SEC filing showed Berkshire registered to sell up to 325.4 million company shares. According to FactSet data, Berkshire currently holds 325.6 million shares, meaning this sale would cover almost its entire position. As of now, Berkshire's ownership stake is 27.5%. As of writing, Kraft Heinz fell nearly 6% in pre-market trading.
Meta Platforms (META.US) indicated that its new AI team delivered a core model this month, showing early results from Zuckerberg's high-priced recruitment efforts. Meta's Chief Technology Officer stated on Wednesday that the company's newly established AI lab delivered its first highly anticipated AI models internally this month. During a press briefing at the World Economic Forum in Davos, CTO Andrew Bosworth said the models built by the Meta Superintelligence Lab team, formed last year, show significant potential. Meta's efforts have been closely watched after CEO Mark Zuckerberg took major steps to reorganize AI leadership, form a new lab, and recruit talent with premium compensation. Zuckerberg aims for the company to win in the intensely competitive technological frontier. Previously, Meta faced criticism over the performance of its Llama 4 model.
Key Economic Data and Events Schedule: Beijing Time 23:00: US Pending Home Sales MoM (%). Next Day, Beijing Time 05:30: US API Weekly Crude Oil Stock change (million barrels). Beijing Time 21:30: US President Trump delivers a speech at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting on "How We Cooperate in a World of Growing Competition." TBD: US Supreme Court hears arguments regarding Trump's attempt to remove Fed Governor Cook.
Earnings Preview for Thursday Pre-market: GE Aerospace (GE.US), Abbott Laboratories (ABT.US).
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