The Nasdaq 100 attempts a tenth consecutive win

The countdown is on to tomorrow evening's Federal Reserve decision on interest rates. Investors appear unfazed, driving U.S. indexes to fresh records with tech stocks still carrying much of the momentum. Confidence in a quarter-point cut is strong, and Wall Street's rally shows no sign of slowing ahead of Jerome Powell's remarks.

Wall Street is running on anticipation. Investors are buying into the quarter-point rate cut that the Federal Reserve is expected to deliver tomorrow evening. The move itself is a given — the real suspense lies in Jerome Powell’s tone. Will the Fed hint at further easing, or strike a more hawkish note? For now, confidence dominates. The Nasdaq 100 added 0.8% yesterday, notching a ninth straight gain and closing at 24,294 points, another record. That’s a long way from October 2002, when the index languished below 800 after the internet bubble burst. It took sixteen years to return to its 2000 highs, but since then milestones have fallen quickly: 5,000 points in 2016, 10,000 in 2020, and 20,000 in 2024. Today, investors are betting on two more cuts before year-end, though any hawkish surprise could unsettle the rally.

 

Beyond the Fed, U.S. macroeconomic data will roll in this afternoon, but nothing is expected to derail the policy outlook. On the political front, Donald Trump is scheduled to meet Xi Jinping on Friday, with TikTok’s fate in the U.S. emerging as an early bargaining chip — a sign of “TikTok diplomacy” setting the stage for broader negotiations.

 

In Europe, markets are resilient despite political fragility in France, where new Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu is already struggling to hold on. The CAC 40 has strung together six straight advances, while French bond yields remain stable, suggesting investors are keeping their cool. In Asia, the MSCI Asia Pacific Index is also riding a wave of optimism, on track for a ninth consecutive gain. Tech-heavy markets such as South Korea and Taiwan are leading with gains above 1%, while Japan, India, and Australia post more modest rises. Chinese equities remain more subdued, with Hong Kong flat and Shanghai slightly lower.

In the Asian markets, the MSCI Asia Pacific Index (which tracks 12 markets, including Japan, China, Taiwan, Australia, and South Korea) is on track to rise for the ninth consecutive day, as is the Nasdaq 100. Markets that are heavily dependent on technology, such as South Korea and Taiwan, are up more than 1% this morning. Australia, Japan, and India are up between 0.2% and 0.5%. Chinese markets are slightly less dynamic, with stability in Hong Kong and a slight decline in Shanghai.

Today's economic highlights:

On the agenda today: US retail sales, capacity utilization, industrial production, business inventories, and the NAHB housing market index are in focus. See the full agenda here.

• USD / GBP: GDP 0.7324
• Gold: US$3,691
• Crude Oil (BRENT): US$68.03
• United States 10 years: 4.038%
• BITCOIN: US$115,202

In corporate news:

• Alphabet: Google’s parent company announced Tuesday it will invest £5 billion ($5.77 billion) in the United Kingdom, coinciding with President Donald Trump’s state visit expected to generate multiple trade and partnership agreements. On Monday, Alphabet also surpassed a $3 trillion market capitalization for the first time.
  
• Chipotle Mexican Grill: Shares gained 1.9% premarket after the group expanded its share buyback program by an additional $500 million, according to a filing with the SEC.
  
• Chord Energy: The U.S. energy company said Monday it will acquire XTO Energy assets from Exxon Mobil in the Williston Basin for $550 million.
  
• Dave & Buster’s Entertainment: Shares plunged 17.7% premarket after the U.S. restaurant and entertainment chain missed analyst expectations on revenue and profit for the second quarter.
  
• Delta Airlines: U.S. regulators ordered Delta Air Lines and Aeromexico to dissolve their joint venture by January 1, which had allowed them to coordinate schedules, pricing, and capacity for U.S.-Mexico flights.
  
• Ford: The U.S. automaker announced Tuesday it will cut up to 1,000 electric vehicle production jobs in Cologne, Germany, citing weak demand.
  
• Live Nation: The Federal Trade Commission is investigating whether Ticketmaster, a Live Nation subsidiary, is taking sufficient steps to prevent bots from reselling tickets on its platform, Bloomberg reported Monday. The company has denied the accusation.
  
• New York Times: Donald Trump filed a lawsuit Monday against the New York Times, four of its journalists, and publisher Penguin Random House, seeking $15 billion in damages for defamation over reporting on his ties to the late financier Jeffrey Epstein.
  
• Nvidia: The RTX6000D, the latest AI chip designed by the U.S. tech giant specifically for the Chinese market, has met with lukewarm interest, with some large tech firms deciding not to place orders, Reuters reported.
  
• Oracle: According to CBS, Oracle is part of a consortium that would allow TikTok to continue operating in the U.S. under a framework agreement between the U.S. and China. Shares rose 3.8% premarket.
  
• Ralph Lauren: The U.S. fashion group fell 4.8% premarket after announcing its financial targets through 2028 and updating its strategic plan during its investor day.
  
• Reddit: A service outage that affected thousands of users in the U.S. was resolved Monday after a brief interruption, according to Downdetector.com.
  
• Tesla: The U.S. road safety agency (NHTSA) said Tuesday it has opened an investigation into about 174,000 Model Y vehicles from the 2021 model year after reports that electronic door handles could stop functioning.
  
• Workday: The HR software provider announced Tuesday it will acquire artificial intelligence company Sana for about $1.1 billion.

Analyst Recommendations:

• Amazon: Truist Securities maintains its buy rating and raises the price target from $250 to $270.
  
• AutoZone: Raymond James maintains its strong buy rating and raises the price target from $4,200 to $4,900.
  
• Bloom Energy: Johnson Rice maintains its buy rating and raises the price target from $45 to $80.
  
• Campbell Soup: Stephens maintains its overweight rating and lowers the price target from $41 to $40.
  
• Chord Energy: Wells Fargo maintains its overweight rating and raises the price target from $146 to $149.
  
• Darden Restaurants: Guggenheim maintains its buy rating and raises the price target from $220 to $235.
  
• Dick’s Sporting Goods: Gordon Haskett maintains its hold rating and raises the price target from $220 to $230.
  
• DoorDash: MoffettNathanson maintains its buy rating and raises the price target from $299 to $305.
  
• Ferguson: Zelman & Associates maintains its neutral rating and raises the price target from $213 to $214.
  
• Instacart (Maplebear): BTIG maintains its buy rating and lowers the price target from $58 to $55.
  
• Kenvue: Baptista Research upgrades from underperform to hold and lowers the price target from $22 to $20.80.
  
• Norfolk Southern: Loop Capital Markets maintains its hold rating and raises the price target from $235 to $278.
  
• Republic Services: Citi maintains its buy rating and lowers the price target from $280 to $270.
  
• Royal Caribbean: Melius Research maintains its buy rating and raises the price target from $375 to $385.
  
• Seagate Technology: Benchmark Co. maintains its buy rating and raises the price target from $165 to $250.
  
• Union Pacific: Loop Capital Markets upgrades from sell to hold and raises the price target from $214 to $227.
  
• Waste Management: Citi maintains its buy rating and lowers the price target from $275 to $268.
  
• Wayfair: Evercore ISI maintains its outperform rating and raises the price target from $85 to $100.