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ADDX GO Market Morning Wrap - 20th May

Go Wire
Go Wire
May 19, 2025
GoGPT Summarizes Articles

Stock Market

Overnight and early this morning, the U.S. stock market opened significantly weaker after Moody's downgraded the U.S. sovereign credit rating. However, a potential "triple sell-off in stocks, forex, and bonds" was averted by a buying frenzy among retail investors.

 

At the close, the S&P 500 rose 0.09% to 5,963.6 points; the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.02% to 19,215.46 points; and the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.32% to 42,792.07 points. Based on closing prices, the S&P 500 has rebounded 17% from its April low and is just 3% away from a new all-time high.

The pharmaceutical and precious metals sectors led the gains. Novavax rose more than 15%, UnitedHealth Group gained over 8%, Moderna rose more than 6%, U.S. Gold Corporation increased by over 5%, while Endeavour Silver, Gilead Sciences, and Biogen rose by over 3%. The solar energy, automotive manufacturing, and oil & gas sectors were among the worst performers: First Solar fell more than 7%, and Murphy Oil dropped over 2%.

 

Data compiled by JPMorgan's quantitative team showed that as of 12:30 p.m. ET on Monday, individual investors net-bought $4.1 billion in U.S. stocks, setting a historical record for the period and marking the first time purchases exceeded $4 billion before noon. Data also showed that retail trading volume accounted for 36% of total volume on Monday, a new all-time high surpassing late April levels.

Key Events

  • U.S.-Russia Presidents Hold Over 2-Hour Call and Putin Says Willing to Draft Peace Memorandum with Ukraine: On the 19th local time, U.S. President Trump and Russian President Putin concluded a call lasting over 2 hours. Putin stated that an agreement was reached with Trump: Russia will propose plans and is willing to jointly draft a memorandum on a potential future peace treaty with Ukraine.
  • Fed Official Said Tariff Shocks Exceed Expectations, Tends to Only Cut Rates Once This Year: On Monday (May 19) local time, Atlanta Fed President Bostic said that with the Fed currently trying to balance upward inflationary pressures and recession risks, he prefers only one rate cut this year.
  • Israeli Prime Minister Admits for First Time that Gazans Are on the Brink of Famine, Vows to Complete Military Conquest: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a short video released Monday that although limited humanitarian aid began entering the Gaza Strip on Monday, this is aimed at expanding military operations. Netanyahu emphasized that the current large-scale combat by Israeli forces aims to ultimately control the entire Gaza Strip.
  • Japan’s Nippon Steel Reportedly Increases Investment Commitment to $14 Billion: Citing sources, media reported that Nippon Steel plans to invest a total of $14 billion in U.S. Steel, including $4 billion for a new steel mill, conditional on approval of its acquisition of the iconic U.S. company by the Trump administration. Nippon Steel’s initial investment commitment was only $1.4 billion, and the significant increase is seen as a last-ditch effort to secure deal approval.
  • Emirati Capital Joins Nvidia to Build Largest AI Hub in Europe: Nvidia and Abu Dhabi’s investment firm MGX are partnering with French companies to establish a "largest AI campus in Europe" in France, advancing technological ambitions in France and the UAE.

Forex & Commodities

COMEX gold futures settled up $46.30, or 1.45%, at $3,233.50/oz.

 

June light crude oil futures on the New York Mercantile Exchange rose 20 cents to settle at $62.69/barrel, up 0.32%; July Brent crude oil futures rose 13 cents to settle at $65.54/barrel, up 0.20%.

 

The U.S. Dollar Index, which measures the dollar against six major currencies, fell 0.66% to end the session at 100.426.

Key Events

  • Is a U.S. Dollar Asset Storm Looming? Facing the Trump administration’s "all talk, no action" on spending cuts while continuing to expand fiscal deficits, global markets are cautiously assessing how the next U.S. dollar asset storm will unfold. Against this backdrop, the Trump administration is promoting a tax-cut and spending bill dubbed the "Great Beautiful Act" by the president. The latest bipartisan estimates suggest the proposal could increase U.S. fiscal deficits by nearly $3 trillion over the next decade, further deteriorating the country’s fiscal position.

Cryptocurrency

Bitcoin rose 1.4% to $105,518, with 24-hour trading volume surging 59.3% to $676.3 billion.

 

Ethereum (ETH-USD) rose 4.4% to $2,521.

 

XRP (XRP-USD) gained 0.2%, BNB (BNB-USD) rose 1.4%, and Solana (SOL-USD) fell 0.9%.

 

Dogecoin (DOGE-USD) climbed 0.7%, and Cardano (ADA-USD) rose 0.9%.

 

The total market capitalization of the cryptocurrency industry rose 1.1% in the past 24 hours to $3.33 trillion, with trading volume up 44.8% to $1.5183 trillion.

Key Events

  • JPMorgan CEO Relents: Allows Clients to Buy Bitcoin, but Won’t Provide Custody Services. JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon said Monday that the bank’s clients can now buy Bitcoin, while reiterating his long-standing skepticism of cryptocurrencies. Analysts believe this decision is significant for JPMorgan and marks Bitcoin’s further entry into mainstream investment markets.

Market Events and Most Anticipated Earnings Releases

#Market Morning Wrap