ADDX GO Market Morning Wrap - 29th Oct

Stock Market

On Tuesday (October 28), the three major U.S. indices rose collectively and closed at fresh record highs.  

 

At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.34% to 47,706.37 points; the S&P 500 gained 0.23% to 6,890.89 points; the Nasdaq Composite surged 0.8% to 23,827.49 points, all breaking the records set on Monday.  

 

“Global stock king” Nvidia closed up 4.98% at $201.03, with the company’s total market cap approaching $4.9 trillion. During the intraday GTC conference, Jensen Huang showcased a grand blueprint for AI empowering various industries, covering multiple tech themes hot in the capital markets.  

 

Nvidia’s surge also drove some chip stocks higher, with Intel up 5.03% and Broadcom up 3.02%. Nokia rose 22.84%, as Nvidia officially announced a $1 billion investment in Nokia to accelerate AI-RAN innovation and lead the transition from 5G to 6G.  

 

Microsoft rose 1.98% to a record high close, with market cap exceeding $4 trillion. During the day, Microsoft and OpenAI announced a new agreement supporting OpenAI’s advancement in forming its for-profit arm and capital restructuring, with a diluted converted share ratio of approximately 27%.  

 

Apple rose 0.07% to also refresh its closing record, with market cap briefly exceeding $4 trillion intraday. Market optimism for its new iPhone models and easing tariff pressures jointly drove the stock higher. Earlier in the day, Tim Cook attended Trump’s dinner in Tokyo.

 

On Wednesday and Thursday this week, Microsoft, Alphabet, Meta, Apple, and Amazon will release earnings reports. Horizon Investments head of research and quantitative strategy Mike Dickson said the earnings season has started “very well” so far.  

 

“By historical standards, stock valuations are already quite high, and we may have gotten almost all the help from the Fed,” Dickson noted. “We have to see what these tech giants say.”  

 

Investors expect the Fed to cut its benchmark rate again mid-Wednesday. The CME “FedWatch” tool shows a 99.9% probability of a “25 basis point cut to 3.75%-4%.”  

Global Hotspots  

U.S. Government Mass Layoffs During “Shutdown” Further Halted  

 

On October 28 local time, a U.S. federal judge further blocked the Trump administration’s plan to lay off thousands of federal employees during the nearly month-long partial government “shutdown.”  

 

U.S. Senate Minority Leader: Government “Shutdown” May Last Until November  

 

On October 28 local time, U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said the federal government “shutdown” may continue until November, when millions will face high healthcare costs due to the expiration of Affordable Care Act tax credits.

 

Hundreds of thousands of federal workers are forced on leave, others work without pay, and federal food aid is about to end.  

 

U.S. X-59 Quiet Supersonic Demonstrator Completes First Flight  

 

Early on October 28 local time, NASA’s new X-59 quiet supersonic demonstrator took off from Air Force Plant 42 in Palmdale, California, for its first flight after years of delays.

 

The X-59 is engineered to break the sound barrier with a “soft thump” rather than a loud boom, using noise reduction as a breakthrough to lay the foundation for future commercial supersonic aircraft.  

 

Hamas Denies Involvement in Attack on Israeli Forces, Accuses Israel of Violating Ceasefire  

 

On the 28th local time, the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) issued a statement denying any connection to the attack on Israeli forces in southern Gaza’s Rafah that day and emphasizing that the organization “remains committed to the current ceasefire agreement.”

 

The statement said Israeli military attacks in multiple Gaza areas constitute a “serious violation” of the ceasefire and noted recent repeated violations by Israeli forces, calling on mediators to pressure Israel to stop “dangerous and ongoing breach behavior.”  

 

Russian FM: NATO Breaks Promises, Expansion “Has Not Stopped for a Moment”  

 

On October 28 in Minsk, Belarus, Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov spoke at the opening of the 3rd Minsk International Conference on Eurasian Security. Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov said on the 28th in Belarus’s capital Minsk that despite NATO’s many promises, expansion “has not stopped for a moment.”  

Company News  

Nvidia Launches New Quantum Device to Connect Quantum Processors with Nvidia Chips  

 

Nvidia launched a new quantum device to connect quantum processors with Nvidia chips.

 

Nvidia introduced NVQLink, linking quantum and GPU computing for 17 quantum computing companies and 9 research labs. NVQLink is an open system architecture that tightly couples extreme GPU computing performance with quantum processors to build accelerated quantum supercomputers.  

 

Nvidia: Expects Business Scale to Reach $500 Billion Over Next Six Quarters  

 

Nvidia expects its business scale to reach $500 billion over the next six quarters, shipping 20 million Blackwell Ruben graphics processors (GPUs). Huang said Blackwell is in “full production” in Arizona.  

 

Microsoft and OpenAI Sign New Agreement; Latter to Purchase Additional $250 Billion in Azure Services  

 

Microsoft and OpenAI signed a new agreement. OpenAI commits to purchasing an additional $250 billion in Azure services, while Microsoft will no longer have priority as OpenAI’s compute provider. OpenAI can now jointly develop products with third parties; API products from third-party collaborations remain Azure-exclusive, while non-API products can be deployed on any cloud platform.

 

Microsoft supports OpenAI’s board in establishing a public benefit company, holding investment rights in the OpenAI Group public benefit company worth approximately $135 billion.  

 

Apple Plans Display Upgrades for MacBook Air and iPad Product Lines  

 

Apple plans display upgrades for the MacBook Air and iPad product lines. Apple will equip MacBook Air and iPad with iPhone-like OLED displays. This design change may cause the iPad mini to rise in price by $100.  

 

Visa: Q4 Net Revenue $10.7 Billion, Up 11% YoY, Above Market Expectations  

 

Visa Q4 payment volume $3.73 trillion, estimate $3.71 trillion; Q4 net revenue $10.7 billion, up 11%, estimate $10.62 billion; Q4 adjusted net income $5.8 billion, up 6.9%, estimate $5.77 billion; Q4 adjusted EPS $2.98, up 9.96%, estimate $2.97.  

Forex & Commodities  

COMEX gold futures fell 1.28% to $3,968.10/oz; COMEX silver futures rose 0.78% to $47.14/oz.  

 

International crude oil futures settled down nearly 2%. WTI crude futures closed down 1.89% at $60.15/barrel. Brent crude futures closed down 1.86% at $64.40/barrel.  

 

NY close, USD index fell 0.09% to 98.73, most non-USD currencies rose.  

Key Events  

Brent Crude Down 1.9%, Market Weighing Russia Sanctions vs. OPEC+ Production Increase Plans  

 

Brent crude contracts fell about 1.9% on Tuesday and are on track for a third straight decline. Investors are assessing the impact of U.S. sanctions on Russia’s two largest oil companies on global supply, as well as potential OPEC+ production increase plans.  

 

“Traders are weighing U.S.-China trade negotiation progress against the broader supply outlook,” ANZ said in a morning report.  

 

Brent and WTI crude recorded their largest weekly gains since June last week in response to U.S. President Trump’s first Ukraine-related sanctions in his second term, targeting Lukoil and Rosneft.  

 

Germany’s economy minister said the U.S. government has provided written assurance that Rosneft’s German operations will be exempt from sanctions because these assets are no longer under Russian control.  

 

“Trump’s exemption for Germany makes it feel like there may be more wiggle room in these sanctions, easing immediate concerns about a sharp supply squeeze. We are indeed seeing some risk-off trading today,” said Phil Flynn, senior analyst at Price Futures Group.  

 

IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol said on Tuesday that due to spare capacity, sanctions will have limited impact on oil-exporting countries.  

Cryptocurrency  

Bitcoin down 1.27% in 24h to $112,715.  

 

Ethereum (ETH-USD) down 3.46% to $3,981.25.  

 

XRP (XRP-USD) down 1.19%, BNB (BNB-USD) down 3.12%, and Solana (SOL-USD) down 2.36%.  

 

Dogecoin (DOGE-USD) down 3.35%, and Cardano (ADA-USD) down 3.28%.  

Key Events  

France Proposes Establishing Bitcoin Reserve  

 

On October 28, France’s conservative party UDR proposed a groundbreaking bill aimed at establishing a national Bitcoin reserve system. If passed, France would become distinctive in the EU in cryptocurrency policy.  

 

According to reports, the proposal submitted to the French parliament suggests setting up a public institution to manage a total of 420,000 Bitcoin reserve assets.  

 

This is approximately 2% of the total supply, making Bitcoin effectively a state-backed strategic asset.  

 

If this plan is implemented, France’s Bitcoin holdings will exceed the U.S.’s 326,588, becoming the world’s largest sovereign Bitcoin holder.