GoAI Market Wrap - 26th Feb

Stock Market

Overnight, U.S. markets enjoyed another session of quiet gains as investors awaited NVIDIA's high-stakes earnings report. By the close, the S&P 500 rose 0.81% to 6,946.13; the Nasdaq Composite climbed 1.26% to 23,152.08; and the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.63% to 49,482.15.

 

Momentum built in the final hours before the results, with the "Magnificent Seven" ending collectively higher. Other AI-linked favorites like Western Digital, Seagate Technology, and Applied Materials also saw robust gains. After the bell, NVIDIA delivered a powerhouse report that crushed expectations.

 

The computing giant reported $68.1 billion in revenue and $43.0 billion in net profit for the January quarter. Its guidance for the current quarter further stunned the market, forecasting $78.0 billion in revenue—well above consensus. Conversely, Salesforce investors faced a post-market sell-off of 5% as lackluster financial guidance overshadowed a decent earnings beat.

Global Markets

U.S. Government to Ink Power Price Agreement with Tech Giants

 

The U.S. government will convene leading data center and AI firms, including Microsoft and Anthropic, on March 4 to sign a formal agreement protecting consumers from rising electricity costs. A White House spokesperson noted that the companies will commit to the power price protections announced by President Trump in his State of the Union address, which called for tech giants to build their own power plants to fuel expanding AI infrastructure.

 

CME Group Hits Second Major Outage in a Month

 

U.S. natural gas futures trading was halted for over 30 minutes on Wednesday—the contract's expiration day—marking the second major disruption in a month. CME Group attributed the pause to a technical failure on its Globex electronic platform. The outage also briefly impacted gold and copper futures trading.

 

Supertanker Daily Rates Continue Steep Ascent

 

Charter rates for Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCs) transporting Middle Eastern crude to Asia broke the $200,000 per day mark on Wednesday. This follows Tuesday’s breach of the $170,000 level, marking the highest rates seen since 2020 amid heightened regional tensions.

Corporate News

NVIDIA Q4 Revenue Surges 75%

 

NVIDIA's fiscal Q4 results showed earnings per share (EPS) of $1.62, beating the $1.53 consensus. Total revenue hit $68.13 billion, up 22% sequentially and 75% year-over-year. For the current quarter, the company expects revenue to reach $78.0 billion (a 77% YoY increase), significantly ahead of the $72.0 billion projected by analysts.

 

Google Gemini Mobile Agent Debuts at Samsung Launch

 

At the Samsung flagship launch event, Google demonstrated a Gemini-powered agent capable of automating mobile app tasks. Sameer Samat, President of the Android Ecosystem, stated that Gemini-enabled automation will be a core focus for the Android 17 update later this year.

 

Stablecoin Leader Circle Surges 35% Post-Earnings

 

Circle shares skyrocketed 35.47% following its Q4 report. Revenue reached $770 million (up 77% YoY), beating the $747 million forecast. Net income surged to $133 million, a massive leap from just $4 million in the same period last year.

Forex & Commodities

International oil prices edged lower on February 25. WTI Crude Oil futures fell $0.06 (0.09%) to settle at $65.57 per barrel.

 

COMEX Gold futures rose $7.40 (0.14%) to $5,183.70/oz, while COMEX Silver gained $1.70 (1.95%) to $89.21/oz. In the spot market, Spot Gold finished at $5,164.96/oz, up 0.41%.

Key Event

J.P. Morgan Raises Long-term Gold Forecast to $4,500

 

J.P. Morgan raised its long-term gold price forecast to $4,500/oz while maintaining its year-end 2026 target of $6,300/oz. Spot gold has climbed roughly 20% this year, briefly touching a three-week high of $5,248.89 on Tuesday.

Cryptocurrency

Cryptocurrency markets saw strong broad-based gains over the last 24 hours.

 

Bitcoin (BTC) surged 6.16% to $68,210.48, while Ethereum (ETH) jumped 10.94% to reach $2,059.03. Solana (SOL) led major gainers with an 11.74% spike to $88.51, and XRP added 6.48% to trade at $1.43.

Key Event

On-chain Signals Reset as Bitcoin Eyes Rebound

 

Following a period of intense volatility, analysts at RadexMarkets suggest Bitcoin has entered a key valuation correction phase.

 

While immediate resistance remains below $65,000, stabilizing on-chain indicators suggest a "healthy de-foaming" process that often precedes the next leg of a bull market.