Bel20 Set too Open Lower Following Wall Street’s Sharp Reversal
Brussels – The Bel20 index is poised for a negative opening on Friday, following a dramatic sell-off on Wall Street. Initial gains fueled by strong earnings from Nvidia quickly evaporated Thursday, leading to important losses across major US indices.
the Bel20 had opened higher Thursday, boosted by Nvidia’s positive after-hours report on Wednesday, but ultimately closed up only 0.2 percent at 4,971.48 points. This modest gain contrasted sharply with the earlier optimism.
The reversal in US markets was notably pronounced after the Brussels close. The S&P 500,initially up 1.9 percent, finished the day down 1.6 percent – its largest single-day turnaround since April. Nvidia, a key driver of recent market gains, swung from a 5 percent increase to a more than 3 percent loss.The Nasdaq Composite fell 2.2 percent.
Analysts cited profit-taking, concerns about a potential ‘AI bubble,’ and the release of hawkish minutes from the Federal Reserve’s latest interest rate meeting as potential factors behind the shift in sentiment. Market expectations for a December interest rate cut have now dropped to below 40 percent.
Asian markets also reacted negatively overnight. The Nikkei in Tokyo closed down more than 2 percent, while Chinese stock markets lost approximately 1.5 percent. Japan’s government announced a $135 billion stimulus package, but concerns about its financing led to the yen falling to a ten-month low against the dollar.
Today’s economic calendar includes the release of composite purchasing managers’ indices for November in both the Eurozone and the US.
Company News:
Ackermans & van Haaren reported strong performance from its core holdings in the first nine months of the year and reaffirmed its expectation of at least a 15 percent increase in net profit in 2025 compared to 2024.
Bekaert reported a sales decline in the third quarter, in line with analyst expectations, and its 2025 outlook is slightly below consensus estimates.
wall Street Close:
* S&P 500: 6,538.76 points (-1.6 percent)
* Nasdaq: 22,078.05 points (-2.2 percent)
* Dow Jones: 45,752.26 points (-0.8 percent)
Copyright: ABM Financial News / info@abmfn.nl. ABM Financial News is the supplier of stock market news in the Benelux. The information in this article is not intended as professional investment advice or as a recommendation to make certain investments.
