Global stock markets ended mixed on Monday, caught between renewed interest in artificial intelligence (AI) stocks after last week’s sell-off, and continued geopolitical uncertainty in the Middle East.
On Wall Street, the Nasdaq index – with a strong technological coloring – increased by 0.86% and the broader S&P 500 index advanced by 0.30%. The Dow Jones fell by 0.16%.
“It seemed logical to see some cheap buying today after Friday’s very poor close,” Steve Sosnick of Interactive Brokers commented to AFP.
Stocks linked to artificial intelligence (AI), particularly sanctioned at the end of last week, were the most sought after on Monday on Wall Street.
Chip giant Nvidia, the world’s largest stock market capitalization, recovered 1.73% to $208.64, after falling more than 6% on Friday. Its valuation has returned above the symbolic threshold of 5,000 billion dollars.
Other big names in the sector have also gained ground, like Intel (+11.19%), AMD (+5.14%), Micron (+9.87%) and Qualcomm (+0.85%).
“Profit growth remains exceptionally strong, particularly among large technology companies, and the theme of artificial intelligence continues to support long-term profitability expectations,” recalls Daniela Hathorn, analyst at Capital.com.
Europe, less exposed to the technology sector, ended on a more cautious note. The Paris Stock Exchange lost 0.23% and Frankfurt 0.58%. London remained stable (+0.05%) while Milan gained 0.63%, supported by banking stocks.
AI-related stocks, which had also fallen significantly on Friday, recovered on Monday. Infineon finished up 2.03% in Frankfurt and STMicroelectronics gained 4.01% in Paris.
Le petrole modère sa hausse
After jumping early on Monday, crude oil prices slowed their rise following the announcement of an end to hostilities between Iran and Israel.
At the start of the session, Brent had gained up to 5.36%, pushed by the resumption of direct attacks between the two countries over the weekend, for the first time since the truce concluded two months ago.
The price of a barrel of Brent from the North Sea, for delivery in August, finally rose 1.25% to $94.25.
Its American equivalent, a barrel of West Texas Intermediate, for delivery in July, gained 0.84% to $91.30.
American President Donald Trump, who has not hidden his disagreements with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in recent days, also slammed his fist on the table.
“The final negotiations on ‘peace’ are continuing, provided that ignorance or stupidity does not come in the way,” he wrote on the Truth Social network.
“The market remains convinced that the president does not really want to continue this war,” John Kilduff of Again Capital told AFP.
“But there are obviously still additional operations continuing (…) it’s a constant coming and going,” continues the analyst.
Buyout offer for Monte dei Paschi
The number one Italian bank, Intesa Sanpaolo, launched on Monday a takeover offer for 31 billion euros for Monte dei Paschi (MPS), a new episode in the consolidation of the peninsula’s banking sector.
If successful, this operation would give birth to the second largest banking group in the euro zone in terms of market capitalization, with a network of some 3,000 branches, according to Intesa.
MPS ended up with a bond of 12.96% and Intesa Sanpaolo gave 1.37% to Milan.
