Daily Market Newsletter - March 12, 2024: Market Recap: S&P 500 and Nasdaq Decline, Bitcoin Boosts Microstrategy to Record Highs

MARKET WRAP: STOCKS, BONDS, COMMODITIES

On Monday, the S&P 500 was down for a second session, as it declined 5 points (-0.11%) to 5,117. The Nasdaq 100 also fell 66 points (-0.37%) to 17,951, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 46 points higher (+0.12%) at 38,769.

The U.S. 10-year Treasury yield gained 1.2 basis points to 4.100%.

Investors are watching closely February U.S. inflation data, which will be released later today.

Materials, energy, and consumer staples stock sectors posted gains, while real estate, consumer discretionary, and industrials sectors closed lower.

Meta Platforms (META) fell 4.42%, Nvidia (NVDA) dropped 2.00%, and Amazon.com (AMZN) was down 1.93%.

Buoyed by record-breaking Bitcoin price, Microstrategy (MSTR), which holds the largest amount of Bitcoins among listed companies, chalked an all-time high of $1,657.06 before retreating to close at $1,484.23, still a record close. The company just announced it has boosted its Bitcoin holding to 205,000 using capital raised from issuing convertible notes.

EQT Corp (EQT), a natural gas producer, fell 7.76%, while Equitrans Midstream (ETRN) rose 1.52%. EQT announced its acquisition of Equitrans Midstream for about $14 billion.

Boeing (BA) lost 3.02%, as the U.S. Justice Department started a criminal investigation into a January incident in which a Boeing 737 Max jetliner operated by Alaska Airlines had a portion of the fuselage blown off.

In Europe, the DAX 40 fell 0.38%, the CAC 40 declined 0.10%, while the FTSE 100 closed 0.12% higher.

U.S. WTI crude-oil futures edged up $0.10 to $78.11 a barrel.

Gold price advanced a further $4 to $2,181 an ounce.

MARKET WRAP: FOREX

The U.S. dollar index was stable at 102.84.

EUR/USD slipped 13 pips to 1.0924.

GBP/USD fell 48 pips to 1.2809.

USD/JPY dropped 10 pips to 146.97. Japan's official data confirmed that its gross domestic product grew at an annualized rate of 0.4% in the fourth quarter (vs -0.4% in the previous official estimate, and -2.9% in the third quarter), and therefore the economy avoided a technical recession.

This morning, Japan's data showed that producer prices rose 0.6% on year in February (as expected).

AUD/USD declined 16 pips to 0.6611.

USD/CHF was little changed at 0.8774, and USD/CAD edged up 3 pips to 1.3481.

Bitcoin saw unabating bids, which boosted its price by over 5% to an all-time high of $72,943.

MARKET ANALYSIS

GBP/USD Intraday:Key resistance at 1.2840.

• Pivot: 1.2840

• Our preference: Short positions below 1.2840 with targets at 1.2790 & 1.2770 in extension.

• Alternative scenario: Above 1.2840 look for further upside with 1.2860 & 1.2880 as targets.

• Comment: As long as the resistance at 1.2840 is not surpassed, the risk of the break below 1.2790 remains high.

• 

USD/JPY Intraday:Further advance.

• Pivot: 146.80

• Our preference: Long positions above 146.80 with targets at 147.75 & 148.00 in extension.

• Alternative scenario: Below 146.80 look for further downside with 146.45 & 146.00 as targets.

• Comment: The RSI calls for a new upleg.

EUR/USD Intraday:Key resistance at 1.0945.

• Pivot: 1.0945

• Our preference: Short positions below 1.0945 with targets at 1.0915 & 1.0900 in extension.

• Alternative scenario: Above 1.0945 look for further upside with 1.0960 & 1.0980 as targets.

• Comment: The upward potential is likely to be limited by the resistance at 1.0945.

• 

Dow Jones (CME)‎ (H4)‎ Intraday:The upside prevails.

• Pivot: 38720.00

• Our preference: Long positions above 38720.00 with targets at 38920.00 & 39010.00 in extension.

• Alternative scenario: Below 38720.00 look for further downside with 38660.00 & 38600.00 as targets.

• Comment: The next resistances are at 38920.00 and then at 39010.00.

Make sure to explore further with Analyst Views Charts!

Please note that due to market volatility, some of the key levels may have already been reached and scenarios played out.