Dow Extends Losing Streak to Nine Days

As of the closure of trading on Tuesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average has experienced its ninth consecutive day of decline, marking the longest streak of losses since 1978. This ongoing downturn has investors anxiously awaiting the Federal Reserve’s final monetary policy decision for the yearSuch protracted drops in the market often evoke widespread concern among analysts and investors alike, as market health is closely tied to the policies established by the Federal Reserve.

On Tuesday, the Dow fell by 267.58 points, closing at 43,449.90, which represents a loss of 0.61%. The NASDAQ Composite Index also recorded a drop, declining by 64.83 points to close at 20,109.06, a decrease of 0.32%. The S&P 500 saw a loss of 23.47 points, ending the day at 6,050.61, a drop of 0.39%. Notably, among significant tech stocks, NVIDIA experienced a drop of 1.2%, while Tesla revealed a robust gain of 3.6%, and Apple closed up by 1%, both reaching new all-time highs

Apple's market capitalization has soared beyond 3.8 trillion dollars, emphasizing its dominance in the technology sectorConversely, the NASDAQ Golden Dragon China Index rose nearly 2%, indicating a positive performance from key Chinese tech stocks, with Alibaba climbing over 1% and Bilibili achieving a gain of 4.5%.

Across the Atlantic, European markets displayed a mixed performanceThe German DAX 30 index fell by 33.80 points, a loss of 0.17%, closing at 20,279.95 pointsThe UK’s FTSE 100 index saw a sharper decline, dropping 67.94 points or 0.82%, settling at 8,194.11. Contrastingly, France’s CAC 40 index made a small recovery, increasing by 8.62 points to close at 7,365.70 pointsThe European Stoxx 50 index decreased by 6.58 points, closing at 4,940.45, while Spain’s IBEX 35 fell sharply by 200.50 points or 1.70%, finishing at 11,589.00. Italy's FTSE MIB index dropped 421.25 points, down 1.21% to close at 34,319.00 points

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This fluctuation in European stock markets reflects investors’ sentiments as they process the implications of the Federal Reserve’s policies and macroeconomic indicators.

In the Asia-Pacific region, markets also struggled, with Japan's Nikkei 225 index decreasing by 0.24%. The Jakarta Composite Index in Indonesia fell by 1.39%, and South Korea's KOSPI index recorded a decline of 1.29%. Such performance across global markets can often be attributed to the efficacy of central banking policies and economic expectations.

Meanwhile, the price of gold experienced a modest decline, falling by 0.27% to settle at $2,645.67 per ounce, with trading throughout the day ranging between $2,658.72 and $2,633.16 per ounceCOMEX gold futures dipped by 0.28% to reach $2,662.40 per ounceThe decrease in gold prices is predominantly attributed to a strengthening dollar and rising U.S

Treasury yields, as investors are keenly focused on anticipating the outcomes of the Federal Reserve’s final policy meeting of the yearMany analysts predict that the Fed will announce a 25-basis-point rate cut, with their latest economic forecasts and the dot plot earning significant attention, potentially reshaping expectations about interest rate trajectories for 2025 and 2026. Market analyst Fawad Razaqzada commented, “The question is whether the Federal Reserve will be more hawkish or dovish than current market expectations.” This indicates an ongoing discussion around the careful navigation of economic policy.

Turning to crude oil, the New York Mercantile Exchange reported a drop in January West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil futures, which fell by 63 cents, or 0.89%, closing at $70.08 per barrelSuch fluctuations in oil prices can significantly affect various industries globally, influencing everything from consumer prices to production costs.

On the foreign exchange frontier, the U.S

Dollar Index, which measures the dollar against six major currencies, rose by 0.09% to close at 106.956. As for specific currency exchange rates during the New York market close, one euro was worth $1.0488, dipping from the previous day’s $1.0510. The British pound rose to $1.2711 from $1.2684. The dollar was exchanged for 153.34 Japanese yen, down from 154.13; for 0.8924 Swiss francs, a decrease from 0.8948; while the Canadian dollar improved, with one dollar equating to 1.4310 Canadian, up from 1.4237; and against the Swedish krona, it increased to 10.9670 from the prior 10.8870. These changes depict a constant flux in global monetary values, reinforcing the interconnected nature of the world economy.

On the macroeconomic front, American builders conveyed an optimistic outlook, anticipating a rebound in sales over the next six monthsAccording to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and Wells Fargo index, the gauge measuring sales expectations for the next six months rose to 66, the highest level since April 2022. While overall confidence and existing sales indicators remained unchanged compared to November, there was a slight decline noted in foot traffic from potential buyers

NAHB Chairman Carl Harris acknowledged existing concerns about high-interest rates, rising construction costs, and a diminishing supply of buildable land, yet he also foresaw potential regulatory easingThis dual outlook underscores the complexity of the housing market, where builder optimism may compete with persistent challengesHowever, industry analysts expect that the landscape could be challenging, as mortgage rates might remain elevated longer than anticipated due to forecasts suggesting that Fed rate cuts will not be as aggressive next year.

In terms of retail performance, U.Sretail sales unexpectedly increased, bolstered by soaring vehicle purchases and robust online shopping, overshadowing mixed consumer activity in other areasThe Census Bureau reported a 0.7% rise in November retail sales, reflecting upward adjustments to the previous two months' dataExcluding autos, retail sales achieved a consecutive growth of 0.2% for the second month

Labor costs, unadjusted for inflation, surged by 0.7%, with prior two-month data also revised upward, further illustrating an economy in motion.

According to Bank of America, the dollar is poised to outperform in 2025, as a recent global fund manager survey indicated increasing confidence in the dollar's strengthA notable 40% of investors anticipate that the dollar will outperform by 2025, up from 31% in NovemberBullish positions on the dollar are now considered the second hottest trade, just behind bullish trades on the mega-cap tech stocksFurthermore, the proportion of investors viewing the dollar as overvalued rose to 59% in December, its highest level since January 2023, compared to 51% in November, illustrating broad sentiments on currency valuation as it relates to investor confidence.

In individual stock news, NVIDIA recently unveiled a more robust and affordable Jetson Orin Nano Super for developers in the embedded platform landscape

Set to debut at the end of 2024, this new platform promises significant performance enhancements compared to its predecessor, enabling developers to create large language model chatbots and visual AI assistantsWith a price point of $249, the Jetson Orin Nano Super development kit claims a 1.7-fold increase in generative AI inference performance and a 70% improvement in INT8 performance—from 40 TOPS to 67 TOPS—while also providing faster memory and a 50% increase in memory bandwidth.

After Broadcom's recent earnings report, there is speculation that the company may be entering its “NVIDIA moment,” as its stock surged in the same manner NVIDIA's did in 2023. With a two-day market reaction leading to a 38% increase post-earnings, Broadcom now has a market capitalization nearing $1.2 trillion, setting the stage for it to potentially be another titan in the artificial intelligence sector