Asian equities rebounded at the start of the week as investors returned to semiconductor stocks after the previous week’s sell-off. In a market note dated November 9, Daniela Hathorn, Senior Market Analyst at Capital.com, said S&P 500 and Nasdaq futures were pointing to gains of around 0.5% to 0.6%.
Hathorn described the move as a tentative return of risk appetite. Investors were buying at lower valuations, she said, while questions remained about the profitability of AI investment, elevated borrowing costs and potential regulatory changes following the US midterm elections.
Nvidia board announces an independent investigation
Nvidia’s board announced on November 8 that it was opening an independent investigation following reports that CEO Jensen Huang may have been targeted by a foreign intelligence effort. A committee of independent directors will oversee the inquiry with assistance from outside counsel.
The board said it had no reason to believe US national security or Nvidia’s confidential information had been compromised. It expressed confidence in Huang and his leadership team and said he had committed to cooperating with the review.
Hathorn said Nvidia shares had fallen more than 3% in out-of-hours trading. She noted that uncertainty around Huang’s leadership could weigh on investor sentiment given his central role in the company’s AI strategy. Her analysis distinguished that uncertainty from the underlying outlook for demand for Nvidia’s products.
US jobs and inflation remain in focus
Hathorn pointed to the latest US employment data, which her note put at 165,000 new jobs, as a reason traders were reassessing the outlook for interest rates. She said pricing for a December rate increase had moved toward 80% at the time of her analysis.
She identified the next US consumer price index reading as a potential catalyst. Stronger inflation could raise expectations for further tightening into 2027, lifting Treasury yields and putting pressure on technology stocks. A softer reading could help yields stabilize.
Oil eases while gold recovers
Hathorn said oil had moved below $100 a barrel as hopes of progress in US-Iran talks eased the geopolitical risk premium. Gold had recovered toward $4,120 an ounce, which she saw as a sign that demand for defensive assets persisted alongside the equity rebound.
