Trading results for 12 March 2025
At last, investors got a bit of luck – albeit expected and well-forecasted. From the outset, it was clear that the key event on Wednesday would be the release of consumer inflation data. The market’s direction – either another drop or a rebound – hinged on these figures. Investor sentiment was fairly optimistic even before the main trading session began, with futures on key U.S. indexes pointing to a significant potential rise.
Indeed, market participants and analysts were not disappointed. February’s consumer inflation dropped from 3% in January to 2.8% year-on-year, while monthly inflation slowed to 0.2% (compared to January’s 0.5%). As expected, the market reacted in one direction only – up, up and up again. However, between the macroeconomic data release and the market open, investor enthusiasm waned, leading indexes to open higher but then steadily decline. At that moment, many investors likely felt a jolt of anxiety.
"Again! Another panic sell-off!" – but fortunately, this time, it didn’t happen. It seems the Buy the Dip strategy kicked in, as many investors considered the recent price drops in some Mega Caps attractive for buying. This was particularly evident in stocks such as Nvidia (NVDA, +6.42%), Micron Technology (MU, +7.40%), Palantir Technologies (PLTR, +7.17%) and, of course, Tesla (TSLA, +7.59%).
A special mention goes to Intel (INTC, +4.55%), which saw strong demand amid persistent rumours about the imminent appointment of chip industry veteran Lip-Bu Tan as the company’s CEO. *
*After the market closed, this news was confirmed, and Intel’s stock surged over 11% in after-hours trading.
Lip-Bu Tan, former head of Cadence Design Systems, will take over as Intel’s CEO, replacing interim co-leaders David Zinsner and Michelle Johnston Holthaus. They had stepped in following the board’s removal of former CEO Pat Gelsinger in late 2024.
These stocks were the main growth drivers, lifting the market and ultimately pushing both the NASDAQ Composite (+1.22%) and the broader S&P 500 (+0.49%) into positive territory.
However, it is somewhat concerning that this rally was concentrated in a narrow segment of stocks and accompanied by low trading volumes. Moreover, despite closing higher, both indexes remain below their 200-day moving averages, which currently act as resistance levels.
Unfortunately, the Dow Jones index (DJIA-30) also closed below its 200-day moving average, unlike its younger counterparts. It lost 0.2% on Wednesday, with Nvidia’s gains unable to outweigh sell-offs in major stocks like Procter & Gamble (PG, -2.74%), Walmart (WMT, -2.56%) and McDonald's (MCD, -2.40%), the worst performers in the index. As seen, demand for select stocks continues to clash with broader market sell-offs.
Meanwhile, both ITS indexes provided investors with some good news. The ITS World Index (ITSW) rose by 0.56% – matching the S&P 500’s performance – while the ITS Shariah Index (ITSS) posted a gain exceeding 1% (+1.28%), closely mirroring the NASDAQ Composite’s momentum. Notably, the same companies led the gains in both indexes.
In ITSS, the top three performers were Tesla (TSLA), Nvidia (NVDA) and Oracle (ORCL), while in ITSW, the best stocks were the same trio plus Luxembourg-based Spotify Technology (SPOT). Both indexes moved in the same direction, but ITSW lagged slightly due to the significant number of declining stocks – over 40% of the index’s portfolio ended the day in the red.
While Wednesday’s market rally is a positive sign, it does not yet guarantee that the recent decline is over and that a strong recovery is underway. In the coming days, ahead of next week’s FOMC meeting, the market may stabilise. However, this does not mean all negative factors are behind us. The indexes remain below their 200-day moving averages, and until this resistance is overcome, it is premature to declare the correction over.