Financial Market Preview - Thursday 15-Oct

US equity futures are lower, while Asian markets are sharply weaker and European equities are mostly lower. Risk appetite remains under pressure following hotter-than-expected US core inflation and a sharp selloff in AI-related stocks. Concerns around elevated valuations, data-center financing, neocloud balance sheets and rising debt costs have intensified following underwhelming ASML guidance, while weakness has spread across US and Asian technology shares. However, bond yields are retreating as Fed officials downplayed the urgency for another rate hike despite persistent inflation pressures. Meanwhile, Middle East hostilities continue to support energy-supply risks, with reports of Houthi strikes adding to uncertainty.

Companies Mentioned: Cleveland-Cliffs, Gibraltar Industries, Compagnie de Saint-Gobain