EMEA Morning Briefing: Nvidia's Intel Deal Boosts Sentiment

MARKET WRAPS

Watch For:

U.K. retail sales, public sector finances; France monthly business survey; no major corporate trading updates expected

Opening Call:

European stock futures traded slightly higher early Friday. Asian stock benchmarks were mostly higher; the dollar was flat; Treasury yields were up; while oil futures fell and gold inched higher.

Equities:

Stock futures point to a higher open in Europe on Friday, after Nvidia's deal to invest $5 billion in Intel added fuel to a rally on Wall Street following the Federal Reserve's move Wednesday to cut interest rates

The Nasdaq Composite Index logged its 27th closing high of 2025, with the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average also hitting new highs. All three indexes were driven by technology shares, the best-performing sector of the S&P. "We're getting a little bit of adjustment on rates and we're seeing this AI train just full speed ahead," said Marta Norton, chief investment strategist at wealth manager Empower.

"The market is landing on that it's not likely a one-off cut," said Michael Antonelli, a managing director at Baird. Interest-rate futures showed that traders see an 80% chance of a half-point rate cut by the end of the year, according to CME Group data, up from 75% Thursday morning.

Forex:

The U.S. economy and financial markets are showing some resilience and potentially U.S. exceptionalism again, Maybank analysts said.

Markets have reassessed the Fed's stance, with traders taking a more positive view of the FOMC's decision and guidance, NAB's Rodrigo Catril said. Fed Chair Powell's "meeting by meeting" guidance is perceived as prudent, the senior FX strategist said.

Bonds:

Treasury yields continued to rise, with investors in the bond market adjusting their positions following the Fed's shift in monetary policy.

Although the Fed's decision to lower its policy rate by a quarter-percentage point was widely expected, there had been some "creeping hope" in the market for a larger "surprise" cut of a half-percentage point, said Russ Brownback, deputy chief investment officer of fixed income at BlackRock.

Also, the Fed's messaging "could have signaled a bit more of a dovish-forward view," considering the labor market has weakened and tariffs don't appear to be creating "broader knock-on effects on inflation," he said.

Energy:

Oil futures fell, as the high-demand summer season begins to wind down and market participants wait to see what, if any, additional sanctions are placed on Russian oil.

The big decline in U.S. crude stocks reported by the EIA is attributed mostly to a jump in exports. "While the drawdown in crude inventories was impressive, it seems to be mostly export driven with the help of near multiyear lows in the U.S. dollar, and not necessarily from domestic demand," Dennis Kissler of BOK Financial said.

Metals:

Gold edged higher in Asia amid a cautious mood. The market still sees a high probability of another 25-basis-point rate cut by the Fed in October, but the central bank's guidance leaned slightly hawkish, Sky Links Capital Group's Daniel Takieddine said.

Fed officials seem reluctant to fully endorse deeper easing, with the FOMC meeting's outcome leaving the precious metal sensitive to coming economic data, the CEO added.

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Copper rose in Asian trading. The bull market in precious metals could broaden and shift into base metals in 2026, supported by the prospect of new dovish Fed leadership, lower U.S. rates and downward pressure on the dollar, Citi analysts said.

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Iron ore prices strengthened amid solid demand, Baocheng Futures analysts said. Chinese steel mills are replenishing stocks before the coming holidays, coinciding with a slight rebound in terminal iron-ore consumption that has also propped up prices, they said.

However, the upward momentum could be limited. While overseas shipments are increasing substantially, China's domestic iron ore supply is recovering as well. Iron ore prices will likely fluctuate at high levels in tandem with changes in supply and demand, they added.

TODAY'S TOP HEADLINES

Trump's Team Explores Government-Backed Manufacturing Boost

WASHINGTON-President Trump's team is weighing a plan to spur the construction of factories and other infrastructure in a bid to jump-start the American manufacturing sector, according to documents and people familiar with the discussions.

Under the plan, the administration would use money from a $550 billion investment fund established as part of trade negotiations with Japan to invest in the development of semiconductors, pharmaceuticals, critical minerals, energy, ships and quantum computing.

U.K. Consumer Sentiment Falls Back

The mood of British consumers dampened a little this month, with expectations of a slowing economy and the potential for tax increases later this year threatening an even greater downturn.

The headline level of consumer confidence fell back by two points to minus 19 in September, according to research group GfK's monthly index, published with the Nuremberg Institute for Market Decisions on Friday.

Europe's EV Revolution Is on Track. How Auto Makers Plan to Win.

While Donald Trump's U.S. slams the brakes on the electric-vehicle transition, the European Union is keeping its foot to the floor, probably.

An EU statute passed in 2022 will ban the sale of new gasoline-powered internal-combustion passenger cars by 2035.

Protesters in France Push Back on Efforts to Rein In Spending

PARIS-Hundreds of thousands of protesters poured into the streets across France on Thursday, piling pressure on President Emmanuel Macron and his newly appointed prime minister to abandon any austerity measures aimed at repairing the country's depleted public finances.

A day of mostly peaceful protests turned violent as night fell and protesters clashed with police in Place de la Nation in Paris. Protesters hurled projectiles at columns of police. Officers clad in riot gear released tear gas before charging at crowds that refused to disperse.

Jensen Huang Walks an AI Tightrope Between the U.S. and China

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang is trying to keep both the U.S. and China happy. It is proving to be a tricky high-wire act.

The chip maker drew praise from President Trump for its $5 billion investment in rival Intel, which recently struck a deal to give a 10% stake to the U.S. government. Huang was beaming on a joint video call with Intel Chief Executive Lip-Bu Tan as he discussed a new partnership to make processors for data centers and personal computers.

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Expected Major Events for Friday

06:00/GER: Aug PPI

06:00/UK: Aug Public sector finances

06:00/UK: Aug UK monthly retail sales figures

06:45/FRA: Sep Monthly business survey (goods-producing industries)

07:00/SPN: Jul Industrial Orders & Turnover

08:00/ICE: Aug Harmonized CPI

08:30/UK: 2Q Bank of England statistics on UK banks' external claims

08:30/UK: Aug Monthly Insolvency statistics

15:59/GRE: Jul Balance of Payments

16:59/LUX: 2Q Balance of Payments

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This article is a text version of a Wall Street Journal newsletter published earlier today.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

September 19, 2025 00:19 ET (04:19 GMT)