Weekly Market Overview:
December 16-19
December 16-19
The US stock market closed mixed on Tuesday.
The Dow Jones declined 0.62%, the S&P 500 fell 0.24%, while the Nasdaq gained 0.23%. The US 10-year Treasury yield increased by 0.29 b.p. to 4.16%.
Gold futures rose 0.49% to $4,353.40, while Brent crude advanced 1.19% to $59.62.
Across the S&P 500 sectors, Technology led the gains, while Energy was among the sectors finishing in the red, with 8 of the 11 sectors closing lower.
The Dow Jones declined 0.62%, the S&P 500 fell 0.24%, while the Nasdaq gained 0.23%. The US 10-year Treasury yield increased by 0.29 b.p. to 4.16%.
Gold futures rose 0.49% to $4,353.40, while Brent crude advanced 1.19% to $59.62.
Across the S&P 500 sectors, Technology led the gains, while Energy was among the sectors finishing in the red, with 8 of the 11 sectors closing lower.
- AI-related stocks including Broadcom and Oracle extended losses, contributing to weakness on Wall Street and in Asian tech markets.
- Oil prices slid to their lowest levels since May amid optimism around Ukraine peace talks, pressuring energy stocks.
- SThree saw its shares jump after reporting U.S. net fee income growth, helping offset declines in other markets.
- Markets are pricing only a 20% chance of a Fed rate cut in January, with one cut fully expected only by mid-2026.
- Tesla plans to begin battery-cell production at its Berlin-area plant as early as 2027.
- Visa will open its U.S. payments network to stablecoin settlement, expanding crypto-linked services.
The Spanish will begin building a KZT 44 billion plumbing plant in Kazakhstan in 2026. A leading Spanish company in the field of sanitary ware and bathroom furniture will begin construction of its plant in the Kyzylorda region in 2026. The investor plans to invest KZT 44 billion.
The US stock market closed sharply lower.
The Dow Jones declined 0.47%, the S&P 500 fell 1.16%, and the Nasdaq dropped 1.81%. The US 10-year Treasury yield decreased by 1.1 b.p. to 4.13%.
Gold futures slipped 0.24% to $4,363.55, while Brent crude rose 0.64% to $60.06.
The KASE index fell 0.94%.
Across the S&P 500 sectors, Energy led the gains, while Technology was among the sectors finishing in the red, with 7 of the 11 sectors closing lower.
The Dow Jones declined 0.47%, the S&P 500 fell 1.16%, and the Nasdaq dropped 1.81%. The US 10-year Treasury yield decreased by 1.1 b.p. to 4.13%.
Gold futures slipped 0.24% to $4,363.55, while Brent crude rose 0.64% to $60.06.
The KASE index fell 0.94%.
Across the S&P 500 sectors, Energy led the gains, while Technology was among the sectors finishing in the red, with 7 of the 11 sectors closing lower.
- Wall Street’s expected Santa rally failed to materialize as inflation concerns and geopolitical tensions, including President Trump’s blockade of sanctioned Venezuelan oil tankers, weighed on markets and lifted Brent crude prices.
- Persistent weakness in big tech stocks and anxiety over private credit risks contributed to risk-off sentiment on Wall Street.
- Asian and Gulf equity markets also edged lower as investors remain cautious amid U.S. labour market signals and ongoing global uncertainty.
- Precious metals surged, with silver hitting a record above $66 an ounce and platinum reaching its highest level since 2008, underscoring a growing shift from equities to commodities.
- OpenAI is in early talks to raise at least $10 billion from Amazon, potentially expanding the use of Amazon’s chips and challenging Nvidia’s dominance..
- Tesla faces a possible 30-day suspension of sales in California unless it changes marketing practices related to its driver-assistance technology
Agreements worth $3.7 billion will be signed during the president's visit to Japan. The parties intend to sign over 40 documents. Key areas of cooperation will cover energy, renewable energy sources (RES), digitalization, mining, and transportation. Representing Kazakhstan at the signing ceremony will be national companies Samruk-Kazyna, KEGOC, Kazatomprom, Tau-Ken Samruk, Kazpost, and Kazakhstan Temir Zholy. Japanese companies will include Marubeni, MUFG Bank, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Hitachi Energy, Toshiba, JOGMEC, Kansai Electric Power, RIKEN KOGYO, and others.
The US stock market closed higher on Thursday.
The Dow Jones edged up 0.14%, the S&P 500 advanced 0.79%, and the Nasdaq surged 1.38%. The US 10-year Treasury yield increased by 2.2 b.p. to 4.14%.
Gold futures declined 0.43% to $4,345.55, while Brent crude slipped 0.23% to $59.68.
The KASE index fell 0.70%.
Across the S&P 500 sectors, Consumer Cyclical led the gains, while Energy was among the sectors finishing in the red, with 4 of the 11 sectors closing lower.
The Dow Jones edged up 0.14%, the S&P 500 advanced 0.79%, and the Nasdaq surged 1.38%. The US 10-year Treasury yield increased by 2.2 b.p. to 4.14%.
Gold futures declined 0.43% to $4,345.55, while Brent crude slipped 0.23% to $59.68.
The KASE index fell 0.70%.
Across the S&P 500 sectors, Consumer Cyclical led the gains, while Energy was among the sectors finishing in the red, with 4 of the 11 sectors closing lower.
- U.S. consumer prices rose less than expected in November, boosting hopes for Federal Reserve rate cuts next year as stock futures climbed and Treasury yields eased.
- The U.S. dollar weakened against major currencies such as the yen and Swiss franc following the softer-than-anticipated inflation data.
- Wall Street’s focus remains on the delayed U.S. CPI report and ongoing concerns about tech sector excesses, particularly around Oracle and its AI spending
- Oil prices rose amid escalating geopolitical tensions, including the U.S. blockade of Venezuelan oil shipments.
- SpaceX entered a regulatory quiet period, moving closer to a potential IPO planned for 2026.
- Warner Bros. Discovery urged shareholders to reject a hostile takeover bid from Paramount Skydance in favor of its agreement with Netflix.
The sale of Qazaq Air to Vietnamese investors was finally completed on May 6, 2025, although the privatization process had begun in 2023 and repeatedly failed due to a lack of bids. In December 2024, Samruk-Kazyna signed an agreement with a consortium affiliated with Sovico Group, with the investors committing to repaying the airline's debts and renewing its aircraft fleet, reducing the final transaction price to 1 billion tenge. As a result, Qazaq Air's capital was distributed among Samruk-Kazyna (49%), Central Asia Aviation Holdings Limited (49%), and Kazasia Holdings Limited (2%).
The US stock market closed higher on Friday.
The Dow Jones rose 0.38%, the S&P 500 gained 0.88%, and the Nasdaq advanced 1.31%. The US 10-year Treasury yield declined by 1.2 b.p. to 4.16%.
Gold futures climbed 0.87% to $4,425.60, while Brent crude increased 0.78% to $60.94.
The KASE index rose 1.02%.
Across the S&P 500 sectors, Technology led the gains, while Utilities was among the sectors finishing in the red, with 3 of the 11 sectors closing lower.
The Dow Jones rose 0.38%, the S&P 500 gained 0.88%, and the Nasdaq advanced 1.31%. The US 10-year Treasury yield declined by 1.2 b.p. to 4.16%.
Gold futures climbed 0.87% to $4,425.60, while Brent crude increased 0.78% to $60.94.
The KASE index rose 1.02%.
Across the S&P 500 sectors, Technology led the gains, while Utilities was among the sectors finishing in the red, with 3 of the 11 sectors closing lower.
- Wall Street ended the week on a positive note as Micron Technology’s strong profit forecast and softer-than-expected U.S. core inflation boosted optimism about potential Federal Reserve rate cuts, despite questions over data accuracy due to the government shutdown.
- The Bank of Japan raised interest rates to a 30-year high, contrasting with the Bank of England’s rate cut and the ECB holding rates steady, highlighting divergent global central bank policies.
- Global oil prices briefly rebounded after former President Trump ordered a blockade of sanctioned Venezuelan oil tankers, though crude remained near recent lows amid geopolitical uncertainties.
- Asian shares rose on expectations for a strong end to the year after a rally in the US on Friday.
- China's commercial banks kept their one- and five-year benchmark lending rates unchanged amid expectations of policy easing in 2026.
- Nike shares fell after the company warned of a sales decline due to weakness in China and its Converse brand.
China's Xinfa Group, one of the world's largest aluminum producers, plans to invest $15 billion in the creation of an aluminum and energy cluster in the Pavlodar region, producing both primary aluminum and finished products, including electronic components. The project will be implemented in three stages from 2026 to 2028, with production volume in the first stage expected to reach 1 million tons of aluminum per year, with potential to increase to 2 million tons, which will significantly exceed Kazakhstan's current output.