peshkov/iStock via Getty Images By Elior Manier US traders just came back from a long weekend break after yesterday's President's Day celebrations. Last week concluded a bizarre week, with a very positive CPI report not materializing into a full-on rebound for equities. As a matter of fact, the Dow Jones broke back below 50,000; tech stocks are still under heavy pressure, and overall, stock market...
peshkov/iStock via Getty Images By Elior Manier US traders just came back from a long weekend break after yesterday's President's Day celebrations. Last week concluded a bizarre week, with a very positive CPI report not materializing into a full-on rebound for equities. As a matter of fact, the Dow Jones broke back below 50,000; tech stocks are still under heavy pressure, and overall, stock markets have been directionless for the past three months. Directionless doesn't mean a market top, but what stands out from recent weeks' action is that investors will really need a concrete shift in sentiment before indexes can start heading to new highs again. A recent Bank of America survey still points to heavy positioning and low cash holdings among asset managers (implying that the bullet clips are close to empty). Yet, indexes remain well within 10% of their all-time highs and have resisted the large waves of outflows in the AI/tech sectors. US per Sector Performance since 2026 – Source: TradingView With the current session forming daily dojis and overall trading unchanged across all US indexes (except Nasdaq, down a modest 0.30%), the current signal is one of confusion. US rates are not expected to change until at least the May meeting. Participants are still awaiting Kevin Warsh's views, and the tariff decision (expected to be rejected by the Supreme Court) could significantly affect the current course of action. Holding well despite uncertainty is a sign of relative strength, but it can quickly be overturned by worsening news. Keep a very close eye on new data from the US; geopolitics seems to be stabilizing, but remains a volatility factor. This screams for range-bound action until we learn more. Current picture for the stock market (12:03 A.M. ET) – Source: TradingView – February 17, 2026 Dive into today’s session charts and key trading levels for the major US indices: the Dow Jones, Nasdaq, and S&P 500. Dow Jones 4H Chart and Trading Levels Dow Jones (CFD) 4H Chart ...
Philippine Vice-President Sara Duterte announced on Wednesday she will run for president of the archipelago nation of 116 million in 2028. Duterte, who is embroiled in a bitter feud with President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr, was impeached last year only to see the country’s Supreme Court throw the case out over procedural issues. “I offer my life, my strength and my future in the service of our nation,”...
Philippine Vice-President Sara Duterte announced on Wednesday she will run for president of the archipelago nation of 116 million in 2028. Duterte, who is embroiled in a bitter feud with President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr, was impeached last year only to see the country’s Supreme Court throw the case out over procedural issues. “I offer my life, my strength and my future in the service of our nation,” she said in announcing her candidacy. “I am Sara Duterte. I will run for president of the...
Google Warns Chinese And Russian Hackers Are Targeting US Defense Companies Authored by Jack Phillips via The Epoch Times, An analysis released by Google this month showed that the U.S. defense industrial base—a network of public and private entities used to develop or maintain military weapons systems—has sustained cyberattacks from groups and criminal organizations from China, Russia, and North ...
Google Warns Chinese And Russian Hackers Are Targeting US Defense Companies Authored by Jack Phillips via The Epoch Times, An analysis released by Google this month showed that the U.S. defense industrial base—a network of public and private entities used to develop or maintain military weapons systems—has sustained cyberattacks from groups and criminal organizations from China, Russia, and North Korea in recent months. The report , released on Feb. 10 by Google Threat Intelligence, found that the Chinese regime and associated groups continue “to represent by volume the most active threat to entities in the defense industrial base,” which it said can pose “significant risk to the defense and aerospace sector.” Google’s report added that it “has observed more China-nexus cyber espionage missions directly targeting defense and aerospace industry than from any other state-sponsored actors over the last two years,” as such groups have “used a broad range of tactics in operations.” “But the hallmark of many operations has been their exploitation of edge devices to gain initial access,” it said, referring to hardware components positioned at the edge of a network. “We have also observed China-nexus threat groups leverage ORB networks for reconnaissance against defense industrial targets, which complicates detection and attribution.” Late last year, Canadian and U.S. officials warned that Chinese state-backed hacking groups have targeted U.S. government entities and private companies, gaining long-term access to their systems. In July 2025, Microsoft also warned it had observed two China-based hacking groups, Linen Typhoon and Violet Typhoon, using vulnerabilities in SharePoint, Microsoft’s collaboration software. As for Russia, Google said in its report that groups associated with Moscow have focused on defense companies that support technologies used in the Russia–Ukraine war, namely companies linked to drones. “As next-generation capabilities are being operationalized i...
Dexus Chief Executive Officer Ross Du Vernet doused concerns that artificial technology will hurt real estate demand, saying the market for premium office space remains strong. “Things that make our customers and clients more productive are generally good things, and for many of our customers, AI is actually a productivity enhancer,” Du Vernet said in an interview on Wednesday. The Australian real...
Dexus Chief Executive Officer Ross Du Vernet doused concerns that artificial technology will hurt real estate demand, saying the market for premium office space remains strong. “Things that make our customers and clients more productive are generally good things, and for many of our customers, AI is actually a productivity enhancer,” Du Vernet said in an interview on Wednesday. The Australian real estate and infrastructure manager was speaking after a swath of commercial property-related stocks fell last week on fears that AI applications would weaken demand for offices. Dexus manages office portfolios across Australian cities including Sydney and Melbourne. The impact of AI on the workforce would likely be felt in middle- and back-office functions, which are typically outside central city locations where Dexus doesn’t have significant exposure, Du Vernet added. Shares of Dexus surged 7.9%, the most in more than five years, as of 2:32 p.m. in Sydney, paring its slide over the past year to 13%. It earlier announced a buyback of as much as 10% of its stock when it posted first-half profit of A$348.5 million ($246 million). Du Vernet said Melbourne remains a challenging office market since the global pandemic, adding that changes to tax and policy settings would help boost foreign investment. Amid expectations of higher interest rates in Australia, he said demand from institutional investors such as pension funds remains high.