Finance

Technology equities continued to benefit from strong tailwinds in the artificial intelligence sector, driven largely by a major surge in Meta Platforms. Meta's stock posted substantial double-digit gains following upbeat Wall Street price target upgrades and high consumer demand for its new autonomous AI agent, Muse. The ongoing enthusiasm helped carry other major semiconductor and hardware manufacturers along in the broader AI trade.

Digital assets experienced notable upward momentum, with Bitcoin jumping above the $86,000 mark and Ethereum pushing past $2,700. The rally was primarily fueled by a massive wave of short liquidations that caught bearish traders off guard, totaling hundreds of millions of dollars in losses. Sentiment was further bolstered by substantial institutional demand, underscored by nearly $1 billion in daily inflows into U.S. spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds.

Energy commodities took a breather from their recent highs as West Texas Intermediate crude pulled back below $96 per barrel. The drop in oil prices came on the back of rising diplomatic optimism at the United Nations, where discussions hinted at potential negotiations between the U.S. and Iran that could reopen crucial shipping lanes like the Strait of Hormuz. The cooling of energy costs has provided a slight relief to broader market inflationary worries.