Finance

South Korean memory chip giant SK Hynix successfully launched its U.S. listing on the Nasdaq, raising roughly $26.5 billion in the largest-ever foreign share sale in the United States. The company's American depositary receipts jumped 13% on their first day of trading, signaling robust investor demand for hardware essential to the ongoing AI industry buildout.

Energy markets remained volatile as traders monitored the breakdown of a ceasefire agreement between the U.S. and Iran, leading to warnings that Brent crude could spike if regional shipments are disrupted. While oil futures dipped slightly at the end of the week, the underlying geopolitical risk has renewed concerns about sticky inflation and its potential to influence future Federal Reserve interest rate decisions.

In the fixed-income market, the 10-year Treasury yield ticked higher to approximately 4.56%, reflecting investor caution ahead of upcoming inflation data. Simultaneously, gold prices saw a slight decline on Friday, trading near $4,112 per ounce, as higher yields and a resilient dollar tempered demand for the precious metal despite its significant year-over-year gains.