EUR/USD
1.17266
0.033%
Gold
4696.84
0.209%
Oil
93.733
-0.999%
USD/JPY
156.909
-0.013%
GBP/USD
1.35495
-0.007%
GBP/JPY
212.607
-0.008%
Real-time News
1. The three major U.S. stock indexes closed slightly lower. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.63% to 49,596.97 points, the S&P 500 fell 0.38% to 7,337.11 points, and the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.13% to 25,806.2 points. Caterpillar fell more than 3%, and JPMorgan Chase fell more than 2%, leading the decline in the Dow. The Wind U.S. Tech Big Seven Index rose 0.69%, Tesla rose more than 3%, and Nvidia rose more than 1%. The Nasdaq China Golden Dragon Index fell 1.4%, Tiger Brokers fell more than 7%, and Pony.ai fell more than 6%. The Nasdaq and S&P 500 indexes fell after hitting intraday highs. 2. The three major European stock indexes all closed lower. The German DAX fell 1.02% to 24,663.61 points, the French CAC40 fell 1.17% to 8,202.08 points, and the UK FTSE 100 fell 1.55% to 10,276.95 points. 3. Most major Asia-Pacific stock indices closed higher. The Nikkei 225 surged 5.58% to close at 62,833.84 points, while the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 1.43% to 7,490.05 points, both hitting new record highs. South Koreas stock market capitalization surpassed Canadas, becoming the worlds seventh-largest stock market. Funds continued to favor AI-related stocks, with SoftBank Group surging over 18%, KaiXia rising 19%, SK Hynix gaining over 3%, and Samsung Electronics climbing 2%. Indias SENSEX 30 index fell 0.15% to 77,844.52 points. 4. The WTI crude oil futures contract closed up 2.71% at $97.66 per barrel; the Brent crude oil futures contract rose 2.07% to $103.37 per barrel. 5. International precious metals futures generally closed higher, with COMEX gold futures rising 0.04% to $4,696.00 per ounce and COMEX silver futures rising 2.09% to $78.92 per ounce. 6. Most London base metals fell. LME zinc rose 1.41% to $3,447.0/ton, LME lead was unchanged at $1,977.5/ton, LME tin fell 0.29% to $53,650.0/ton, LME nickel fell 0.44% to $19,115.0/ton, LME copper fell 0.51% to $13,323.5/ton, and LME aluminum fell 0.92% to $3,490.0/ton.South Koreas unadjusted current account balance for March was $37.33 billion, revised from $23.1927 billion in the previous month.May 8th - Sources familiar with the matter revealed that SK Hynix is receiving enthusiastic offers from major global tech companies as they scramble to acquire memory chips. These companies are proposing investments in new production lines and funding the purchase of expensive manufacturing equipment. According to six sources, the companys clients have made several cooperation proposals to the South Korean chipmaker, including investing in the construction of dedicated memory chip production lines. Three other sources indicated that another proposal involves clients financing the purchase of equipment, such as ASMLs extreme ultraviolet lithography (EUV) machines. This equipment, used to etch circuits onto silicon wafers, is worth hundreds of millions of dollars. It is understood that the chipmaker is cautious in accepting financial commitments from clients because such deals could potentially make it dependent on specific buyers and force them to supply chips at lower prices in exchange for longer-term, more stable revenue guarantees.Sources say that chip pricing ranges and upfront payments are among the options being discussed with SK Hynix as part of long-term chip contracts; however, SK Hynix is cautious about accepting such offers due to the strong market outlook.On May 8th, US President Trump met with visiting Brazilian President Lula da Silva at the White House on the 7th. Trump said the two sides discussed many issues, including trade, particularly tariffs. Trump later posted on social media that the meeting went "very well." Representatives from both sides are scheduled to meet later to discuss certain "key issues." Further meetings will be arranged in the coming months, if necessary.
