Market Recap: Energy Surge, Trump's Crypto Picks, Star Remains Frozen

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Welcome to Equity Espresso’s Market Recap.

Markets started the new month positively, moving past a torrid February as the S&P/ASX 200 index climbed 0.90% (73.3 points) to 8,245.7. Global markets lifted, with Wall Street's three major indices recording >1% gains on Friday.

All 11 major sectors on the ASX recorded gains, with Energy (+2.02%) stocks leading the advance, tracking higher global oil prices as investors anticipate that upcoming U.S. tariffs on Mexico and Canada—both major crude exporters—could drive up petroleum costs. Woodside (+1.94%) and Santos (+1.84%) advanced, while Brent crude maintained its position above US$73/bbl on expectations of market disruptions.

Star Entertainment Group’s future remains up in the air. The casino operator remains suspended from ASX trading after failing to lodge its half-year financial report for the period ending December 31, 2024, by the required February 28 deadline.

The company indicated it could not complete its financial report without securing a comprehensive refinancing commitment that would cover all the group's existing corporate debt while providing additional liquidity. Star Entertainment acknowledged "material uncertainty" regarding its ability to continue as a going concern.

Gold surpassed $2,860/oz Monday as investors sought safe-haven assets amid concerns over U.S. tariff policies. The precious metal gained value following Trump's announcement of impending tariffs on Mexican and Canadian imports starting March 4, plus an additional 10% duty on Chinese goods.

The cryptocurrency sector got a much-needed boost on Monday after President Trump revealed the five cryptocurrencies he wants included in the country's strategic reserve. Bitcoin (+8.2%), Etherum (+9.4%), XRP (+23.5%), Solana (+17.5%), and Cardano (+58.2%) all saw sharp surges after the post.

ASX Company News

• Magellan Financial Group (+3.59%) announced it will resume its on-market share buyback program, citing its current share price as an appropriate opportunity to deploy capital.

• NRW Holdings (-9.29%) shares continued to tumble, despite assurances it would recover the $113.3 million owed from the Whyalla steelworks collapse. Administrators revealed that creditors, including NRW, are collectively owed approximately $1.3 billion from the failed operation.

• Pro Medicus (+3.21%) has secured a $40 million, seven-year contract with US radiology provider LucidHealth to implement its Visage 7 diagnostic imaging platform across 140 care sites serving over 300 radiologists.

• Sandfire Resources (+1.04%) will discontinue drilling operations at a Portuguese diamond site after assay results failed to meet "technical requirements" for continued exploration.

Wall Street

U.S. markets rebounded Friday, with the Nasdaq (+1.63%) leading the gains, followed by the S&P 500 (+1.59%) and the Dow Jones (+1.39%). There were widespread gains with all S&P 500 sectors finishing in positive territory, with Financials (+2.07%) leading the advance and all but Materials and Real Estate posting gains exceeding 1%.

An overwhelming number of companies finished the day higher - 439 in total, the highest reading this year for any single session. Despite Friday's rally, all major indices closed the week in negative territory following several days of steep losses.

The Magnificent 7 tech stocks led the market higher, with particularly strong performances from Nvidia (+3.87%) and Tesla (+3.94%), though Nvidia failed to reclaim its 200-day moving average. Tesla bounced back above that key technical level, ending its worst streak of major losses since March 2020.

Dell Technologies’ (-4.70%) shares fell after the PC maker's quarterly revenue missed expectations at $23.93 billion versus analysts' forecast of $24.56 billion. Despite adjusted earnings of $2.68 per share beating estimates of $2.53, investors focused on the sales shortfall. The company reported $4.1 billion in backlogged AI server orders, including from xAI. Duolingo's (-16.95%) shares plummeted despite beating fourth-quarter subscriber and revenue forecasts, as investors focused on the language learning platform's disappointing adjusted EBITDA guidance for the current quarter, which fell below analysts' expectations.

S&P 500 Sector Performance

Economic Data

• China's NBS Manufacturing PMI rose to 50.2 in February 2025 from 49.1 in the prior month, pointing to the highest reading since last November and beating the market consensus of 49.9.

• China's NBS Non-Manufacturing PMI was 50.4 in February 2025, up from 50.2 in the previous month and slightly above the market consensus of 50.3.

• The U.S. Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) price index increased by 0.3% month over month in January 2025, the same pace as in December and in line with expectations.

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🌎️ Around The Globe

• BlackRock, the world's largest asset manager with nearly $100 billion under management in Australia and New Zealand, is considering reducing its focus on Australia due to stretched valuations and weak growth prospects.

• Citigroup mistakenly credited a client’s account with $81 trillion instead of $280 trillion, enough to buy the entire U.S. stock market (~$60T)

• Flashes, an Instagram alternative, launched on the App Store, attracting nearly 30,000 downloads in its first 24 hours. The photo-sharing app offers a classic Instagram-like experience where users can upload up to four photos and videos that are up to one minute long.

• Google has announced plans to cut staff in its "People Operations" (HR) division and cloud organisation as part of internal restructuring efforts. The company will offer a voluntary exit program to US-based, full-time HR employees starting in early March.

• Meta plans to launch a standalone Meta AI app in Q2 2025, positioning it to compete directly with established AI chatbots like ChatGPT.

• Let's jump on a Skype call? No More. Microsoft is shutting down Skype on May 5 after 21 years of service. The company has announced that users of the pioneering calling and messaging platform should migrate to its free Teams app instead.

• Stripe has announced a tender offer valuing the payments startup at $91.5 billion, approaching its peak 2021 valuation of $95 billion. In its annual letter, the company revealed impressive 2024 performance metrics, including $1.4 trillion in total payment volume—a 38% year-over-year increase.

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*1-year, 3-year and 5-year returns are calculated as of January 31, 2025.

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DISCLAIMER: Please note that the information provided in this newsletter is for educational purposes only and should not be considered financial advice. It is not intended to encourage you to buy/sell assets or make economic decisions. We strongly recommend conducting your research before making any investment.