Preview of US Stock Market | The three major stock index futures rose together, and Applied Digital (APLD.US) rose after its performance results.

Pre-market Market Trends 1. In the pre-market on October 10th (Friday), the US stock futures for the three major stock indexes all rose. As of the time of writing, the Dow Jones futures rose by 0.11%, the S&P 500 futures rose by 0.08%, and the Nasdaq futures rose by 0.09%. 2. As of the time of writing, the German DAX index fell by 0.25%, the UK FTSE 100 index fell by 0.01%, the French CAC40 index fell by 0.00%, and the European Stoxx 50 index fell by 0.02%. 3. As of the time of writing, WTI crude oil fell by 1.17% to $60.79 per barrel, and Brent crude oil fell by 1.09% to $64.51 per barrel. Market News Is the year-end rally in the US stock market stable? Nuveen: Profits of giants will be the "compass", AI remains the core engine! Chief Investment Officer Saira Malik of Nuveen Asset Management LLC stated that the US stock market is likely to continue to rise by the end of the year. Robust corporate profits, especially those of mega-cap technology giants, will continue to drive stock prices higher. Malik pointed out that the fourth quarter is usually a strong quarter for the stock market, especially after a significant rise since the beginning of the year. Therefore, the probability of this current rally continuing is high. Despite concerns about high valuations and fears of a stock market bubble, Malik believes that strong corporate performance is enough to support current valuations. She expects that as the third-quarter earnings season is set to begin next week, corporate earnings will once again exceed market expectations. Beware! The Fed's worst fear is happening: the risk of out-of-control inflation expectations is soaring. A recent report from the Boston Fed pointed out that the sharp rise in current inflation expectations poses a greater risk to the Fed's ability to control prices. Unlike during the pandemic, the increase in household inflation expectations for the next year is not mainly driven by food and energy prices. This feature increases the risk of inflation expectations persistently exceeding the Fed's 2% policy target. Since the beginning of the year, as US households gradually absorbed the Trump administration's aggressive trade policies and prepared for rising import prices, consumer expectations for inflation have continued to rise. Fed officials are closely monitoring these policy measures to assess whether the trade policies will lead to a one-time price shock or cause inflation to rise more persistently. US September CPI expected to be released on time! Bureau of Labor Statistics recalls staff to expedite the report. Despite the ongoing federal government shutdown in the US, investors may still receive September inflation data as scheduled. According to reports, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) has recalled some staff to complete the release of the report. The US September Consumer Price Index (CPI), originally scheduled to be released on October 15th, was once doubted to be delayed due to the government shutdown. However, the report is now expected to be released in time before the Federal Reserve's monetary policy meeting on October 28-29. The White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has reportedly requested the BLS to recall staff to ensure that the CPI data is processed by the end of this month. Hawkish tone of the Fed triggers rise of strong dollar! Dollar shorts are facing a squeeze. Developments such as the decline of the euro and the Japanese yen in overseas markets, as well as hawkish statements from Federal Reserve officials urging caution in further rate cuts, have recently significantly increased the attractiveness of the US dollar as the global reserve currency. Traders in Asia and Europe have reported that hedge funds are increasing bets on options, believing that the wave of the dollar rebound against most major currencies will continue until the end of the year. At the same time, "shorting the dollar" is becoming a painful trade for investors. However, the next direction of the dollar remains uncertain, with the Federal Reserve's next actions playing a crucial role. Gold price approaches $4000 again! As of the time of writing, spot gold rose by 0.54% to $3997.66 per ounce; COMEX gold futures rose by 1.00% to $4012.25 per ounce. Gold prices have rapidly increased in recent days, hitting a historical high of $4059.31 per ounce on Wednesday, but fell below the $4000 mark in early trading on Friday. The decline in gold prices may be influenced by factors such as easing political tensions and profit-taking by investors. Reports indicate that Trump has announced an agreement between Israel and Hamas on the first phase of a "peace plan". Both Hamas and the Israeli Prime Minister's office have issued statements confirming the agreement. In addition, technical indicators show that gold prices have been in overbought territory for most of the past month, prompting some investors to take profits. Individual Stock News Tesla, Inc. (TSLA.US) China's wholesale sales stop declining and rebound: September year-on-year increase by 2.8% to 90,812 vehicles. Tesla, Inc. China's wholesale sales in September increased by 2.8% compared to the same period last year, reaching 90,812 vehicles, ending a two-month decline. Previously, its new six-seater model has started delivery in China. Sales of the Model 3 and Model Y models produced at Tesla, Inc.'s factory in Shanghai (including vehicles exported to Europe and other markets) increased by 9.2% from August. There were reports that the US automaker's sales in Europe also saw a partial recovery this month. Alphabet Inc. Class C (GOOGL.US) faces increased scrutiny from the UK antitrust regulator and becomes the first company in the UK to be designated as having "strategic market status". Alphabet Inc. Class C has become the first company in the UK to be designated with "strategic market status," which subjects its online search and advertising business to stricter scrutiny from the UK antitrust regulator. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) stated that Alphabet Inc. Class C's entrenched market dominance warranted this designation, which aims to safeguard the fairness of competition in the digital market. The CMA also expressed concerns about the fairness of Alphabet Inc. Class C's search results, high advertising costs, and search responses generated by artificial intelligence (AI). The investigation did not cover Alphabet Inc. Class C's Gemini AI assistant, but "given the uncertainty in the market development, this situation will continue to be evaluated." Qualcomm (QCOM.US) is under investigation, pre-market trading falls by nearly 2%. On October 10th, according to a message on the website of the State Administration for Market Regulation of China, the State Administration for Market Regulation has launched an investigation against QUALCOMM Incorporated for the suspected violation of the "Anti-Monopoly Law of the People's Republic of China" due to its acquisition of Autotalks without properly declaring the concentration of operators. Qualcomm's pre-market trading on Friday in the US fell sharply, with a decline of up to 4% at one point. AI computing power demand surges! Applied Digital (APLD.US) Q1 revenue surges by 84% exceeding expectations. AI data center company Applied Digital reported first-quarter revenue that exceeded Wall Street expectations, showing strong growth momentum despite still recording a net loss. Behind this achievement is the surge in demand for data center services - more and more customers are expanding their computing power to support the rapid development of generative AI applications. In the quarter ending on August 31st, the company's revenue increased by 84% year-on-year to $64.2 million, surpassing analysts' previous expectation of $50 million. The adjusted loss per share was 3 cents, better than the expected loss of 13 cents per share. As of the time of writing, Applied Digital was up nearly 24% in pre-market trading on Friday. Strong demand in North America, Stellantis (STLA.US) Q3 global delivery volume grows by 13%. Stellantis announced on Friday that its global car sales in the third quarter grew by 13% compared to the same period last year, benefiting from the introduction of new models and an increase in demand in the North American market. This suggests that after experiencing several quarters of sales declines, the business has begun to recover. The Franco-Italian-American joint venture automaker estimates that it delivered a total of 1.3 million cars from July to September. The sales and revenue data for the third quarter will be officially announced on October 30th. The company stated in a statement that car deliveries in the North American region had increased significantly by 35% to 403,000 units, partly due to the introduction of the Ram 1500 model with a V8 engine and the normalization of inventory levels following production cuts last year. Upcoming Important Economic Data and Events At 21:45 Beijing time, FOMC voter and Chicago Fed President Evans delivers the opening remarks at a community bank seminar and moderates a discussion. At 22:00 Beijing time, the preliminary reading of the University of Michigan Consumer Confidence Index for October in the United States will be released. At 01:00 Beijing time the next day, FOMC voter and St. Louis Fed President Bullard will give a speech.