KOSDAQ soars 11% to hit the circuit breaker; UK’s 2026 economic growth forecast downgraded to 1.1%

[Market Review]

On March 5th, Beijing time, the Nikkei 225 index opened up 1.77%, at 55,205.58 points; the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) opened up 3.09%, at 5,250.92 points. Shortly after opening, the Nikkei 225’s gain expanded to 4%; the KOSPI’s gain expanded to 11%, triggering the KOSDAQ index circuit breaker on the Korea Exchange, with algorithmic trading paused for 5 minutes.

On March 4th, local time, the three major U.S. stock indexes closed higher collectively. The Dow Jones rose 0.49% to 48,739.41 points, the S&P 500 increased 0.78% to 6,869.5 points, and the Nasdaq gained 1.29% to 22,807.48 points. The VIX volatility index dropped sharply by over 10%.

On March 4th, European stock markets all closed higher, with Germany’s DAX up 1.74% at 24,205.36 points, France’s CAC 40 up 0.79% at 8,167.73 points, and the UK’s FTSE 100 up 0.8% at 10,567.65 points.

[Stock News]

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang stated that the company’s recent $30 billion investment in OpenAI might be its last before the company goes public. He expects OpenAI to potentially initiate an IPO by the end of this year. He also mentioned that Nvidia previously announced a $10 billion investment in Anthropic, a competitor of OpenAI, which “likely will also be the last.” Nvidia disclosed this investment plan when jointly announcing with Microsoft in November last year.

Broadcom’s adjusted net revenue for the first fiscal quarter reached $19.31 billion, compared to market expectations of $19.26 billion; adjusted earnings per share (EPS) for the first quarter were $2.05, versus the expected $2.03. The company forecasts revenue of approximately $22 billion for the second quarter, compared to the market expectation of $20.53 billion. Additionally, Broadcom plans to implement a new stock repurchase program with a maximum amount of $10 billion.

Danish shipping giant Maersk announced that it will temporarily cease accepting cargo bookings to and from the UAE, Oman, Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, and Saudi Arabia until further notice. Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) stated that all cargo destined for Gulf ports will be unloaded at the nearest safe port, and all affected shipments will be subject to a mandatory $800 per container surcharge to cover rerouting costs.

[International Macro]

According to Xinhua News Agency, the U.S. Senate failed to advance a bill on March 4th that would require President Trump to obtain congressional approval before any future military action against Iran. The vote resulted in 47 in favor and 53 against, and the bill did not pass. During the debate, most Democratic senators criticized the Trump administration’s military strikes on Iran.

According to Xinhua News Agency, the UK Budget Responsibility Office issued a statement on March 3rd, lowering the UK’s economic growth forecast for 2026 from 1.4% to 1.1%. The office expects the UK GDP to grow by 1.1% in 2026, and by 1.6% in 2027 and 2028, with growth rates of 1.5% in the following two years. However, this forecast does not yet account for the potential impact of recent Middle East developments on energy prices and government borrowing costs.

The latest Federal Reserve Beige Book indicates that economic activity in most U.S. regions has grown at a slight to moderate pace in recent weeks, but an increasing number of regions report flat or declining activity. Out of the twelve Federal Reserve districts, seven reported slight to moderate growth, while the number of districts reporting flat or declining activity increased from four to five since the last report.