Market Summary - February 26, 2026

The US equity market is experiencing a downturn today, with the Nasdaq 100 (US100) futures contract declining by more than 2%. This sell-off is primarily attributed to Nvidia's strong earnings report, which, despite being impressive, failed to ignite a broader buying trend across the market.

Market Performance

The current index value for US100 stands at 24,824.45, reflecting a decrease of 0.82%. The semiconductor sector is particularly affected, with major players like Broadcom, Taiwan Semiconductor, ASML, Applied Materials, and Lam Research all seeing declines. In contrast, stocks that had previously been sold off, such as Salesforce, Intuit, Accenture, CrowdStrike, and ServiceNow, are experiencing gains.

Jobless Claims Data

Recent data indicates a slight increase in new US jobless claims, totaling 212,000 for the week ending February 21. This figure is an increase of 4,000 from the previous week but remains below the Dow Jones consensus estimate of 215,000. The four-week moving average has also seen a minor increase, now at 220,250. Continuing claims have decreased by 31,000 to 1.833 million. This data suggests that while hiring may be slowing, employers are not yet resorting to significant layoffs, which could lead to a prolonged pause in Federal Reserve policy easing, further impacting market sentiment.

Technical Analysis

From a technical perspective, the US100 contract is currently trading below both the 200-period and 50-period exponential moving averages, indicating a bearish trend. The index has also slipped beneath the psychological level of 25,000 points, which may signal further selling pressure in the near term.

Looking Ahead

As we move forward, market participants will be closely monitoring upcoming macroeconomic data from both Europe and the US, as well as the UK Spring Statement, which could provide further insights into economic conditions and influence market movements.