Overnight US Stocks | Three major indexes recorded gains for the sixth consecutive week, with Netflix rising more than 11%

According to Zhitong Finance, on Friday, the three major indices closed higher, with all three major U.S. stock indices recording gains for the sixth consecutive week. The Dow rose by 0.96% this week, the S&P 500 rose by 0.85%, and the Nasdaq rose by 0.8%.

[U.S. Stocks] At the close, the Dow rose by 36.86 points, or 0.09%, to 43,275.91 points; the Nasdaq rose by 115.94 points, or 0.63%, to 18,489.55 points; the S&P 500 rose by 23.20 points, or 0.40%, to 5,864.67 points. Netflix (NFLX.US) closed up more than 11%, marking its largest single-day gain in a year. The Nasdaq Golden Dragon Index rose by 3.03%, Beike (BEKE.NUS) rose by 8.37%, and Li Auto (LI.US) rose by 6.3%.

[European Stocks] The German DAX30 Index rose by 65.56 points, or 0.33%, to 19,653.75 points; the UK's FTSE 100 Index fell by 26.51 points, or 0.32%, to 8,358.62 points; the French CAC40 Index rose by 29.32 points, or 0.39%, to 7,613.05 points; the Euro Stoxx 50 Index rose by 38.15 points, or 0.77%, to 4,985.45 points; the Spanish IBEX35 Index rose by 18.50 points, or 0.16%, to 11,923.00 points; and the Italian FTSE MIB Index rose by 164.27 points, or 0.47%, to 35,203.00 points.

[Asia-Pacific Stock Markets] The Nikkei 225 Index rose by 0.18%, the Indonesia Composite Index rose by 0.32%, and the Vietnam VN30 Index fell by 0.01%.

[Cryptocurrencies] Bitcoin rose by over 1.2% to $68,218.46 per coin; Ethereum rose by over 1.2% to $2,636.32 per coin.

[Gold] COMEX gold futures rose by 0.41% to $2,689.90 per ounce; spot gold rose by 0.42% to $2,673.75 per ounce.

[Crude Oil] NYMEX WTI crude oil futures for November delivery fell by $1.45 on Friday, a decrease of 2.05%, closing at $69.22 per barrel, approaching the closing prices of $68.17 on September 30 and $65.14 on September 10. U.S. WTI crude oil futures fell by 8.39% this week, marking the largest weekly decline since OPEC and the International Energy Agency simultaneously lowered their forecasts for global oil demand in 2024 and 2025 on September 2. ICE Brent crude oil futures for December delivery fell by $1.39 on Friday, a decrease of 1.87%, closing at $73.06 per barrel. This futures contract fell by over 7% for the week.

[Metals] Most London metals rose, with nickel falling by 0.31%; copper rose by over 1.2%, zinc rose by 0.49%, aluminum rose by over 2%.

[Macro News] Federal Reserve Boston: Slowing down can achieve dual goals. Atlanta Fed President Bostonick said that the Fed should patiently and gradually lower its policy interest rates, which can both bring the inflation rate down to the target level of 2% and prevent the U.S. economy from falling into a recession. Speaking at a U.S. business economic education forum in Mississippi, Bostonick pointed out, "I am not in a hurry to adjust rates to a neutral level. We must restore the inflation rate to the target level of 2%; I do not want the progress against inflation to stall because we have not implemented restrictive measures for long enough, so I will remain patient." In addition, Bostonick indicated that he expects the Fed to further lower the benchmark interest rate. "If the economy continues to develop along the current trend, if inflation continues to decline, the labor market remains strong, and we still see positive production, then we will be able to continue on the path back to a neutral interest rate." Bostonick expects that by the end of 2025, the U.S. inflation rate may drop to the Fed's set target of 2%, by which time interest rates should also be able to adjust to a neutral level.

Federal Reserve Kashkari: Private credit may reduce systemic risks. Minneapolis Fed President Kashkari stated that despite the U.S. government's lack of willingness to increase bank capital requirements, the rise of the private credit market may reduce systemic risks in the U.S. financial system. Kashkari said, "This is somewhat scary because it has grown rapidly to a market size of over a trillion dollars. But from my investigation, today a bank in the U.S.—a large bank—has a leverage ratio of about 10 to 1, which is 10 times its equity assets. Whereas the leverage ratio of these private credit instruments is typically 1 to 1, so the leverage ratio is much lower." Private credit—usually referring to loans from non-bank institutions—has been soaring in the past few years. In an environment of rising interest rates, private credit offers investors more attractive returns compared to other fixed-income products. For borrowers, it has become another source of funding, eliminating many of the stricter requirements typical of bank loans. Kashkari mentioned that the risks posed by private credit instruments may also be smaller because compared to banks that require overnight liquidity, private credit instruments typically lock up capital for a longer period. He added, "So, where does systemic risk come from? The intersection of leverage and term transformation. Therefore, from these two perspectives, the risks of these private credit instruments seem much lower than those of banks." "While I hope we have stricter regulations on banks, in reality, I am cautiously optimistic about some developments in the market that may reduce risks in the financial system, at least reducing systemic risks."

BlackRock ETF Chief: 75% of Bitcoin buyers are cryptocurrency novices. A year ago, Samara Cohen, Chief Investment Officer for BlackRock Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs) and index investments, launched one of the first physically backed Bitcoin exchange-traded products in U.S. history because the demand for Bitcoin was too high. Now, investors are flocking in, many of whom are cryptocurrency enthusiasts on Wall Street. BlackRock now believes that market demand is a better way to access Bitcoin, "This is for ETF packaging." Part of the strategy to attract customers to invest in their funds is to introduce the benefits of Exchange Traded Products (ETPs) to cryptocurrency investors.

[Stock News]

Global oilfield services company warns: Slowdown in oil exploration company spending. The world's largest oilfield services provider, Schlumberger (SLB.US), warned that spending by oil exploration companies has slowed in the past few months as clients adopt a cautious approach amidst falling commodity prices. In a statement to investors on Friday, the company also stated that it expects shareholder returns to exceed the $3 billion target this year, as most of its clients' projects are ongoing. CEO Olivier Le Peuch stated, "Despite some clients taking a more cautious approach to recent capital and discretionary spending in the face of falling commodity prices, most projects are progressing as planned. Despite the slowdown in upstream investments over the past few months due to macroeconomic conditions, we still expect upstream investments to remain at a sustained level in the coming years." Schlumberger is often seen as a barometer for the oil and gas industry, providing insight into the financial health of the energy sector globally.

OpenAI and Microsoft (MSFT.US) engage in negotiations with investment banks on equity conversion. OpenAI and Microsoft are engaged in a high-stakes negotiation on an unprecedented issue: how to convert nearly $14 billion investment in a non-profit organization into equity in a for-profit company? OpenAI recently completed a financing round, valuing the company at $157 billion, as it transitions from a non-profit organization to a for-profit company. One of the biggest challenges it faces upon becoming a for-profit company is how to allocate equity. As the largest investor in OpenAI, Microsoft may end up owning a significant stake in the company. Given the significance of the negotiation outcome for Microsoft and OpenAI, both companies have hired investment banks to provide advisory services. Microsoft is working with Morgan Stanley, while OpenAI has chosen Goldman Sachs. Apart from determining the stake Microsoft will hold post-restructuring, it is also necessary to clarify the governance rights Microsoft will have.

[Major Banks' Ratings]

Bank of America Global Research: Raises NVIDIA's (NVDA.US) target price from $165 to $190

UBS: Raises Uber's (UBER.US) target price from $102 to $114; Raises Netflix's (NFLX.US) target price from $750 to $825

Keybanc: Raises Microsoft's (MSFT.US) target price from $490 to $505