S&P Dow Jones puts Indonesia on watch list for market downgrade - The Business Times

• The Indian stock market closed in the red on July 7, with the Sensex ending 104.35 points lower and the Nifty 50 dropping by 31.65 points. • In global commodities and crypto, Brent crude futures rose 0.39% to $72.29, while Ethereum (ETH/USDT) climbed to approximately $1,780, breaking a short-term descending trendline.

• The Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank (ECB) are diverging in their interest rate policies, creating a significant split in monetary direction. • Strong U.S. economic data, including the latest ISM Services PMI, suggests the U.S. economy is expanding healthily without triggering new inflation concerns.

• Nasdaq and S&P 500 futures rose on Wednesday, showing resilience despite geopolitical tensions following U.S. military strikes against Iran. • The U.S. military action was a response to Iran attacking three commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday.

• Shinhan Securities predicts the KOSPI will remain range-bound between 7,550 and 8,400, cautioning investors against expecting a rapid V-shaped recovery. • Market focus is shifting away from Samsung Electronics' recent strong earnings toward the long-term semiconductor chip cycle projected for 2027-2028.

• Oil prices surged following U.S. airstrikes against Iran and the revocation of Iranian oil waivers. • Asian stocks remained steady and S&P 500 and Nasdaq futures showed slight gains as investors evaluated the geopolitical instability.

• Global stock indices show divergent trends, with Japan's Nikkei and Taiwan's TAIEX maintaining strong uptrends. • In contrast, Hong Kong's Hang Seng has turned bearish, and South Korea's Kospi is experiencing a sharp intermediate correction.

• The cryptocurrency market declined by over 1% on July 7, driven by a shift of capital toward US stocks and Bitcoin sales by Strategy. • Bitcoin and various altcoins faced downward pressure, with MemeCore (M) emerging as a top loser, dropping more than 13% to trade near $1.18.

• The Nifty 50 index rose 23 points (0.09%) to 24,453.35, while the S&P BSE Sensex gained 50.96 points (0.07%) to reach 78,336.03 as of 13:30 IST. • Market gains were supported by advances in IT shares, contrasting with European stocks which edged lower due to profit-booking following a strong weekly rally.

• Stock futures remained relatively flat as investors balanced geopolitical instability in the Middle East with anticipation of the upcoming Federal Reserve meeting minutes. • Market caution increased following the U.S. launch of a "series of powerful strikes" against Iran on Tuesday evening, which subsequently impacted oil prices.

• Asian markets experienced a downturn, with the MSCI Asia Pacific Index falling 0.3% as technology stocks drove the overall losses. • Samsung's shares plummeted over 5% and the Kospi Index retreated 3.5%, despite Samsung reporting a massive 19-fold surge in quarterly profits.

• Singapore stocks rose, driven primarily by gains in the banking sector, despite a broader downward trend across regional markets. • Other key indices suffered losses, including Japan’s Nikkei 225 which fell 2.1%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index which dropped 0.5%, and South Korea’s Kospi which plummeted 4.9%.