Climbs

• Asian stock markets remained hesitant as rising oil prices, driven by escalating conflict in the Gulf, sparked renewed concerns over global inflation. • The surge in energy costs is influencing expectations regarding the Federal Reserve's timeline for potential interest rate hikes. • South Korea's market suffered significant losses following a squeeze on retail investors, adding to regional volatility.

• Asian stock markets rose, led by a 1.6% climb in the MSCI Asia Pacific equities gauge, as traders reduced expectations for Federal Reserve interest-rate hikes. • The rally was driven by cooler-than-expected US inflation data and renewed momentum in the artificial intelligence trade, specifically boosting technology shares. • South Korea’s Kospi index surged nearly 6%, reclaiming its position as the world’s best-performing major stock benchmark for the year, with SK Hynix Inc. among the key gainers.

• Major financial institutions saw stock surges after exceeding their Q2 earnings forecasts, while June inflation data showed a cooling trend. • In contrast, IBM shares stumbled following a reduction in the company's future outlook. • Oil prices climbed higher, driven by escalating geopolitical concerns in the Middle East.

• On July 3, 2026, the Indian stock market saw the Sensex climb 300 points and the Nifty 50 rise above 24,200, supported by a sustained rally in IT stocks. • Simultaneously, Bitcoin rose 2.3% to trade near $61,500, contributing to a global cryptocurrency market capitalization of approximately $2.13 trillion. • The crypto rebound was triggered by weaker-than-expected U.S. payroll growth in June, which added only 57,000 jobs against a forecast of 110,000.

• EU enlargement has become a primary focus as Ireland begins its EU Council presidency and Brussels prepares for an upcoming budget conference. • President Zelenskyy is facing significant obstacles to Ukraine's accession process due to fresh reservations from Hungary and an ongoing dispute with Poland. • During a press conference, Zelenskyy urged the EU to prioritize established rules over "political emotions" to ensure Ukraine's integration proceeds quickly.

• The market capitalization of six of India's top 10 most valued firms increased by a combined Rs 88,678.1 crore during the last week of trading. • ICICI Bank emerged as the biggest winner of the surge, with HDFC Bank and Reliance Industries also seeing significant gains in valuation. • Conversely, the overall growth was tempered by valuation drops experienced by major companies including Bharti Airtel, TCS, and LIC.

• The BSE Sensex climbed 454.62 points (0.61%) to 77,443.70 and the Nifty rose 134 points (0.53%) to 24,153.56 as of 9:28 am, led by the auto and realty sectors. • Market optimism was driven by lower crude oil prices and strong global semiconductor forecasts, including Micron Technology's $22 billion in chip commitments and Qualcomm's $15 billion data center revenue projection for 2029. • This positive sentiment mirrored a broader Asian rally, with Japan's Nikkei surging over 2% and South Korea's KOSPI jumping 5.5%, while the India VIX dropped 2.68% to 13.03.