European markets are falling fast and U.S. crude oil futures are down nearly 3%, sinking back below $27 a barrel. Investors are rushing to assets such as gold and bonds, traditionally seen as safe havens, after Fed Chair Janet Yellen said market turmoil and the stronger dollar could hurt the U.S. economy.
U.S. stock futures are down by between 1.5% and 2%.
Here are 4 tips for today's trading. This will help you decide where you should invest and what to look for:
1. Market mayhem
1. Market mayhem
European markets are suffering in early trading. London fell more than 2%, Frankfurt more than 3% and Paris as much as 4%. The few Asian markets open also fell, led by Hong Kong's Hang Seng which closed down 3.8% on its first day after the Chinese New Year holiday.
2. Gold, bonds shine following flight to safety
2. Gold, bonds shine following flight to safety
Gold futures jumped to $1,230 on Thursday, the highest level since May, amid growing skepticism over the Federal Reserve's ability to raise interest rates as much as it would like this year.
Meanwhile, U.S., German and U.K. sovereign bond prices surged, as anxiety over slowing growth, weak oil prices and tighter credit markets spurred a flight to safety.
3. U.S. dollar sinks to lowest since October 2014 against Yen
3. U.S. dollar sinks to lowest since October 2014 against Yen
The greenback crashed to a fresh 15-month low against the yen, as steep declines in global equity markets supported demand for safe-haven assets.
USD/JPY hit lows of 111.00, before pulling back to trade at 111.37 by 10:15GMT, or 5:15AM ET, off 1.75% for the day. The dollar is now down almost 8% against the yen from the six-week high of 121.68 reached on January 29, following the Bank of Japan’s shock decision to adopt negative interest rates.
Meanwhile, the dollar index fell 0.35% to 95.51, the lowest since October, after Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen indicated that further rate hikes could be delayed.
4. Stock market movers
4. Stock market movers
Twitter (TWTR, Tech30) shares lost as much as 15% in after-hours trading after the micro blogging site reported Wednesday that it lost 2 million users in the last three months of 2015. Tesla (TSLA) shares climbed as much as 13.5% during extended trading after an earnings update that assured investors it can start turning a profit in 2016.
Total (TOT) shares are down more than 1.5% after reporting mixed results for 2015 as energy majors scramble for profits with oil prices plummeting.
Adidas (ADDDF) shares are up nearly 3% after raising its guidance for 2016 on the back up of better sales in the U.S. Opera (OPESF) soared by 40% after Chinese investors offered $1.2 billion to buy the company behind the Opera browser.
5. Earnings and economics and recap
5. Earnings and economics and recap
Among the companies reporting quarterly results this morning are Alcatel-Lucent (ALU), Pepsi (PEP), Kellogg (K), Thomson Reuters (TRI) and Time (TIME). After the markets close, reports are expected from CBS (CBS) and Groupon (GRPN).
Weekly jobless claims data is due from the federal government at 8:30 am ET. Then, at 10:30 am ET, the new figures on U.S. natural gas inventories will be available.
Wednesday market recap: The Dow Jones industrial average closed 0.6% lower, while the S&P 500 stayed flat. The Nasdaq was the sole winner, gaining 0.4%.
The Fed: Janet Yellen continues her testimony on Capitol Hill. On Wednesday she told lawmakers there are plenty of headwinds for the U.S. economy.
