Overnight US stocks | Standard & Poor's 500 index fell for the second consecutive day, oil stocks rose, and Oracle Corporation (ORCL.US) surged more than 9%.

On Wednesday, investors continued to focus on the situation in the Middle East, with the three major indices opening higher but closing lower, with the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average ending down. The S&P 500 index fell for the second consecutive trading day. Core inflation in the US in February decreased compared to the previous month, indicating easing price pressures before the conflict with Iran. However, concerns over the Iran war could amplify worries about Americans' ability to bear the burden. [US Stocks] At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 289.24 points, or 0.61%, to 47,417.27 points; the Nasdaq rose 19.03 points, or 0.08%, to 22,716.13 points; and the S&P 500 index fell 5.68 points, or 0.08%, to 6,775.8 points. Oil stocks rose, with Occidental Petroleum Corporation (OXY.US) up 4%, ConocoPhillips (COP.US) and Chevron Corporation (CVX.US) up over 2%, and Oracle Corporation (ORCL.US) up over 9%. The Nasdaq Golden Dragon Index fell 0.77%, and Li Auto, Inc. Sponsored ADR Class A (LI.US) rose 3%. [European Stocks] The German DAX30 index fell 294.12 points, or 1.23%, to 23,641.20 points; the UK's FTSE 100 index fell 58.98 points, or 0.57%, to 10,353.26 points; the French CAC40 index fell 15.55 points, or 0.19%, to 8,041.81 points; the Euro Stoxx 50 index fell 40.72 points, or 0.70%, to 5,796.45 points; the Spanish IBEX35 index fell 91.10 points, or 0.52%, to 17,353.90 points; and the Italian FTSE MIB index fell 407.19 points, or 0.90%, to 44,794.50 points. [Asian Stock Markets] The Nikkei 225 index rose 1.43%, the South Korean KOSPI index rose 1.4%, and the Jakarta Composite Index in Indonesia fell 0.69%. [Cryptocurrency] Bitcoin rose 1.5% to $70,763.6, while Ethereum rose over 2.1% to $2,071.91. [Oil] Light crude oil futures for April delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange rose $3.80 to close at $87.25 per barrel, up 4.55%; Brent crude oil futures for May delivery rose $4.18 to close at $91.98 per barrel, up 4.76%. [US Dollar Index] The US dollar index, which measures the dollar against six major currencies, rose 0.41% to close at 99.231 in the currency market. At the close of the New York currency market, 1 euro exchanged for $1.1569, lower than the $1.1644 from the previous trading day; 1 pound exchanged for $1.3407, lower than $1.3460 from the previous trading day. 1 dollar exchanged for 158.89 yen, higher than 157.63 yen from the previous trading day; 1 dollar exchanged for 0.7799 Swiss francs, higher than 0.7770 Swiss francs from the previous trading day; 1 dollar exchanged for 1.3587 Canadian dollars, higher than 1.3570 Canadian dollars from the previous trading day; 1 dollar exchanged for 9.2301 Swedish krona, higher than 9.1371 Swedish krona from the previous trading day. [Metal] Spot gold closed at $1,577.17, while spot silver closed at $85.739. [Macro News] US February inflation stabilizes as expected, soaring energy prices may keep March data "feverish". The US Labor Department reported on Wednesday that the Consumer Price Index in February rose 2.4% year-on-year. This data was in line with January's and matched the expectations of surveyed economists. Excluding the more volatile food and energy items, core prices rose 2.5% year-on-year, also in line with expectations. However, since the outbreak of the conflict with Iran, benchmark crude oil futures in the US have shown significant volatility, with the average trading price this month averaging about $82 per barrel, compared to around $65 in February. Therefore, March inflation data may be even hotter. RSM's Chief Economist Joseph Brusuelas estimates that for every $10 increase in oil prices per barrel, the Labor Department's inflation reading will rise by about 0.2 percentage points. Although there are slight differences in the calculations of different economists, most believe that oil prices will push up March inflation. Economists also believe that the downward deviation of housing cost growth data in October due to the government shutdown last year is artificially suppressing the current year-on-year inflation reading. However, this downward bias is expected to disappear in the April inflation report, at which time the calculated inflation rate will rise accordingly. Trump administration officials prepare to announce new trade investigations or rebuild tariff barriers. According to a knowledgeable source, after the Supreme Court rejected Trump's tariff plan, the Trump administration is preparing to announce a series of trade investigations on Wednesday to pave the way for new tariffs on imported goods. The investigations will be conducted under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 and will be enforced by the Office of the US Trade Representative. The media first reported that the investigations will include issues such as digital service taxes and alleged currency manipulation. These investigations will mark an important step for the Trump administration in rebuilding its "tariff barriers." Tariffs have always been a cornerstone of Trump's economic policy. On the same day that the Supreme Court rejected his tariff policy, Trump announced that he would invoke another legal basis to impose a temporary 10% tariff on global goods for 150 days. He then vowed to raise the tariff benchmark to 15%, but the government has not yet implemented this higher rate. US Congressional Budget Office: Federal budget deficit for fiscal year 2026 is $1.9 trillion. On March 11th, the US Congressional Budget Office released a budget and economic outlook for 2026 to 2036. According to the forecast, the federal budget deficit for the fiscal year 2026 is $1.9 trillion, increasing to $3.1 trillion by 2036. Relative to the size of the economy, the deficit in 2026 is 5.8% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), rising to 6.7% by 2036, higher than the average deficit level of 3.8% over the past 50 years. Rising net interest costs are the main reason for the increase in the deficit. US average gasoline price rises to the highest level in more than 21 months. On March 11th, the latest data from the American Automobile Association showed that the average US gasoline price rose to $3.58 per gallon, the highest level in more than 21 months. The data showed that US gasoline prices rose 38 cents in the past week and 64 cents in the past month, the largest weekly and monthly increases since March 2022. Oil prices have risen by about 22% in the past month. Meanwhile, diesel prices in the US are rising even faster. The latest data shows that the average diesel price rose 5 cents to $4.89 per gallon, with a cumulative increase of 79 cents in the past week. IEA announces the largest release of emergency oil reserves to the market of 400 million barrels. The International Energy Agency (IEA) announced today that it will provide the market with 400 million barrels of oil from emergency reserves. The IEA stated that tensions in the Middle East have brought "significant and rising risks" to the oil market. These stocks will come from mandatory reserves of IEA member countries. According to regulations, each member country must hold reserves equivalent to at least 90 days of net imports from the previous year. Reserves can be in the form of crude oil, refined products, or a combination of the two. The latest data from the IEA shows that North America's strategic reserves are mainly crude oil, while European and Asian member countries hold both crude oil and refined products. By the end of 2025, the total oil volume in the public reserves of IEA member countries was 1.25 billion barrels, accounting for approximately 30% of the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) oil reserves. This is the sixth time the IEA has issued an emergency reserve release order since its establishment in 1974, and it is the largest in history. EU warns that conflict could push EU inflation above 3%. The EU has warned that if the war in the Middle East keeps Brent crude oil prices around $100 per barrel and gasoline prices remain high for an extended period, inflation in the EU could exceed 3% this year. In this scenario, economic growth in 2026 will also be impacted. According to sources, EU Economic Affairs Commissioner Dan Burrowsky told EU finance ministers this week that economic growth would be 0.4 percentage points lower than the 1.4% forecast at the end of last year. In addition to oil prices, the scenario assumes that natural gas prices in Europe will remain around 75 euros per megawatt-hour for the rest of the year. This would mean an inflation rate 0.7-1 percentage points higher than the previously predicted 2.1% for 2026. If inflation rises significantly, the European Central Bank may be forced to raise interest rates to address the situation. These sources said the commissioner also warned that the conflict's impact on financial markets, trade, and supply chains could have more negative effects on the economy. [Individual Stock News] Gurman: Apple Inc. (AAPL.US) is ready to launch a foldable iPhone with an iPad-like layout. Tech journalist Gurman wrote that Apple Inc. will update the iOS operating system for the foldable iPhone set to be launched this fall, implementing a layout similar to that of an iPad for the first time. According to sources, this product will feature a built-in foldable display with a size equivalent to the iPad mini. It will also include an external screen similar in size to a small iPhone display. The internal display will use a widescreen format, unlike the narrow screen format of current foldable phones on the market. Sources indicate that this will be a key selling point. Apple Inc.'s design aims to enhance the viewing experience for watching videos on the device. Additionally, developers will be able to more easily redesign iPhone apps to make them closer to the user experience of iPad software. Trump to invoke emergency law to aid offshore oil producer Sable Corp. (SOC.US). President Trump is preparing to invoke Cold War-era powers to restore offshore oil production off the Southern California coast. This is a long-shot attempt aimed at alleviating the global oil supply shortage caused by the Iran war. According to a knowledgeable source, Trump is set to invoke the Defense Production Act to streamline the approval process for Houston-based Sable Offshore Corp.'s offshore platforms in California. The company plans to restart large-scale production at a series of offshore platforms in California. Trump faces immense political pressure to address the rising fuel prices issue before the midterm elections in November. The outcome of the midterm elections will largely depend on Americans' attitudes toward living costs. Meta (META.US) unveils four internally customized chips for artificial intelligence. Meta announced on Wednesday four internally customized chips designed for AI-related tasks, as part of the company's large-scale data center expansion plan. The first new chip, MTIA 300, has already been deployed in recent weeks to help train smaller AI models that support Meta's core ranking and recommendation tasks. The upcoming MTIA 400, MTIA 450, and MTIA 500 chips are designed to handle more cutting-edge reasoning tasks related to generative artificial intelligence, such as generating images and videos based on user text prompts.