Global Stock Market

Wall Street closed modestly higher by the evening of February 18, 2026, as investors balanced strong corporate earnings and a revival in merger activity against lingering concerns over the rising costs of artificial intelligence. The rebound was led by technology stocks, helping markets recover from recent pullbacks and stabilizing sentiment …

The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed roughly 300 points, or 0.65%, on Wednesday, marking the third consecutive session of gains as investors stepped back into equities following last week’s AI-driven selloff. The S&P 500 rose 0.6% and the Nasdaq Composite gained about 0.5%, led by semiconductor stocks and beaten-down mega-cap …

U.S. stock index futures traded higher on Wednesday, as investors positioned themselves ahead of the release of minutes from the Federal Reserve’s latest policy meeting and a new round of quarterly corporate earnings. At 05:15 ET (10:15 GMT), Dow Jones futures climbed 260 points, or 0.5%, S&P 500 futures advanced …

European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde is planning to step down from her role ahead of schedule, potentially before the end of her term in October 2027, in a move that would allow French President Emmanuel Macron to influence the selection of her successor, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday. …

Minutes from the U.S. Federal Reserve’s January 16–17 policy meeting, due for release at 2:00 p.m. EST on Wednesday, are expected to shed further light on why policymakers opted to keep interest rates unchanged last month and what conditions may be required to justify future rate cuts. At its January …

Shares of Nvidia and Meta Platforms moved higher in premarket trading on Wednesday after the companies announced a multiyear strategic partnership aimed at significantly expanding Meta’s artificial intelligence infrastructure using Nvidia’s advanced technologies. Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) stock rose 1.6% in premarket trade, while Meta Platforms (NASDAQ: META) gained around 1%, …

European equity markets edged higher on Wednesday, supported by a steady stream of encouraging corporate earnings and fresh data showing a sharp slowdown in U.K. inflation, which reinforced expectations of an interest rate cut by the Bank of England. By 03:15 ET (08:15 GMT), Germany’s DAX rose 0.7%, France’s CAC …

The Dow Jones Industrial on Tuesday as investors returned from the Presidents’ Day holiday. Technology shares continued to struggle, with concerns that AI tools could reduce demand for traditional software weighing on market sentiment. The S&P 500 declined roughly 0.5%, while the Nasdaq led losses, dropping about 0.8% as software …

The race to succeed Christine Lagarde as president of the European Central Bank is no longer a distant institutional discussion. It has become a live political question shaped as much by when a decision is made as by who eventually gets the job.Lagarde’s single, non-renewable eight-year term, which began on …

The U.S. Federal Reserve could implement multiple interest rate cuts this year if inflation continues its downward trend toward the central bank’s 2% target, according to Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee. Recent data showing cooler consumer prices in January may not fully capture underlying price pressures, particularly in the services …