Live Nasdaq Composite: Markets Take Breather After Impressive Q2 Showing on Easing Oil Outlook

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Citi's Bearish Call

52 minutes ago

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Citi is warning of building bearish pressure on the Nasdaq, noting elevated long positioning that leaves the index vulnerable to a deeper pullback even as investors rotate into small-cap stocks. The firm also flagged fragile sentiment in Europe and mixed positioning across Asia, with bullish bets building in South Korea while heavy bearish positioning in Hong Kong raises the risk of a short squeeze.

This article will be updated throughout the day, so check back often for more daily updates. 

U.S. stock futures are little changed Tuesday as oil trades above $70 a barrel amid lingering uncertainty around U.S.-Iran talks underway in Qatar, with markets settling into a quiet holding pattern heading into the final session of the quarter. Zoom out, though, and the bigger picture tells a far more striking story. The Nasdaq Composite is on track to close out a roughly 20% quarterly gain, its strongest quarter since 2020, while the S&P 500 has climbed 14% and the Dow has added 13% in its best quarterly showing since late 2022. Despite the volatility that rattled markets in recent weeks, Wall Street appears set to lock in a powerful finish to both the quarter and the first half of the year.

Morgan Stanley slashed its oil price forecasts for the next 18 months, the second downward revision in two weeks, as the bank expects the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz to accelerate a fresh supply glut. The combination of returning Middle East barrels, robust U.S. exports, and still-soft Chinese crude demand is set to bring the market full circle into oversupply territory in the coming months, according to the bank’s analysts. Morgan Stanley now sees Brent averaging $75 per barrel in Q3, a steep $15 cut from its prior forecast.

Here’s a look at where things stand as of pre-morning trading:

Dow Futures: 52,548 Down 0.05%
Nasdaq 100 Futures: 30,018.25 Down 0.11%
S&P 500: 7,498 Down 0.03%

Market Movers

Morgan Stanley raised its price target on Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL | GOOGL Price Prediction) to $415 from $375, adding to a string of bullish calls for a stock that has been one of the market’s standout performers this year.

SK Hynix is reportedly filing for a Nasdaq listing, advancing plans first reported last month and positioning the South Korean memory giant to join the growing list of chip names tapping U.S. capital markets.

Gold is heading toward its worst quarter since 2013, on track for a 13% quarterly decline as expectations build for higher U.S. interest rates and markets price in multiple Fed hikes this year. Analysts point to a stronger dollar, easing energy prices, and a higher-for-longer rate environment as the forces keeping pressure on the metal.

Bank of America flagged that Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) is raising prices 20% on select AWS GPU reservation workloads effective July 1, following a 15% increase back in January. The firm expects the price hikes to add one to two percentage points to second-half AWS growth, reinforcing its confidence in further acceleration for the cloud business.

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