Auto-correct for the Markets | Calamatta Cuschieri

US markets entered into correction territory following continued volatile trading as the Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 1,032 points or 4.2% to 23,860. A correction is defined as a 10% drop from a recent peak such as that seen on 26th January, 2018. The most influential component affecting the Dow was Boeing Co., which led losses. The S&P 500 also declined through the 2,600 mark however both indexes are within their 200-day moving averages.

European stocks dropped on Thursday after opening slightly down but then moving lower in the afternoon, taking their cues from a selloff on Wall Street as well as a plunge in oil prices that weighed on shares of the region’s major energy companies. The Stoxx Europe 600 index SXXP, -0.45%  fell 1.6% to close at 374.03, partly erasing a 2% rally from Wednesday, when the benchmark broke a string of seven straight declines.

Nvidia emerges victorious

Shares of Nvidia Corp. soared 11% to $241.42 in after hours trading, following a 4.9% decline during the regular session after the chipmaker’s quarterly results and outlook roared past Wall Street estimates, and investors appeared unconcerned that auto-chip sales missed analyst targets for another quarter. Nvidia also said it expects to return another $1.25 billion to shareholders in the coming year through share buybacks and dividends, after returning $909 million in share repurchases and $341 million in dividends over the past year.

The company reported fourth-quarter net income of $1.12 billion, or $1.78 a share, compared with $655 million, or 99 cents a share, in the year-ago period. Adjusted earnings were $1.72 a share. Revenue rose to $2.91 billion from $2.17 billion in the year-ago period. Wall Street had expected revenue of $2.68 billion. Nvidia had predicted revenue of $2.6 billion to $2.7 billion. Estimize expected revenue of $2.74 billion.

Google fined by India

Global tech giant, Google has been fined 1.36bn rupees (£15.2m; $21.2m) by India's competition regulator for abusing its dominance in the country. The Competition Commission of India found that users searching flight details were directed to Google’s own flight search page, disadvantaging rival businesses through the “search bias”, the regulator said.

The ruling was prompted by a complaint filed in 2012 by Indian matchmaking website, Bharat Matrimony and a consumer protection group. In its 190-page report, the CCI found that the company had abused its dominant position, causing harm to both its competitors and Google users. The fine equates to about 5% of Google's average annual revenues in India - though the punishment will not hit the tech giant too hard. This penalty is small change compared to the 2.4bn Euros it was forced to pay by the European Commission in 2017 for promoting its own shipping service in search results.

Disclaimer:

This article was issued by Peter Petrov, Junior Trader at Calamatta Cuschieri. For more information visit, www.cc.com.mt. The information, view and opinions provided in this article is being provided solely for educational and informational purposes and should not be construed as investment advice, advice concerning particular investments or investment decisions, or tax or legal advice. Calamatta Cuschieri Investment Services Ltd has not verified and consequently neither warrants the accuracy nor the veracity of any information, views or opinions appearing on this website.