Market Brief – 17 Feb 2026

In today’s episode of Market Brief – After Hours, US markets close mixed as investors rotate into financials while software stocks remain under pressure amid ongoing AI disruption concerns. The Dow edges up to 49,533, the S&P 500 finishes at 6,843, and the Nasdaq closes at 22,578, extending its recent stretch of weakness in high-multiple technology names including Salesforce, ServiceNow, Oracle and Palo Alto Networks.In Europe, the FTSE 100 hits a record high near 10,556 after UK unemployment rises to 5.2%, fuelling expectations of a Bank of England rate cut. The STOXX 600 advances 0.5%, while the DAX, CAC 40, FTSE MIB and SMI all post gains despite weaker German ZEW sentiment data.Commodities retreat sharply with Gold falling to $4,882 and Silver dropping to $73.33, while Brent crude slides toward $67 as geopolitical tensions ease. The episode also includes detailed Forex technical analysis across EUR/USD, GBP/USD, EUR/GBP, USD/JPY and USD/CAD, highlighting key moving averages, breakout levels and trend structure. Plus, major M&A headlines including ZIM Shipping, Masimo and Norwegian Cruise Line, alongside earnings reactions in General Mills and Genuine Parts. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.