Labor Day holiday, Fat decision

Tech giant Microsoft announced that it will open its first regional data center in Thailand.

The company said it will also build new cloud and AI infrastructure in Thailand, as well as provide AI skills opportunities for over 100,000 people

Microsoft said the data center region will expand the availability of its hyperscale cloud services, “facilitating enterprise-grade reliability, performance and compliance with data residency and privacy standards.”

— Lim Hui Jie

Oil prices have fallen for a third day in a row as US inventories rise and optimism for a ceasefire deal in the Middle East.

Brent futures fell 0.88% to $85.57 a barrel. barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate crude saw a bigger loss of 1.03% to $81.09 a barrel. barrel.

Reuters reported that U.S. crude inventories rose last week by 4.906 million barrels, while gasoline and distillate stocks fell, according to market sources citing American Petroleum Institute figures on Tuesday.

— Lim Hui Jie

The sudden strengthening of the yen on Monday was likely due to intervention by Japanese authorities, Reuters reported, citing money market data from the Bank of Japan.

Money market data revealed that the central bank’s projection of Wednesday’s money market conditions indicated a net inflow of funds of 7.56 trillion yen ($47.91 billion).

Reuters said this compared with an estimate of 2.05 billion to 2.30 billion yen from money market brokers that exclude intervention, adding that currency trades take two days to settle.

On Monday, the yen weakened to a 34-year low against the dollar, hitting 160.03, before strengthening to around 155 within hours.

South Korea posted a 13.8% increase in exports in April, up sharply from the 3.1% increase in March, according to preliminary estimates from the country’s customs service.

The increase also beat the 13.7% increase expected by economists polled by Reuters.

Imports into South Korea rose 5.4%, less than the 6.2% increase expected and a reversal from March’s 12.3% decline.

As such, the country’s trade balance narrowed to $1.53 billion, down from the $4.29 billion recorded in March.

— Lim Hui Jie

The outlook is starting to look bright for biotech stocks, according to some.

With markets now expecting the first rate cut to take place in September rather than June or July as previously thought, biotech stocks may start to perform well.

Biotech encompasses many different areas, but Citi has identified one with a $2.9 billion market — which it says is set for even more growth. According to Citi, the market for it is set to grow by mid-single digits over the next five years.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.

— Weizhen Tan

Only two European stocks have positively surprised markets in each of the past five quarters, according to analysis by CNBC Pro.

CNBC Pro screened for Stoxx 600 stocks that report EPS numbers and have analyst estimates available on FactSet.

One of the stocks stood out for several big share price jumps after quarterly earnings announcements. Most recently, the company beat earnings estimates by 6.1%, and shares rose more than 8% in the following session. Similarly, the stock rose 12.8% in a single session four quarters ago.

CNCB Pro subscribers can read more about the shares here.

– Ganesh Rao

Bitcoin continued its month-long slide to close April, falling 4% and at one point trading just below the $60,000 level.

The flagship cryptocurrency is in the process of ending the month down 15%, posting its first negative month in the last eight. It would be the worst month since November 2022 when FTX collapsed. That’s still a 43% increase in 2024.

Stocks whose performance is tied to the price of bitcoin tumbled with the cryptocurrency. Crypto exchange Coinbase fell 6%, while MicroStrategy lost 15%. The software company and self-described Bitcoin development company also reported a loss for the first quarter.

In the mining sector, Marathon Digital fell 10.5%, while Riot Platforms lost 8.5%. IREN and CleanSpark were each lower by 7%.

For more on what’s in store for bitcoin in the coming month, read our investment outlook here.

— Tanaya Machel

Consumer confidence hit its lowest level since mid-2022 in March as fears grew over employment and inflation, the Conference Board reported on Tuesday.

The board’s main index registered a reading of 97, below the downwardly revised 103.1 in March and missing the Dow Jones consensus estimate of 103.5. This was the lowest level for the index since July 2022, although board officials said their target for current conditions is still at a fairly healthy level, and the headline index has been in a “relatively tight range” for more than two years.

Still, there was concern about where things are headed. Respondents’ responses reflected that “increased price levels, particularly for food and gas, dominated consumer concerns, with politics and global conflict a distant second,” said Dana M. Peterson, the board’s chief economist.

-Jeff Cox

Total workers’ compensation costs rose more than expected in the first quarter, providing another sign that inflationary pressures are not abating.

The employment cost index rose 1.2% in the period, faster than the 0.9% in the fourth quarter of 2023 and higher than the Dow Jones estimate of 1%, the Labor Department reported on Tuesday. The index is viewed by Federal Reserve officials as a sign of underlying inflation.

On an annual basis, the index for civilian workers rose 4.2% after rising 4.8% for the same period in 2023.

-Jeff Cox