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The World in a Week: How Major Markets Moved
U.S. | Stocks fell as AI disruption concerns hit tech, with Nasdaq down 1.77% and S&P 500 off 1.17%. Stronger than expected jobs data at 130,000 and unemployment at 4.3% reduced near term rate cut hopes. CPI cooled to 2.4%, retail sales were flat, and Treasury yields declined on equity weakness.
Europe | STOXX 600 was flat as investors balanced solid U.S. data with AI related concerns. Eurozone GDP grew 0.3% in Q4 and employment rose 0.2%. UK GDP expanded 0.1%, keeping growth modest but positive.
Japan | Nikkei surged after the ruling LDP secured a strong election win, supporting fiscal expansion expectations. The yen strengthened to 153 per dollar and bond yields stayed near 1.23%. Real wages fell 0.1%.
China | CSI 300 rose 0.39% ahead of Lunar New Year. Inflation eased to 0.2% and producer prices fell 1.4%, extending deflation. The central bank signaled further easing as property price declines slowed.
India | Nifty 50 fell amid global tech weakness, while Smallcaps gained 0.8%. IT dropped 8.2%, dragging the market. India VIX rose 11.3%, reflecting higher volatility.
Commodities | Gold stayed firm on lower yields and risk aversion. Oil remained range bound as growth concerns offset supply discipline.
Stock market closing data for the week of Feb 9 to Feb 13, 2026
Index information: STOXX 600 (tracks 600 large, mid- & small-cap EU firms), DAX (top 40 German blue chips), CAC 40 (leading French stocks), Nikkei 225 (225 top Japanese stocks), CSI 300 & SSEC (mainland China A-shares), and Hang Seng (large-cap Hong Kong-listed firms). For these indices, we track 1-week returns to capture how global sentiment is shifting.
News Summaries
Airbnb Shares Rise 9.5% on Strong Demand and Higher 2026 Revenue Outlook
Airbnb shares rose after the company reported stronger-than-expected bookings and issued upbeat guidance for 2026.
Revenue for the March quarter is expected between $2.59 billion and $2.63 billion, above the $2.54 billion analysts were expecting. For 2026, Airbnb sees revenue growth of at least low double digits, higher than the 10% growth it reported in 2025.
The key driver was demand. Nights and seats booked grew 9.8% to 121.9 million in the fourth quarter. Flexible payment options such as Reserve Now, Pay Later and more generous cancellation policies helped lift bookings.
Growth was strongest in newer international markets. First time bookers in India rose more than 60%, alongside strong growth in Brazil and Japan.
Margins are expected to stay around 35% as the company continues to invest in marketing, product and AI tools to improve search and customer support.
Apple Gains 8% in China as Overall Smartphone Market Falls 23%
Apple was the only major smartphone brand to report growth in China in January, according to Counterpoint Research.
China’s overall smartphone market declined 23% year on year, as reduced subsidies and a shift in Lunar New Year timing hurt sales. Most local brands, including Huawei and Xiaomi, saw sharp declines.
Apple’s iPhone 17 lineup helped drive 8% sales growth, lifting its market share to around 20%, tied with Huawei. The base version of the iPhone 17 now qualifies for government subsidies, improving its value appeal and supporting a 9% month on month sales increase.
Counterpoint noted that subdued consumer sentiment and lower subsidies weighed on competitors, especially in lower priced segments.
With limited discounts so far on the iPhone 17 series, Apple still has room for pricing adjustments if needed. For now, it stands out as the only major brand gaining share in a weak market.
EssilorLuxottica Sales Jump 18% as AI Glasses Drive Demand
EssilorLuxottica reported an 18% rise in fourth quarter sales to €7.6 billion, well above the 11% growth analysts were expecting. Shares rose as much as 10% in Milan following the results.
The main driver was demand for AI powered glasses. The company sold more than 7 million pairs of Ray Ban Meta and Oakley smart glasses in 2025, strengthening its lead in wearable technology through its partnership with Meta.
Growth was broad based. North America sales rose 24% in the quarter, while Europe and Asia each grew more than 10% on a constant currency basis.
Margins, however, came under pressure. Full year adjusted operating margin was 16%, down 70 basis points from 2024, as tariffs and the rapid scale up of AI glasses weighed on profitability. Fourth quarter Ebit margin also missed expectations.
Management said revenue growth should remain solid over the next five years, with profit growth broadly aligned, as production capacity expands to meet strong demand for AI eyewear.
Private Markets Pulse | OpenAI Enters Pentagon Drone Swarm Challenge
OpenAI has partnered with two defense technology firms competing in a $100 million Pentagon prize challenge to build voice controlled drone swarming software. The six month competition aims to develop systems that can command autonomous drone swarms across air and sea.
OpenAI’s role is limited to translating battlefield voice commands into digital instructions. It will not handle weapons integration, targeting, or direct drone control. Only its open source model would be used, not its most advanced systems.
One submission is led by Applied Intuition, alongside Sierra Nevada Corporation and Noda AI. OpenAI’s software appears within the mission control layer, positioned between the human operator and the drone orchestration system.
The move signals a deeper but measured expansion of OpenAI’s defense involvement. The Pentagon recently announced that ChatGPT will be made available to 3 million Defense Department personnel.
The project has raised concerns inside and outside the industry about the risks of using generative AI in battlefield environments, especially around bias, hallucinations, and human oversight.
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Explore the OpenAI opportunity within the Private Markets section on the Vested platform.
