Market UpdatesMar 18, 20262 Min
Global market wrap: Asian stocks rally, US futures edge higher ahead of Fed decision, oil falls on supply relief
Asian shares rose on Wednesday as oil prices paused after recent gains. Investors are now focused on the upcoming Federal Reserve meeting today for signals on how policymakers will balance growth and inflation risks amid tensions in the Middle East.
We are back with quick updates about global stock markets and major developments across some of the top companies worldwide.
Most Asian stock markets rose on Wednesday, with gains in technology stocks lifting shares in South Korea and Japan as investors awaited the Federal Reserve policy decision due later in the day. US stock index futures also edged higher during Asian hours after major indexes closed marginally higher overnight.
South Korea’s Kospi led Asian gains, rising over 4% in early trade. As of 06:30 a.m. GMT, the index extended gains to trade 5.17% higher to 5,925. Japan’s Nikkei 225 jumped 2.7% to 55,239.Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index had gained 0.8% as of 06:30 a.m. GMT, at 26,083
Stocks in Australia closed higher on Wednesday, supported by gains in IT, utilities and A-REITs sectors. At the close of the session, the S&P/ASX 200 was up by 0.3%, at 8640.
US stock index futures edged higher after a modest rise on Wall Street, as investors awaited the Federal Reserve interest rate decision and tracked developments in the Middle East conflict. Markets expect the Federal Reserve to keep interest rates unchanged at 3.5% to 3.75% at its meeting on Wednesday.
As of 06:30 a.m. GMT, S&P 500 futures rose 0.2% to 6,716, while Nasdaq 100 futures gained 0.5% to 24,780. Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were up 0.5% at 47,598 points.
Meanwhile, oil prices fell more than $2 per barrel on Wednesday as a deal between Iraq and Kurdish authorities to resume exports through Turkey’s Ceyhan port eased supply concerns. After rising more than 3% on Tuesday, March 17, Brent futures fell to $101.16 a barrel by 04:29 GMT on Wednesday. US West Texas Intermediate crude dropped 3.1% to $93.22.
Iraq’s oil minister Hayan Abdel-Ghani said flows through Ceyhan were expected to resume soon, with initial volumes of at least 1,00,000 barrels per day. The news provided some relief to the market.
Here’s a look at some of the important developments across the global markets:
Amazon CEO doubles AWS outlook, says AI could lift revenue to $600 billion by 2036
Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said artificial intelligence (AI) could help the company’s cloud unit, Amazon Web Services (AWS), reach $600 billion in annual revenue by 2036, doubling his earlier projection.
Speaking at an internal all-hands meeting, Jassy said he had previously estimated AWS could become a $300 billion annual revenue business within a decade. However, he noted that developments in AI could push that figure to at least twice the earlier estimate, reported Reuters.
AWS reported $128.7 billion in revenue in 2025, marking a 19% increase from the previous year. Jassy’s revised outlook implies an average annual growth rate of about 17% over the next 10 years.
Nvidia restarts AI chip production after US approvals, sees fresh china Orders
Nvidia said it is restarting production of its H200 AI chips after securing approvals from the US government and receiving orders from customers in China. The company had earlier asked partners to pause manufacturing due to uncertainty around regulatory clearances. That position has shifted in recent weeks, with fresh approvals and demand prompting a restart. CEO Jensen Huang said, “We have received purchase orders, and we’re in the process of restarting our manufacturing.” Huang added, “That’s new news for all of you, and it’s different than it was two weeks ago or three weeks ago, but that’s our condition today, and our supply chain is getting fired up.”
Dell reduces headcount by 11,000 in fiscal 2026, job cuts continue for third year
Dell has reduced its workforce by about 10%, or around 11,000 employees, in fiscal 2026, signalling slower external hiring as it focuses on cost control. The company reported around 97,000 employees as of January 31, 2026, down from about 1,08,000 a year earlier, according to its annual report. The decline includes both attrition and layoffs and marks the third consecutive year of a 10% reduction. Dell’s workforce has fallen by about 36,000 employees since February 2023, a 27% drop over three years.
Concerns over AI-led disruption have grown across Silicon Valley. This year, Amazon has cut 16,000 jobs, Jack Dorsey’s firm Block Inc. has reduced its workforce by half, and Atlassian has laid off about 4,000 employees, or about 10% of its staff. Meta Platforms is also reported to be preparing job cuts of 20% or more.
Nissan joins Toyota, Honda in exporting US-made cars to Japan
Nissan will begin exporting US-built vehicles to Japan, joining Toyota and Honda after changes to import rules under a trade deal with the administration of Donald Trump. It will start by importing the Nissan Murano, built in Tennessee, to Japan early next year.
The move follows regulatory changes that make it easier for automakers to import vehicles from the US to Japan.
Tesla chips to be produced by Samsung from late 2027 at Texas plant
Samsung Electronics plans to begin volume production of chips for Elon Musk’s Tesla at its Texas facility in the second half of 2027. The timeline was shared by Han Jin-man, President and Head of Samsung’s foundry business, during a shareholders’ meeting.
