We use essential cookies and third-party cookies for content.

The National Times - Stocks mostly rise, oil jumps tracking AI and Iran

Stocks mostly rise, oil jumps tracking AI and Iran

ECONOMY 27.02.2026
Stocks mostly rise, oil jumps tracking AI and Iran
Stocks mostly rise, oil jumps tracking AI and Iran / Photo: © AFP

Stock markets mostly rose Friday with traders relieved by the tech sector holding firm despite concerns over massive AI investments.

Change text size:

Indices across Asia and Europe were mainly in the green despite Wall Street's Nasdaq losing more than one percent Thursday.

"European markets continue to show their resilience, with indices throughout the region continuing to gain ground in the face of US tech-led losses," noted Joshua Mahony, chief market analyst at Scope Markets.

Nvidia's share price slumped 5.5 percent Thursday despite the chip giant announcing that its quarterly profits more than doubled to $43 billion.

"Market expectations were already very elevated and part of the positive results had been priced in," said City Index analyst Julian Pineda.

"There are also concerns related to stretched valuations and Nvidia's dependence on capital spending by large technology companies investing in AI infrastructure.

"If the pace of AI investment moderates due to cost optimisation efforts, it could indirectly affect Nvidia's growth outlook," Pineda added.

Elsewhere on Friday, oil prices jumped almost two percent as Iran said that in order to reach a deal, the United States will have to drop its "excessive demands", tempering the optimism expressed after talks seen as a last-ditch bid to avert war.

The Oman-mediated talks follow repeated threats from President Donald Trump to strike Iran, and with the United States conducting its biggest military build-up in the region in decades.

Trump on February 19 gave Iran 15 days to reach a deal, and while Iran has insisted the discussions focus solely on its nuclear programme, the US wants Tehran's missile programme and its support for militant groups curtailed.

The Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday that Trump's negotiating team would demand that Iran dismantle its three main nuclear sites and hand over all its remaining enriched uranium to the United States.

"For oil prices, we have seen significant fluctuations as traders weigh up the likeliness of a conflict," said Mahony.

- Key figures at around 1100 GMT -

London - FTSE 100: UP 0.4 percent at 10,886.02 points

Paris - CAC 40: DOWN 0.2 percent at 8,602.58

Frankfurt - DAX: FLAT at 25,292.49

Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 0.2 percent at 58,850.27 (close)

Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: UP 1.0 percent at 26,630.54 (close)

Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.4 percent at 4,162.88 (close)

New York - Dow: FLAT at 49,499.20 (close)

Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1801 from $1.1799 on Thursday

Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3474 from $1.3489

Dollar/yen: DOWN at 156.00 yen from 156.11 yen

Euro/pound: UP at 87.58 pence from 87.47 pence

Brent North Sea Crude: UP 1.8 percent at $72.11 per barrel

West Texas Intermediate: UP 1.9 percent at $66.46 per barrel

M.A.Walters--TNT

Featured

The "Everlasting Battery" Inside Your Joints:UConn Professor's Self-Powered Healing Material just Got Acquired

A material that turns your own movement into medicine has just landed a corporate home. PetVivo Holdings (OTCQX: PETV), a veterinary biotech and biomedical device company focused on treating osteoarthritis in dogs and horses, has acquired PiezoBioMembrane (PBM) — a startup built around a biodegradable implant that generates electricity from the everyday force of a joint in motion, and uses that charge to help regrow cartilage from the inside out. The material is the invention of Thanh Nguyen, a professor of mechanical engineering in UConn's College of Engineering, who founded PBM in 2021 to advance new implementation methods for his work with piezoelectric materials — substances that convert mechanical force into electrical energy. These materials are typically ceramics: hard, brittle, and poorly suited for medical use. But Nguyen's lab developed new forms that are so , flexible, and biodegradable, breaking down naturally within the body over time. wound healing, The materials have already shown strong potential across a range of medical applications, including tissue regeneration, implanted force sensors, and targeted drug delivery in tumor treatment. How It Works biodegradable ultrasound for In the case of arthritis, Nguyen explains, the piezoelectric materials function as an off-the-shelf product that can be implanted or injected directly into the ailing joint — with no drugs, chemicals, or cells required. The everyday force exerted on the joint generates a small electrical charge, which helps regrow healthy cartilage, mimicking the body's natural use of electricity to regenerate tissue. "The body can be electrically stimulated to regrow," Nguyen says. PBM's materials "act like a battery — an everlasting battery that works whenever there is a force applied, and vanishes safely inside the body over time." PetVivo's Vision for the Acquisition PetVivo Holdings CEO John Lai expressed enthusiasm for the merger's potential to improve the lives of companion animals globally. "PBM has developed a compelling functional biomaterials platform with the potential to support the development of multiple medical device and therapeutic product lines across both human and animal health markets," Lai said in a press release. "By combining PBM's scientific innovation with PetVivo's product development capabilities, commercialization experience, regulatory expertise, and public company infrastructure, we believe we can accelerate theadvancement of technologies that may serve as the foundation for numerous future products and strategic opportunities." For Nguyen, the deal is a chance to scale technology that could eventually benefit both animals and people. "PetVivo is an animal health company, but they do have a big passion: pushing the technology towards clinical trials for human use," Nguyen says. "That aligned perfectly with my passion for developing technology that has an impact on human life. That is why I am excited about this merger, which facilitates my passion." A Track Record of Innovation Nguyen's research sits at the intersection of medicine, micro/nanotechnology, and biomaterials. His inventions have earned him publications in prominent scientific journals and media coverage from outlets including NPR. Nguyen founded PBM during the COVID-19 pandemic, a er realizing the material he had developed could be used to create an especially effective, biodegradable face mask — one where the mechanical force of breathing generated an electrical charge that provided an extra layer of protection against viruses. PBM is not Nguyen's only venture in the acquisition pipeline. His other startup, Single-Time Microneedles (STM), is also currently undergoing an acquisition process. STM has pioneered stable, efficient vaccine delivery technology in the form of an adhesive patch. shelfNguyen's focus on biodegradable materials has translated into a remarkably diverse range of medical applications. He has received five R01 grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) supporting research in cartilage regeneration, bone regeneration, HIV antibody delivery systems, and biodegradable ultrasound technology to boost the effectiveness of chemotherapy for brain cancer. "Whatever we are working on, we want to show that it works very well in vitro and in vivo," Nguyen says. "Then, when we are at the point of commercialization, we set up a startup or license the technology — or maybe team up with an industry partner." Thanh Nguyen is a professor of mechanical engineering in UConn's College of Engineering. (Courtesy of Thanh Nguyen

Octrado introduces its proprietary trading offering: "Your Skill. Our Capital"

Infrastructure, transparent rules and clear legal boundaries positioned as the core of the funded-account model

Could gas prices return to 2022 highs on US-Iran war?

European gas prices have more than doubled owing to the US-Iran war, just as Europe needs to replenish its reserves ahead of winter.

CapTLX Expands Institutional-Oriented Platform for Access to U.S. Capital Markets

CapTLX, the securities trading and investment platform operated by CHAINLION TECH LTD, today announced the continued expansion of its technology infrastructure for qualified investors and institutional market participants seeking structured access to U.S. equity and private capital markets.

Change text size: