Market News

• Prior -24.8K

• Unemployment rate: 6.7% vs 6.6% expected

• Prior 6.5%

• Full-time employment change: -108.4K vs +44.9k last month

• Part-time employment change: +24.5K vs -69.7K last month

• Participation rate: 64.9% vs 65.0% last month

• Average hourly wages (permanent, YoY): 4.2% vs 3.3% last month

This is an awful jobs report. The Canadian dollar is selling off across the board.

StatCan notes that "employment declines in February were recorded in services-producing industries (-56,000; -0.3%) and goods-producing industries (-28,000; -0.7%). The largest declines were in wholesale and retail trade (-18,000; -0.6%), and 'other services' such as personal and repair services (-14,000; -1.8%)."

• Trump on Iran: Going to be hitting them very hard over the next week
• Trump claimed Iran was "about to surrender" a day before the Supreme Leader vowed to fight
• How have interest rate expectations changed after this week's events?
• Why the US dollar is skyrocketing if rate hike bets increase for other central banks?
• Spain February final CPI +2.3% vs +2.3% y/y prelim
• France February final CPI +0.9% vs +1.0% y/y prelim
• UK January monthly GDP +0.0% vs +0.2% m/m expected
• FX option expiries for 13 March 10am New York cut
• What are the main events for today?

It's been a pretty volatile session despite the lack of market-moving news or data releases. The main mover was the US dollar as the greenback extended the gains to a 4-month high amid the unwinding of…

Trump reportedly told G7 leaders during a virtual summit on Wednesday that Iran was on the verge of a total military and political collapse. According to a report by Axios, which cited three officials from G7 countries briefed on the call, Trump expressed supreme confidence in the outcome of the ongoing conflict, stating that the Iranian regime was "about to surrender."

That stands in stark contrast to the real situation on the ground, where we continue to see daily strikes and disruption in the Strait of Hormuz. The report added that Trump’s remarks to the G7 leaders were characterized by his signature bravado and a refusal to set a specific timeline for ending the hostilities.

Just a day after Trump's remarks, the new Iran's Supreme…

• On US escorts in Strait of Hormuz: We would do it if we needed to
• Hopefully, things are going to go very well
• We're going to see what happens

Trump is clearly vowing to escalate the war further here which should keep the markets in defensive mode, especially heading into the weekend.

IC Markets Global – Asia Fundamental Forecast | 13 March 2026

What happened in the U.S. session?

Escalating geopolitical tensions, particularly the Iran conflict, which drove sharp gains in oil prices despite a 400 million barrel release from IEA reserves. European markets closed lower amid these developments, with the FTSE projected down 0.2%, DAX 1%, CAC 40 0.8%, and FTSE MIB 1.1%, reflecting broader risk-off sentiment; U.S. indices like the S&P 500 dipped 0.21% to 6,781 amid crude nearing $100.

What does it mean for the Asia Session?

Asian markets saw broad declines on Thursday due to oil surges from Gulf ship attacks, with tech ADRs slipping and Softbank weakening on PayPay IPO pricing below range; Japan’s gaming firms bucked the…

IC Markets Global – Asia Fundamental Forecast | 13 March 2026

What happened in the U.S. session?

Escalating geopolitical tensions, particularly the Iran conflict, which drove sharp gains in oil prices despite a 400 million barrel release from IEA reserves. European markets closed lower amid these developments, with the FTSE projected down 0.2%, DAX 1%, CAC 40 0.8%, and FTSE MIB 1.1%, reflecting broader risk-off sentiment; U.S. indices like the S&P 500 dipped 0.21% to 6,781 amid crude nearing $100.

What does it mean for the Asia Session?

Asian markets saw broad declines on Thursday due to oil surges from Gulf ship attacks, with tech ADRs slipping and Softbank weakening on PayPay IPO pricing below range; Japan’s gaming firms bucked the…

IC Markets Global – Europe Fundamental Forecast | 12 March 2026

What happened in the Asia session?

Asian markets opened volatily due to persistent Middle East-linked oil and inflation concerns, China’s subdued growth outlook from the NPC, and supportive Chinese data boosting AUD and metals, with oil prices easing, DXY mixed, AUDUSD gaining, and Treasuries under pressure from rising yields, shifting investor flows toward defensives.

What does it mean for the Europe & US sessions?

Traders should closely monitor key U.S. macroeconomic releases today, including Housing Starts for January and Initial Jobless Claims for the week ending March 7, alongside ongoing market reactions to yesterday’s steady February CPI inflation data at 2.4%…

US Markets Hit as War Continues – Nasdaq down 1.8%
US stock markets came under heavy selling pressure overnight as geopolitical tensions intensified in the Middle East after Iran signalled it would continue fighting and maintain the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a critical artery for global energy shipments. The escalation in tensions drove a broad risk-off move across financial markets, pushing the US Dollar higher, lifting Treasury yields, and sending oil prices sharply higher. On Wall Street, all three major indices finished firmly in the red. The Dow fell 1.56% to close at 46,677, while the S&P 500 dropped 1.52% to finish at 6,692. Technology stocks also struggled, with the Nasdaq Composite sliding 1.78% to end the session at…