This morning, the Indian military suddenly attacked nine targets in Pakistan and the Kashmir region, with at least 8 people killed and 25 injured. Bloomberg quoted Pakistan's Defense Minister Asif as saying that intense cross-border fighting occurred, with Pakistan claiming to have shot down five Indian aircraft and detained some Indian soldiers.
The latest news indicates that Pakistan has closed its airspace for 48 hours. Pakistani Prime Minister Sharif criticized India's actions as a "war act" and stated that Pakistan has the full right to respond strongly to India's war actions, bringing new geopolitical pressure.
Sino-US Trade Talks to Begin, Focusing on Next Round of Tariffs
On the other hand, the Chinese official confirmed this morning that He Lifeng, a member of the CPC Central Political Bureau and Vice Premier of the State Council, will visit Switzerland from May 9 to 12 to meet with US Treasury Secretary Becent and launch a new round of Sino-US economic and trade consultations.
The Chinese Ministry of Commerce emphasized that the dialogue should be conducted on the principles of mutual respect, equal consultation, and mutual benefit. The spokesperson quoted a Chinese saying, "Listen to their words and observe their actions," stressing that if the US side conducts sincere consultations and corrects unilateral measures, China is willing to actively seek solutions. However, they also emphasized that if the US side continues to be tough and hesitant, any agreement that sacrifices China's interests will be rejected.
If this consultation yields positive progress, it could stabilize market confidence; conversely, if the talks break down or friction escalates, it may intensify global investors' risk aversion.
US Stocks Slightly Pullback, Market Sentiment Cautious
Besides the latest geopolitical risks and Sino-US negotiations, the US Federal Reserve (Fed) has also begun its two-day policy meeting (expected to be announced at 2 pm Taiwan time on the 8th). The market has turned to wait-and-see mode with short-term profit-taking, and the latest performance of the four major US stock indices is as follows:
- Dow Jones Industrial Average down 389.83 points or 0.95%, closing at 40,829 points
- S&P 500 Index down 43.47 points or 0.77%, closing at 5,606.91 points
- Nasdaq Index down 154.58 points or 0.87%, closing at 17,689.66 points
- Philadelphia Semiconductor Index down 44.98 points, or 1.03%, closing at 4,311.20 points
Fedwatch prediction data shows a 98.2% probability that the Fed will keep interest rates unchanged this month.
Cryptocurrency Prices Rebound, Bitcoin Breaks Through $97,000
Perhaps due to geopolitical risk considerations, Bitcoin broke through $97,500 at the time of writing, with a near 24-hour increase of nearly 3%, showing a countertrend upward trend in the cryptocurrency market
- ETH: Currently at $1,837.59, up 1.41%
- XRP: At $2.16, up 1.88%
- BNB: At $604.84, up 0.96%
- SOL: At $148.59, up 1.83%
Today's market is doubly influenced by geopolitical security and international trade negotiations, with short-term financial assets experiencing increased volatility. Investors need to closely monitor the developments of the India-Pakistan conflict and the subsequent Sino-US economic dialogue, which will dictate the market direction in the coming days.
