Biotechnology giant Moderna recently disclosed that the company expects to recognize an expense of up to $950 million in its financial statements for the first quarter of 2026.

Goldman Sachs believes that the rapid rise in real interest rates has exerted more direct pressure on the US stock market, with rate-sensitive sectors such as small-cap and financial stocks being particularly affected. On the liquidity front, Goldman Sachs estimates that pension funds may sell around $3.3 billions in equities at the end of the month and quarter, and that CTAs may sell about $530 million worth of Russell 2000 index futures in the coming week. For the market, unless the issues of oil and interest rates are resolved, the AI narrative is "almost irrelevant."

On Wednesday, the yen strengthened against the US dollar, with the USD/JPY rate falling below the 157 mark, as repeated warnings from the Japanese government regarding exchange rates and end-of-quarter capital flows provided support for the yen.