Wall Street set gold, silver, and Bitcoin (BTC) losses aside to kick off February, with the Dow tacking on 515 points, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq settled firmly higher as well. Traders are keeping a close eye on the artificial intelligence sector, as rumors fly that Nvidia (NVDA) now has concerns about plans to invest $100 billion into OpenAI. Earnings season is also in focus, with plenty of big name reports coming up this week. Meanwhile, Wall Street’s “fear gauge,” the Cboe Volatility Index (VIX), fell sharply back below 17 after its largest monthly gain since February 2025.
Oil prices slumped on Monday, with cooling U.S.-Iran tensions easing supply concerns, and added pressure coming from a stronger U.S. dollar and milder weather predictions.March-dated West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude shed $3.51, or a whopping 5.3%, to at $61.70 a barrel.
Gold prices extended last week’s steep losses that followed Kevin Warsh’s nomination to Federal Reserve chair. Plus, the CME Group’s higher margin requirements went into effect after the close. February-dated gold futures dropped 1.6% to settle at $4,666 per ounce.
