US equity markets extended their steep declines to cap their worst three-day performance since 2022, with the Dow and S&P 500 registering their sharpest daily losses since 13 September 2022 - Dow tumbled -1,033.99-points or -2.6% to 38,703.27, with all 30 components settling in the red. Intel Corp (down -6.38%) was the worst Dow performer overnight. Apple Inc (down -4.82%) continued to slide after Warren Buffett’s investment vehicle Berkshire Hathaway Inc (down -3.34%) halved its stake in the technology giant and boosted its cash pile to a record high of US$277M, according its second-quarter financial results released on Saturday (3 August),
Markets have become increasingly concerned following last Friday’s (2 August)  non-farm payrolls report for July that the Federal Reserve may be moving too slow when it comes to interest rate cuts if it wants to avoid a recession. Indeed, some analysts are now calling for ‘emergency’ rate cuts from the Federal Reserve. Also a lot of talk around the unwinding of the Yen carry trade triggered by the Bank of Japan's (BoJ) unexpected rate hike on Wednesday last week (31 July),