Markets spent the week in a risk-off tug-of-war where blockbuster AI results (Nvidia beat-and-raise, OpenAI’s mega-funding) still couldn’t lift tech as tariff whiplash, valuation pressure, and inflation/oil fears kept growth stocks pinned. Money rotated hard into defense, with utilities/staples leading and healthcare breaking out, while single-stock moves were violent as AI disruption narratives kept reshuffling winners and losers. The weekend raised the stakes again: the U.S. and Israel bombed Iran, putting geopolitics, energy, and policy volatility at the center of next week.

Monday 🩸: U.S. stocks sold off hard as Trump’s new 15% global tariff push reignited trade uncertainty right after the Supreme Court tariff ruling fallout, while a Northeast blizzard and State of the Union risk added to the risk-off mood. Tech, software, payments, and financials were hit by a viral “AI job-loss doom” narrative and fresh Claude-driven disruption fears, amplifying last week’s pressure on legacy cyber and enterprise names. Underneath the chaos, single-stock action stayed wild with PayPal bouncing on buyout chatter, Eli Lilly rising on obesity-drug strength, and Novo Nordisk sinking after trial disappointment.

Tuesday 🤖: Markets held steady as software stocks bounced and everyone braced for Nvidia's earnings the next day. Meta handed AMD a massive multi-year GPU deal, Axon surged 15% on a blowout quarter, Workday cratered 8% on weak guidance, and Paramount lobbed a $112B counterbid at Netflix for Warner Bros., giving the streaming giant four days to sweeten or walk. Blue Owl gating a $1.6B private credit fund is rattling the entire $1.8T sector, and Jamie Dimon spent his Tuesday asking whether society is ready for AI to wipe out 2 million trucking jobs overnight.

Wednesday 📈: Markets climbed to an 11-day high before Nvidia delivered its 14th consecutive earnings beat. $68B in revenue. Guidance up to $79.56B next quarter. The stock barely flinched after hours, because at this point the bar just keeps rising. Trump's State of the Union AI energy pledge the night before moved toward reality, with Amazon, Google, Meta, Microsoft, xAI, Oracle, and OpenAI set to sign a "bring your own power" agreement at the White House on March 4. Salesforce, Snowflake, and Zoom all beat estimates. All fell after hours. This market punishes everything that isn't named Nvidia. Including Nvidia.

Thursday 😵: Nvidia delivered a blockbuster quarter, yet the stock dropped as investors demanded a clearer endgame for AI and punished anything short of “world-changing” guidance. Risk sentiment stayed fragile as tariff uncertainty, geopolitics, and a massive Stellantis loss fed a broader de-risking move across tech, software, and financials. After-hours action split sharply: Dell and Block surged on strong execution and AI-linked operating leverage, while the market kept rotating away from names exposed to AI-disruption fears.

Friday 🧯: Stocks closed out the week and month in risk-off mode, with Nvidia’s latest beat-and-raise and OpenAI’s $110B funding round (at a $730B valuation) failing to reignite AI momentum. Hotter-than-expected producer prices plus rising oil on renewed U.S.-Iran tension kept inflation and geopolitical risk front-and-center, pressuring growth names. Capital kept rotating into defense, with utilities and staples already extended and healthcare breaking to fresh highs as institutions prioritized protection over upside.

Saturday morning, the U.S. military launched attacks on Iran in collaboration with Israel, according to AP news. President Trump made a speech Saturday morning calling for the people to overthrow the regime that has ruled there since the 1970s. The attack culminated after a breakdown in nuclear disarmament talks. Trump said the regime recently killed tens of thousands of protestors, and attempted to rebuild its nuclear program that the U.S. bombed over the summer.

The bombing killed the supreme leader of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iranian media confirmed on Saturday. Three U.S. soldiers have died in the operation, now in its second day as the U.S. and Israel struck thousands of targets across Iran, and Iran fired missiles at countries throughout the gulf.

Here are the closing prices: 

Need a concise summary of what's going on this week? Look no further. Here’s a rundown of this week’s earnings and economic data.

Above is a quick summary. Check out the full Stocktwits earnings calendar for the other names reporting this week.

In addition to the above, check out this week's complete list of economic releases.

🆘 Join IBD’s experts for a 3-hour virtual workshop to learn what goes into a winning trade*

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who led the Islamic Republic since 1989, is dead at 86

⚠ OpenAI’s Sam Altman Says Department Of War Blacklisting Anthropic Sets ‘Extremely Scary Precedent’ Amid Pentagon Deal

Trump Calls US Strike On Iran ‘Effective’ After Khamenei’s Death, Crypto Markets Revive

😄 Senator Calls For Ban On Insider Trading After US Strike On Iran Generated $1.2 Million

🤖 AI Doesn’t Reduce Work—It Intensifies It

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