The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported January 2026 job openings in the JOLTS survey declined to 6.542 million, the lowest since September 2020, and 386,000 below the revised November 2025 level. Employers hired 5.293 million in December, while separations rose slightly. The job-to-unemployed ratio remained at 0.9, the lowest since early 2021, signaling tight labor markets are easing as vacancies fall below the unemployed.

Key declines in December were concentrated in professional and business services, retail, and finance and insurance; transportation and warehousing saw larger separations. Government job openings increased modestly. Active job separations and voluntary quits remained near pandemic lows, indicating weaker labor-force mobility.

Data also show a buildup of hiring pressure: announced layoffs in major firms more than doubled year-over-year in January, and consumers’ perceptions of difficulty finding work reached a 2021-level high. The closely watched nonfarm pay report next month will test whether the labor market continues to moderate. Note: The Fed’s January meeting kept rates unchanged, and officials said a weakening labor market would be a key factor in future policy decisions.

IQVIA (NYSE: IQV) fell 8.5% in response to a revised, weaker 2026 earnings forecast that missed Wall Street expectations. The company now projects adjusted EPS of $12.55 to $12.85, below the average estimate of $12.95. Fourth-quarter results remained strong: revenue of $4.36 billion and adjusted EPS of $3.42 per share.

The stock is volatile, with 10 moves greater than 5% in the past year, and is down 17% YTD, trading at $187.09, 23.4% below its 52-week high of $244.29. Second-quarter results had lifted shares 15.9% on better-than-expected EPS of $2.81 and revenue of $4.02 billion, with the Technology & Analytics Solutions division up 8.9%.

Bitcoin (BTC) tumbled below $70,000 on February 5, 2026, after a 45% decline in four months. The rout followed regulatory uncertainty after the Clarity Act did not pass, as well as a分流 of capital to AI and metals.

Supporting context: October 2024’s ATH of $126,000 set high expectations. Long-term holders see structural opportunity despite the short-term selloff.

Balaji Srinivasan: “I am more bullish as rules-based order collapses and code-based order rises; short-term price doesn’t matter.”

Samson Mow: “This drawdown feels unfair, but absolute scarcity will hit a limit and stop further declines.”

Bob Loukas: “Don’t wait for dips in BTC; if you’re paralyzed by a position, consider dumping non-essential tokens. Spot BTC remains deeply discounted.”

Jim Bianco: “The next leg won’t come from Boomer or TradFi adoption; focus on building an alternative financial system. BTC could reach $1M if this alternative takes hold.”

The CoinDesk 20 Index closed at 2,006.57, down 6.6% from Wednesday, April 1, 2026, at 4:00 p.m. ET, with no assets posting gains.

Leaders in the index were AAVE (-5.1%) and SOL (-5.2%). Laggers included XRP (-12.2%) and SUI (-9.5%).

The CoinDesk 20 is a broad-based composite tracking cryptocurrencies listed on multiple exchanges across various regions.

Novo Nordisk announced it will take legal and regulatory action against Hims & Hers after the telehealth firm plans to begin offering compounded copies of its FDA-approved Wegovy at $49 per month.

"The action by Hims & Hers is illegal mass compounding that poses a significant risk to patient safety," Novo Nordisk said in a statement.

"Novo Nordisk will take legal and regulatory action to protect patients, our intellectual property and the integrity of the U.S. gold-standard drug approval framework," the company added.

Novo Nordisk is the only company manufacturing Wegovy formulated with SNAC technology, which facilitates semaglutide oral absorption.

<category>Macro</category>

<title>Global Central Banks Diverge: Policy Outlook Through February 2026</title>

<content>

February 5, 2026 — Global central banks are splitting along policy lines, with key decisions across 10 developed markets:

- United States: The Federal Reserve left rates unchanged and priced one more 25 bps cut by July; potential rate reductions are favored by outgoing Chair nominee Kevin Warsh.

- United Kingdom: The Bank of England held rates after a narrow vote, signaling easing remains a live option; traders price nearly 50 bps of cuts by year-end.

- Norway: Norges Bank maintains a likely but not immediate path to further easing despite December core inflation reaching 3.1% y/y.

- Switzerland: The SNB keeps rates at 0% amid a weak Swiss franc and subdued inflation expectations.

- Canada: The Bank of Canada held at 2.25% amid trade uncertainty and slower growth; further easing is still on the table.

- Eurozone: The ECB kept rates at 2% as policy is likely unchanged this year, though geopolitical risks and currency volatility could shift that.

- Sweden: The Riksbank signals rates will remain unchanged for some time as the economy is expected to pick up and inflation cool.

- New Zealand: The Reserve Bank of New Zealand is pivoting hawkish; inflation hit 3.1% q-o-q, pricing two 25 bps hikes by year-end.

- Australia: The Reserve Bank of Australia raised rates on February 2, its first hike in two years, amid strong consumer spending, high house prices, and ample credit.

- Japan: The Bank of Japan lifted rates in December and held in January, diverging from peers as it seeks to curb a weak yen-driven inflation outlook.

Markets closely watch these divergences for implications on Treasuries, currencies, and commodities.

January 2026 saw 108,435 job cuts announced by U.S. employers, the highest number in a January since 2009, per Challenger, Gray & Christmas. Layoffs tripled from December and more than doubled from the same month in 2025. About 40% of announcements relate to Amazon and UPS, with UPS planning up to 30,000 cuts tied to winding down its Amazon delivery partnership. Reasons cited include contract loss (30,784), market and economic conditions (28,392), restructuring (20,044), and closures (12,738); AI accounted for 7,624 and tariffs for 294.

ADP estimated private sector job gains of 22,000 in January, the weakest in three months and the weakest January since 2021. Challenger reported 5,306 hiring announcements, the lowest ever for January. Initial unemployment claims rose to 231,000 for the week ended January 31, an eight-week high, though economists attribute the tepid claims to lighter holiday hiring, not a labor market turnaround.

In reaction, stocks extended losses: Dow -1.3%, S&P 500 -1.45%, Nasdaq -1.9%.

The inflation spike of 2021–2022 continues to shape Fed policy, with the CPI at 2.7% in December 2025—above the 2% target for nearly five years. The Federal Open Market Committee kept the federal funds rate unchanged in January 2026 after three quarter-point cuts earlier in the cycle, citing inflation risks.

Fed officials weigh whether to cut further in 2026, balancing labor market weakness and the persistence of core inflationary pressures. Richmond President Thomas Barkin noted inflation has remained above target since 2021, and Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic emphasized the need to bring prices back to 2%. Governor Michelle Bowman argues for three rate cuts in 2026, cautioning against immediate action if January data is pulled by seasonal adjustments.

Traders price a 66% chance of a June 2026 rate cut based on FedWatch data. The Fed is also reviewing whether one-time factors like tariffs and shelter measurement lags will evolve into sustained inflation. The recent release of 2020 meeting transcripts underscores how policy shifted from prioritizing near-zero unemployment to managing a supply shock-driven inflation risk.

Alphabet (GOOGL) shares fell over 5% on Thursday after the company outlined a plan to spend $175B–$185B on capital expenditures this year to build AI infrastructure, roughly double the $91.45B spent in 2025. The move shaved about $170B off its market value and brought its market cap below $4T. Cloud revenue surged 48% YoY to $17.7B in Q4, and the company topped estimates with revenue of $113.83B and $2.82 EPS. Despite analyst price-target lifts from JPMorgan, Citi, and Wedbush citing strong AI demand, the stock erased most of its year-to-date gains and closed up over 60% YTD.

Freddie Mac reported that the average rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage rose to 6.11% for the week of February 5, 2026, marking its third consecutive weekly increase. The rate reflects continued upward pressure on mortgage borrowing costs, signaling potential inflationary and spending headwinds for the housing market.

Gemini (GEMI) is phasing out operations in the UK, European Union, and Australia, closing accounts on March 5 and April 6, and cutting 25% of its workforce. The reductions aim to lower costs and focus on clearer opportunities in the U.S. prediction markets and crypto.

“We find these foreign markets increasingly complex and unprofitable,” the Winklevoss twins wrote. “We’re shifting to a leaner model to power efficiency and growth.”

Gemini’s U.S. prediction market, licensed in December, has attracted over 10,000 users and $24 million in trading volume. Shares fell 7.5% to $6.77 on Thursday, down about 313% from the $28 offering price in September. The firm also closed Nifty Gateway last week.

Bitcoin closed under $68,000 on February 05, 2026, continuing a week-long selloff as global risk assets weaken and traders favoring the low-$60,000 range. Over the past 24 hours, crypto liquidations exceeded $1 billion, wiping about $980 million in leveraged long positions. The price tested below $70,000, a mechanically important level where thinning liquidity could allow momentum to carry further toward the $60,000s.

The 200-week moving average is roughly $57,926, historically acting as a bottom in prior cycles. Prediction markets on Polymarket now favor prices at or below $65,000, with probabilities for mid-$50,000 drawdowns rising and six-figure prices fading. US-listed spot bitcoin ETFs posted net outflows this week, and perpetual futures activity thinned as leverage is unwound. Some see the $68K–$70K zone as a critical technical area; a sustained break below could signal deeper consolidation.

Freddie Mac reports the average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage rate edged up to 6.11% in the week ending February 5, 2026,持平 from 6.10% the prior week. The 15-year fixed-rate average rose to 5.50% from 5.49%. One year ago, the averages were 6.89% and 6.05%, respectively.

Mortgage rates track the 10-year Treasury yield, which stood at 4.21% as of midday February 5, 2026, down from 4.23% a week earlier. The Fed paused its rate-cutting cycle after three consecutive reductions in late 2025, signaling expectations of relatively stable mortgage rates through 2026, with the 30-year average forecast to remain near 6%.

Youth homeownership reached 37.9% in Q4 2025, up 1.6 percentage points from 36.3% in Q4 2024, the highest two-year level. The rebound follows years of declines driven by rates above 7% and rigid price growth, with easing borrowing costs and slight price softening cited as key factors. However, two-thirds of young households still rent, and the rate remains 6.6 percentage points below the 43.6% peak in 2004.

Context: The 2008 crash and Fed tightening since 2022 depressed the under-35 rate to 34.1% in 2016, before a slow climb through 2018–2021, a pandemic-driven spike, then another slide through 2022–2023.

Regionally, the Midwest leads at 71.3% in Q4 2025, outpacing the West (60.8%) and the South (66.9%). Ohio gained 12,000 residents in 2025 after a 2021 loss of over 32,000, and Michigan shifted from a 2021 loss of 28,000 to a small gain, reflecting a migration back to the Midwest as coastal markets remain less accessible for first-time buyers.

U.S. stocks closed sharply lower on February 5, 2026, as investor sentiment shifted from cautious to bearish. The Nasdaq Composite fell to its lowest level in two months, closing at 16,234.1 (-2.8%) after a string of weak economic indicators and rising inflation concerns. The S&P 500 closed at 4,932.5 (-1.5%), while the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 269.3 points to 39,250.6 (-1.1%).

Supporting context: The Federal Reserve is expected to consider a rate hike at its upcoming March meeting amid continued upward pressure on inflation.

Essex Property Trust (EXPI) will host a Q4 2025 earnings conference call at 12:00 PM Eastern Time on February 7, 2026. The call is open to investors and analysts and will review fourth-quarter results, including revenue, net operating income, and tenant performance. The company will also discuss strategic initiatives and guidance for 2026. A live audio webcast and replay will be available on the company’s investor relations page.

Canadian equities closed sharply lower on February 5, 2026, as global commodities prices tumbled. The S&P/TSX Composite fell 2.3% to 18,450.3, with energy and materials sectors leading the decline. Brent crude crude oil prices dropped 12% to $78 per barrel, and copper prices fell 15% to $3,650 per metric tonne by late afternoon.

The plunge in oil and metals, driven by weaker demand outlooks and reduced OPEC+ production cuts, pressured energy and mining companies, contributing to the broader market's weakness.

Universal Technical Institutes (UTI, NAS: UTIL) shares closed down 7% on February 5, 2026, following a report that revenue fell 12% year-over-year to $18.5 million, and that the company missed its earnings guidance by $0.08 per share. The stock trade reflects investor concern over soft demand in the post-pandemic vocational training sector and ongoing inflation pressures on tuition costs. Management cited supply chain and labor constraints as contributing factors to the performance shortfall.

Chevron Corp. (CHEVR) announced a major leadership reshuffle effective 2026, with several senior executives retiring and internal promotions taking effect as the company refines its strategy and integrates Hess assets.

Frank Mount, President of Corporate Business Development, will retire in November 2026 after 33 years; Jake Spiering will assume the role on August 1, 2026. Jeanine Wai will lead Investor Relations starting April 1, 2026. Patricia Leigh, President of Supply & Trading since 2024, retires in July 2026; Molly Laegeler will take the role March 1, 2026. Kevin Lyon, Hess Integration Leader, will become Chief Strategy Officer March 1, 2026. Bruce Niemeyer, President of Shale & Tight, retires in October 2026; Gerbert Schoonman will succeed him April 1, 2026.

The changes reflect continued focus on capital discipline, upstream integration, and the energy transition, with Chevron prioritizing internal succession and experienced leadership in trading, strategy, and unconventional resources.

Bitcoin (BTC-USD) reached a 2024 intraday low of $67,235 on February 05, 2026, as selling pressure intensified. The price is down 45% from its all-time high and 22% year-to-date, erasing gains made during the Trump administration. 10X Research notes positioning remains stretched with ETF holders averaging $90,000 acquisition costs and Ethereum (ETH) ETFs down about 31% from cost. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s statement of no government support and hawkish signals ahead of the next Fed chair nomination, Kevin Warsh, have exacerbated volatility. The broader market and Michael Burry’s warning of a potential death spiral in bitcoin’s decline also weighed on sentiment.