Markets Split as Europe Sets Records While U.S. and Brazil Slide on Credit Worries and Hot Inflation

Overview

• The insolvency of UK mortgage lender Market Financial Solutions revived private‑credit concerns, knocking European bank shares as Barclays’ stock fell on reported £600 million exposure and peers such as Santander and Deutsche Bank declined.
• Wall Street finished lower with the Dow down 1.05%, the S&P 500 off 0.43% and the Nasdaq down 0.92%, led by weakness in technology and financials after a hotter‑than‑expected U.S. producer price reading and rising geopolitical risk lifted gold and oil futures.
• European equities diverged as the Stoxx 600 rose 0.19% and London’s FTSE 100 gained 0.59% to record closing highs, while Frankfurt’s DAX was flat and Paris’s CAC 40 fell 0.47%.
• Brazil’s IPCA‑15 rose 0.84% in February versus a 0.56% median forecast, driving futures rates higher and helping push the Ibovespa down 1.16% on the day even as the index advanced 4.09% for the month on heavy month‑end rebalancing flows.
• Brazil’s currency closed at R$5.134 per dollar, down 0.10% on the day, as Petrobras and Vale slipped despite stronger oil and Bradesco shares rose after it unveiled Bradsaúde to consolidate its health assets.