Pulse

ASX 200 gained into the close Thursday at 8,660.9 but financial and resource names widened declines overnight — WBC −1.5%, ANZ −1.6%, FMG −1.4%, RIO −2.9%.

Iron ore softness hitting Pilbara names; PLS −4.6% and BHP −2.2% weaken the lithium-battery complex again.

EVN −2.2% and WGX −2.5% say gold producers are taking a breather despite spot gold near $4,158 (+0.4%).

ASX Ltd itself was the odd one out, +3.8% to $60.59 — exchange volumes are clearly doing fine.

Watch DYL, BMN and LYC: rare earths set up for another risk-off squeeze this week.

Hang Seng names broadly lower: 0700 Tencent −2.2% to $411.40, 9988 Alibaba −1.0% to $104.30.

1810 Xiaomi −1.2% to $23.66 and 3690 Meituan −1.1% to $69.40 — mild profit-taking rather than a risk event.

No new macro catalyst from Beijing; watch for US data tone to set the Friday direction.

Growth cracked while defensives bid: QQQ −1.3%, S&P 500 index −0.5% to 7,765; NVDA was the heavyweight drag, −2.9% to $230.48.

TSLA −0.7% to $375.00 — holding above the $368 intraday low, no damage yet.

SPY −0.4% to $773.93 — looks like a rotation, not a rout.

Safe havens working: GLD +0.7% to $378.62, TLT +0.9% to $77.87 — money is parking in bonds and bullion.

AUD/USD 0.6957, slightly softer.

10-year yield easing to 5.23% (−0.9%) is doing the work for TLT.

Gold at $4,158 keeps the commodity bid alive, but equity investors are taking risk off the AI trade.

The US showed classic defensive rotation on Thursday — not panic, but a prompt to trim crowded AI longs.

Watch QQQ for a follow-through session: a second down day under 747 would look like the start of a real pullback.

Gold above $4,150 keeps the safe-haven trade valid; keep exposure selective rather than chasing.

Rare earth names are the highest-bet volatility on this list — size for big daily swings.

Anchor: keep stops honest, hold the hard assets, and let the over-extended AI names prove themselves.