US EQUITY OPEN: AI-driven tech sell off continues into month/quarter-end

OPEN: US indices opened the last trading session of the week in the red, with underperformance once again seen in the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 as AI jitters remain. Sectors opened mixed with Technology the obvious laggard while Health sits atop of the pile. Newsflow has been sparse on Friday, although energy benchmarks saw fleeting upside amid reports that UAE issued phone alerts of potential missile threats, something which was soon said to be ignored by the UAE. WTI and Brent are lower by c. USD 2.50/bbl ahead of the weekly Baker Hughes rig count. The Dollar is broadly weaker vs. G10 FX peers, with EUR the outperforming and the Aussie lagging. Treasuries are marginally firmer, while precious metals seeing gains of c. 0.5%. Ahead, the calendar is pretty quiet although do note it is month/quarter end.STOCK SPECIFICS: ON Semi (ON) announced an all-stock deal to acquire Synaptics (SYNA) for c. $7bln. OpenAI reportedly leaning towards delaying its IPO until 2027. Nike (NKE) was downgraded at KeyBanc. American Tower (AMT) was upgraded at RBC. Incyte (INCY) announced positive EU regulatory opinion for opzelura skin disease treatment.