Today’s Market Recap: Oracle Rises Nearly 10% on Earnings Beat; IEA Approves Release of 400 Million Barrels of Strategic Oil Reserves as Largest in History

Tracking the Market Trend

Major U.S. stock indices were mixed on Wednesday (March 11), S&P 500 fell 0.08% to 6,775.8, while the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.08% to 22,716.14, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.61% to 47,417.27.

In the enterprise software and cloud computing sectors, Microsoft (MSFT) closed down 0.22% at $404.88; IBM (IBM) fell 0.53% to end at $248.87, both underperforming Oracle Corporation (ORCL) .

Database and cloud service provider Oracle Corporation jumped 9.18% to close at $163.12 after its third fiscal quarter earnings and revenue both exceeded expectations, driven by strong growth in its cloud and AI segments and an upward revision of its long-term revenue forecast. Investors are also focusing on the progress of the company's large-scale AI data center projects.

Oracle reported 22% revenue growth, with cloud revenue surging 44%. The company also revealed a backlog of $553 billion and expressed optimism for its 2027 outlook. Furthermore, Oracle stated it has no plans for additional bond issuances beyond those already announced this year, which may be the primary driver for investors buying the stock. On Wednesday, trading volume for the stock reached 79 million shares, approximately 162% higher than its three-month average of 30.1 million. Since its 1986 IPO, its stock price has soared 257,656%.

Since its pivot, Oracle has become synonymous with AI infrastructure spending, and its better-than-expected earnings provided a sigh of relief for U.S. equity investors. However, Oracle's shares remain down more than 16% year-to-date, as investors continue to worry about the company's excessive AI spending.

Market Headline

U.S. inflation continues to cool. U.S. CPI rose 2.4% year-over-year in February, while core CPI rose 2.5%, marking the smallest increase in nearly five years. However, due to rising costs for oil, gasoline, and fertilizer caused by the Middle East conflict, Citigroup (C) pointed out that the upward pressure on inflation from short-term energy prices will materialize in the March data. Markets generally expect the Federal Reserve to keep interest rates unchanged at its policy meeting next week.

Trump says military operations against Iran are nearing an end. Trump stated he will "slightly" reduce strategic oil reserves to alleviate rising oil prices. Iran claimed it has shifted from "reciprocal retaliation" to "serial strikes," asserting that the U.S. Navy has "fled" the waters near Iran and confirming attacks on two vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, reiterating that the U.S. and its allies have no right of passage. Trump does not believe Iran has laid mines in the strait, claiming the U.S. has destroyed nearly all of Iran's minelaying vessels; the U.S. military has threatened to strike Iranian civilian ports used for military purposes. A preliminary U.S. military investigation determined it "mistakenly hit" an Iranian school, and the White House says the investigation is ongoing.

Iranian President sets three conditions to end the war, demanding reparations from the U.S. and Israel. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian stated that the only way to end the current war is to recognize Iran's legitimate rights, pay war reparations, and have the international community provide firm guarantees against future aggression.

IEA approves release of crude reserves; record 400-million-barrel scale is more than double 2022 levels. The U.S. will begin releasing 172 million barrels of oil next week. Germany will release nearly 20 million barrels of oil reserves, the UK will release 13.5 million barrels of crude, and France said it would arrange its release in the coming days. Japan plans to act first next Monday, with Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi announcing the release of approximately 80 million barrels of strategic oil reserves as early as March 16. Trump stated that the IEA's release of strategic oil reserves will significantly drive down oil prices, but the U.S. will not leave Iran early.

Strait of Hormuz Disruption: Day 10 of tracking, only 3 tankers passed. According to Morgan Stanley (MS) in its daily tracking report released on March 10, only 3 crude and product tankers sailed out of the Persian Gulf via the Strait of Hormuz that day, with zero transits by LNG or LPG vessels, compared to a normal level of about 35 ships, indicating no signs of material easing in the situation. Additionally, despite the blockage in the Strait of Hormuz, Iranian crude exports have grown against the trend. According to Kpler data, Iran's average daily crude loading over the past six days reached 2.1 million barrels, higher than the pre-war February level of 2 million barrels.

Top 10 Most Traded Stocks

The table below lists the ten most actively traded individual stocks in the market. With their massive trading volume and high liquidity, these stocks have become key bellwethers for tracking global market dynamics.