---
title: "What happened overnight – Monday 2nd February 2026"
publisher: "Share Talk"
author: "sharetalk"
published: "2026-02-02T07:57:29+00:00"
modified: "2026-02-02T07:57:29+00:00"
date: 2026-02-02
canonical: "https://www.share-talk.com/what-happened-overnight-monday-2nd-february-2026/"
category: "B2B"
categories: ["B2B", "Blogs", "Technology", "Technology, Media & Telecoms"]
tags: ["Asia-Pacific shares", "Davos", "Donald Trump", "Greenland", "Japanese bonds", "Liberation Day", "US dollar", "US Treasury yields", "Wall Street", "World Economic Forum"]
image: "https://i0.wp.com/www.share-talk.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/overnight-1-1.webp?fit=750%2C406&quality=80&ssl=1"
format: "news"
language: "en-GB"
---

# What happened overnight – Monday 2nd February 2026

**Published:** February 2, 2026
**Author:** sharetalk
**Categories:** B2B, Blogs, Technology, Technology, Media & Telecoms
**Tags:** Asia-Pacific shares, Davos, Donald Trump, Greenland, Japanese bonds, Liberation Day, US dollar, US Treasury yields, Wall Street, World Economic Forum
**Featured image:** ![](https://i0.wp.com/www.share-talk.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/overnight-1-1.webp?fit=750%2C406&quality=80&ssl=1)

---

Asian shares, precious metals and oil slumped sharply in a global market rout, as investors fretted about the outlook for US interest rates and the risk of an artificial intelligence bubble bursting.

Heavy selling swept through markets after US President **Donald Trump** announced his nominee to lead the **Federal Reserve**, unsettling investors already nervous about stretched valuations in AI-related stocks.

South Korea’s stock exchange was briefly halted after the benchmark **Kospi** plunged 5.3% to 4,949.67. Tech heavyweights bore the brunt of the sell-off, with **Samsung Electronics** falling 6.3% and chipmaker **SK Hynix** sliding 8.7%.

The Kospi had been setting record highs in recent weeks as technology stocks surged on the back of the AI boom, fuelled by partnerships involving major players such as **Nvidia** and **OpenAI**.

Markets also reacted to uncertainty over how **Kevin Warsh**, Trump’s nominee for Fed chair, might steer monetary policy. US equity futures fell sharply, with S&P 500 futures down 1.2% and Dow Jones Industrial Average futures off 0.9%.

A growing concern among investors is that the Federal Reserve could lose some of its independence under political pressure, a fear that had previously helped drive gold prices sharply higher and weaken the US dollar over the past year.

That trade has now reversed violently. Gold fell 5.8% in early Monday trading, while silver slumped 12.3%, extending Friday’s sharp pullback that ended a record-breaking rally in precious metals. Oil prices also came under pressure, with Brent crude down 4.5% at around $66 a barrel.

The rout followed a weak finish on Wall Street on Friday, when the **S&P 500** slipped 0.4% to 6,930.03, the **Dow Jones Industrial Average** fell 0.4% to 48,892.47 and the **Nasdaq Composite** dropped 0.9% to 23,461.82.

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