Market Information Thursday 19 February 2026

Investors digest a busy earnings day, with Airbus guiding for 870 aircraft deliveries in 2026, slightly below expectations. Nestle reported 2025 sales of 89.5bn Swiss francs, down 2% year on year, with net profit falling 17%. The Fed minutes signal a divided outlook on monetary policy and a more hawkish stance than expected.

Microsoft’s president warned that Chinese government subsidies pose a growing threat to U.S. tech firms in the AI race, drawing parallels to Beijing’s telecoms strategy that drove out Western rivals. China’s $8.4bn national AI fund and cheap energy vouchers give its firms a cost advantage, with lower-priced models gaining appeal in developing nations. Microsoft pledged $50bn by the end of this decade to counter China in the Global South.

Nigeria and South Africa are driving the strongest growth in stablecoin demand, with almost 80% of respondents already holding them and over 75% planning to increase holdings. Some 95% of Nigerians would prefer payment in stablecoins over the naira, though nearly 90% of activity remains crypto trading. With the global market above $310bn and 99% dollar pegged, central bankers fear deposit flight and dollarisation.

The 6M Euribor is unchanged at 2.16% compared to previous business day. The 10Y Swap increased with 1 basis point to 2.76% compared to previous business day.

In the attachment, today’s market data on money and capital market rates as well as other rates are presented.