Market Trends 12 February 2026 - 9 March 2026

Willow Lane II Quiet. SPAC Deadline Stands Out
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Willow Lane II Quiet. SPAC Deadline Stands Out

Willow Lane Acquisition Corp. II shares sat near flat before the open Tuesday, with investors looking past the price and watching the company's cash and timeline for a deal. WLII last traded at $10.1801, up 0.3% from its previous close. That’s important for Willow Lane II, a SPAC. SPACs, or special purpose acquisition companies, go public as cash shells, raising funds before they name a merger target. The share price usually sticks close to the cash in trust up to the point when a deal shows up, terms come out or holders vote.
June 2, 2026
BlackRock Caps Private Credit Fund Withdrawals as Market Stress Spreads
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BlackRock Caps Private Credit Fund Withdrawals as Market Stress Spreads

NEW YORK, March 9, 2026, 09:37 EDT BlackRock Inc is restricting withdrawals from its $26 billion HPS Corporate Lending Fund after investors sought to pull roughly $1.2 billion—about 9.3% of assets—surpassing the fund’s 5% quarterly redemption ceiling. Just $620 million in redemptions will be honored, marking the first breach of that threshold since the fund launched. Shares of BlackRock dropped 6.7% on Friday. Morningstar’s Greggory Warren called it a “warning sign” for both the industry and regulators.
March 9, 2026
Opendoor Technologies’ 4.99% Mortgage Bet Puts Turnaround Under Fresh Pressure
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Opendoor Technologies’ 4.99% Mortgage Bet Puts Turnaround Under Fresh Pressure

Opendoor Technologies is rolling out 4.99% 30-year fixed-rate mortgages for buyers using its platform—a move that's turning heads as the company pushes its turnaround plan. The pilot, available only on homes sold by Opendoor, comes with zero points, Chief Executive Kaz Nejatian said. Timing’s in play here. Freddie Mac puts the average U.S. 30-year fixed mortgage rate at 6.00% this week, just up from 5.98% last week—still not far off the lowest since 2022, but affordability remains squeezed. Opendoor, meanwhile, is quoting a rate that's about a percentage point under that.
March 6, 2026
MARA Bitcoin sell-off rumor flares as exec pushes back and filing widens sales options
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MARA Bitcoin sell-off rumor flares as exec pushes back and filing widens sales options

MARA Holdings is countering fresh online rumors about plans to unload most of its bitcoin, a narrative that picked up after its latest annual filing. “Our 2026 10-K clearly states we expanded our strategy to allow for sales of bitcoin held on our balance sheet,” Robert Samuels, vice president of investor relations, posted on X. This matters for MARA, since the company holds a sizable bitcoin stash—investors frequently use the stock as a stand-in for the cryptocurrency. Even a suggestion that a big holder might start offloading coins can shake sentiment quickly.
March 5, 2026
Tesla UK sales drop 37% as BYD narrows the gap in February
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Tesla UK sales drop 37% as BYD narrows the gap in February

Tesla saw UK registrations drop 37% in February compared to last year, according to industry figures released Thursday, while Chinese EV brands—BYD at the forefront—continued to carve out a bigger foothold in Britain’s expanding plug-in segment. The slowdown stands out, given that the UK market is on the rise again. February usually tees up March, when fresh number plates often give demand a jolt. According to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, registrations were up 7.2% to 90,100. Battery-electric vehicles, which are fully electric, accounted for 24.2% of the market—a second consecutive monthly dip. “The UK’s new car market is continuing to recover and EV volumes are growing too, even if market share remains disappointing,” said SMMT chief executive
March 5, 2026
Heating oil price jumps above $3.25 as Hormuz disruption keeps fuel traders on edge
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Heating oil price jumps above $3.25 as Hormuz disruption keeps fuel traders on edge

NEW YORK, March 4, 2026, 13:55 — Regular session NYMEX ultra-low sulfur diesel futures—widely viewed as the market’s stand-in for heating oil and diesel—pushed higher Wednesday. Gains tracked strength across the oil complex, with traders keeping a premium on supply risk linked to conflict in the Middle East. April delivery added 7.15 cents, settling at $3.2584 per gallon.
March 4, 2026
Lithium Prices Face a China Reopen Test as Albemarle Stock Jumps Nearly 4%
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Lithium Prices Face a China Reopen Test as Albemarle Stock Jumps Nearly 4%

New York, Feb 23, 2026, 15:13 EST — Regular session Albemarle Corp saw its stock climb 3.9% to $174.93 in Monday afternoon trading, pulling ahead of the broader market as investors watched lithium prices for signs of direction after China’s holiday slowdown. Shares in Chile’s SQM advanced 1.3%, while Lithium Americas edged up 0.4%, Google Finance data showed.
February 23, 2026
Gasoline futures jump on big U.S. stock draw as traders brace for spring pump-price season
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Gasoline futures jump on big U.S. stock draw as traders brace for spring pump-price season

New York, February 19, 2026, 14:17 EST — Regular session Gasoline futures in the U.S. pushed higher Thursday, with prices reacting to fresh government numbers pointing to a bigger drawdown in gasoline inventories than analysts had called for. Traders took the report as evidence of strengthening demand, well ahead of the usual spring boost. By mid-afternoon New York time, front-month RBOB gasoline contracts — the standard U.S. benchmark — had gained 3.4 cents, up about 1.7%, to hover near $2.00 a gallon.
February 19, 2026
Oil prices jump as Hormuz fears flare again — Brent nears $70, WTI rallies
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Oil prices jump as Hormuz fears flare again — Brent nears $70, WTI rallies

New York, Feb 18, 2026, 13:49 EST — Regular session Oil jumped more than 3% Wednesday after Iranian state media said sections of the Strait of Hormuz were temporarily closed for military drills, and Fars, a semi-official outlet, reported Iran and Russia plan joint naval exercises Thursday. Russia-Ukraine talks in Geneva didn’t yield progress. Brent crude traded up $2.38, or 3.53%, at $69.80 a barrel as of 12:09 p.m. ET. U.S. West Texas Intermediate added $2.39, or 3.83%, reaching $64.72. “The big moves in oil prices today are being solely driven by geopolitics,” Lipow Oil Associates president Andrew Lipow said. SEB’s Bjarne Schieldrop commented, “Iran has time to negotiate in calmness.”
February 18, 2026
Micron stock price slips as $200B expansion talk runs into AI spending jitters
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Micron stock price slips as $200B expansion talk runs into AI spending jitters

New York, Feb 17, 2026, 10:07 EST — Regular session underway. Micron Technology, Inc. slid 2.6% to $400.88 early Tuesday, tracking losses across the chip sector. Investors reacted to renewed chatter about a huge capacity ramp linked to artificial-intelligence demand. The iShares Semiconductor ETF dropped roughly 1.9%. The Invesco QQQ Trust lost about 1%.
February 17, 2026
XRP price today: Ripple token holds $1.48 as Standard Chartered slashes 2026 target
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XRP price today: Ripple token holds $1.48 as Standard Chartered slashes 2026 target

New York, February 16, 2026, 16:09 — The market has wrapped up trading for the day. XRP, Ripple's payments token, was trading close to $1.48 on Monday as Standard Chartered sharply reduced its end-2026 price forecast to $2.80, slashing it from $8. Geoffrey Kendrick, the bank’s global head of digital assets research, wrote, “We expect further declines near-term and we lower our forecasts across the asset class.”
February 16, 2026
Lithium price outlook nudges battered stocks higher as Albemarle jumps on Kemerton move
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Lithium price outlook nudges battered stocks higher as Albemarle jumps on Kemerton move

New York, Feb 13, 2026, 13:48 EST — Regular trading session Albemarle shares were up roughly 4.4% at $165.93 by midday Friday, bouncing off an earlier slide that saw the stock touch $156.84. Shares of Chile’s SQM added close to 1%, while the Global X Lithium & Battery Tech ETF posted a gain of about 1.3%. Investors sifted through new signals around lithium pricing and supply discipline.
February 13, 2026
Natural gas price snaps back above $3.20 after a 3% dip as storage, warm forecasts collide
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Natural gas price snaps back above $3.20 after a 3% dip as storage, warm forecasts collide

NEW YORK, Feb 13, 2026, 13:16 — Regular session March U.S. natural gas futures clawed back earlier losses, ticking up 3.2 cents, or nearly 1%, to $3.249 per mmBtu as of 1:15 p.m. EST. Prices had dipped close to 3% earlier but rebounded within a $3.120 to $3.252 trading range on Friday. Thursday's close came in at $3.217. Gas-focused leveraged ETFs split: BOIL edged up 0.6%, while KOLD slipped 0.6%.
February 13, 2026
Gasoline prices drop hard as U.S. fuel stocks rise again; refiner shares slide
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Gasoline prices drop hard as U.S. fuel stocks rise again; refiner shares slide

New York, Feb 12, 2026, 12:46 EST — The session is now in regular order. U.S. gasoline futures plunged on Thursday, pulling refiner stocks down as traders reacted to fresh evidence of weakening fuel demand. RBOB gasoline futures—the key gauge for U.S. wholesale gasoline—dropped 6.7 cents, or 3.4%, settling at $1.9118 a gallon. Shares of Valero Energy slid 2.7%, Marathon Petroleum dipped 3.5%, and Phillips 66 lost 2.3% during midday trading.
February 12, 2026
Natural gas prices jump after EIA storage draw — what traders are watching next
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Natural gas prices jump after EIA storage draw — what traders are watching next

New York, Feb 12, 2026, 12:09 EST — Session in progress. U.S. natural gas futures pushed higher Thursday after the latest government storage report, as traders wrestled with a winter that’s swung between cold snaps and sudden warm spells. The NYMEX March contract rose 8.2 cents, or 2.6%, hitting $3.241 per million British thermal units, the standard energy measure for gas. According to Barchart.com, the market anticipated about a 257 billion cubic feet draw and noted a trend toward warmer weather forecasts for much of the eastern U.S. through February 20.
February 12, 2026
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