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South Korea’s consumer mood softened in March, with the Composite Consumer Sentiment Index (CCSI) falling to 107.0 from 112.1 in February. The decline suggests households turned more cautious after February’s stronger reading, even though sentiment remains above the neutral 100 mark, which typically signals that optimism still outweighs pessimism overall.

Source: Bank of Korea — Consumer Tendency Survey for March 2026.

Mexico’s latest data delivered an uncomfortable macro combination. Headline CPI in the first half of March rose 0.62%, while core CPI increased 0.22%. At the same time, economic activity fell 0.9% month on month in January and slipped 0.3% year on year, suggesting price pressure is firming even as growth loses momentum. That mix is likely to keep Banxico cautious in the near term.

Source: INEGI — Índice Nacional de Precios al Consumidor (INPC); Indicador Global de la Actividad Económica (IGAE).

South Africa’s leading indicator rose to 118.20 in January from 117.71, signaling a slightly firmer forward-looking signal for economic activity. Leading indicators do not guarantee stronger growth on their own, but the latest increase suggests the macro backdrop turned somewhat more supportive at the start of the year.

Source: South African Reserve Bank (SARB) — Composite Business Cycle Indicators.

Turkey’s industrial backdrop weakened modestly in March. Capacity utilization eased to 73.3% from 73.5%, while manufacturing confidence fell to 101.0 from 104.1. The combination points to softer factory sentiment and slightly weaker use of production capacity, suggesting industrial momentum remained under pressure at the end of the first quarter.

Source: Central Bank of the Republic of Türkiye (CBRT) — Capacity Utilization Rate of the Manufacturing Industry; Business Tendency Statistics and Real Sector Confidence Index.

South Korea’s producer-price data showed firmer pipeline inflation in February. PPI rose 2.4% year-on-year, up from 1.9% previously, while the monthly reading came in at 0.6%, just below the prior 0.7%. The mix suggests upstream price pressure strengthened on an annual basis even though the month-to-month pace eased slightly, keeping cost trends in focus for the Bank of Korea and local markets.

Source: Bank of Korea — Producer Price Index, February 2026 (preliminary).

Turkey’s central government debt stock increased to TL 14,395.8 billion in February from TL 14,264.2 billion previously, pointing to a fresh rise in the sovereign debt burden at the start of the year. The increase suggests Ankara continues to rely on a large debt base as financing conditions, inflation, and fiscal needs remain key macro themes for markets watching Turkey.

Source: Republic of Türkiye Ministry of Treasury and Finance — Public Finance / Central Government Debt Stock.

Mexico’s retail sector showed renewed strength at the start of the year. Retail sales rose 5.0% year-on-year in January in the data you shared, while monthly sales increased 1.0%, signaling that consumer demand remained firm and that household spending carried solid momentum into 2026. The combination points to a still-resilient domestic economy, even as markets continue to watch inflation, rates, and real-income dynamics. Source: National Institute of Statistics and Geography (INEGI) — Monthly Survey of Commercial Establishments (EMEC).

Turkey’s latest data pointed to a softer near-term macro picture. Gross FX reserves fell to $55.49 billion from $62.77 billion, signaling a notable decline in the central bank’s foreign-currency buffer. At the same time, consumer confidence edged down to 85.0 in March from 85.7, suggesting households remain cautious despite recent policy stabilization efforts.

The data also showed weakness in the tourism side of the economy, with foreign arrivals falling 2.08% year-on-year in February, reversing from the previous 3.48% increase. Meanwhile, net FX reserves were reported at 69.00%, unchanged from the previous reading. Taken together, the figures suggest Turkey is facing a mixed backdrop in which reserve pressure, softer sentiment, and weaker visitor inflows may keep markets focused on external stability and domestic demand trends.

Mexico’s fourth-quarter data showed a strong domestic-demand picture. Aggregate demand rose 2.4% QoQ, up sharply from 0.7% previously, while annual growth accelerated to 4.5% from 1.1%. Private spending increased 1.0% QoQ and 4.0% YoY, compared with 1.1% and 1.6% previously. The data suggests Mexico’s economy ended the year with much firmer demand conditions, driven largely by stronger household spending and broader domestic activity.

Source: INEGI

Turkey’s reported Net FX Reserves metric fell to 69.00%, down from 78.78% previously. The decline points to a noticeable weakening in this reserve indicator and suggests a softer external liquidity position compared with the prior reading. Even without broader detail, the direction of the move is clearly negative.

Source: Central Bank of the Republic of Türkiye

Elon Musk said SpaceX AI and Tesla will continue ordering Nvidia chips at scale, even as Tesla pushes ahead with development of its in-house AI5 chip for Optimus and robotaxi applications. Reuters reported that Musk described himself as a “huge admirer” of Nvidia and Jensen Huang, while also saying Tesla’s next-generation chip should perform well above its weight. He added last week that Tesla’s Terafab chip project is set to launch on March 21, 2026.

In the market, Nvidia (NVDA) was trading around $180.40, while Tesla (TSLA) was around $392.78. The message for investors is that Tesla is not replacing Nvidia anytime soon; instead, it appears to be building a dual-track AI strategy that combines continued large-scale purchases with longer-term in-house chip development.

Source: Reuters; market data.

Brazil’s central bank lowered its policy rate to 14.75%, below the 14.50% expectation range shown by the market benchmark and down from the previous 15.00%. The move amounts to a 25 basis point cut and signals that policymakers are beginning to ease borrowing costs despite a still-high rate environment. Even after the reduction, Brazil’s policy stance remains very restrictive in absolute terms.

Source: Banco Central do Brasil