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Market Update

China Property Woes Keep Asian Markets In Check

Arjun Pandit
05 Sep, 2023
Mumbai

Market indexes in Asia traded in tight range as China property sector worries dominated bond and stock market sentiment.

Moreover, China's additional stimulus measures to support the property market and cut mortgage rates for first home buyers fell short of market expectations.

Economists are increasingly worried that China will be forced to consolidate property developers and may have to either nationalize or rescue a few large developers and remove all price barriers for future property transactions.

Chinese real estate developers led decliners, with China Resources Land falling 5% and China Overseas Land and Investment dropping 3%.

On Friday, China announced new measures to support the property market and yuan.

Minimum down payments for mortgages will be cut to 20% for first-time home buyers and 30% for the second-time buyers, according to joint statements by the People’s Bank of China and National Administration of Financial Regulations.

In addition, the central bank also lowered interest rates on new mortgage rates by 40 basis points for the premium to its benchmark loan prime rate.

Regulators also said mortgage rates on existing loans can be renegotiated starting as early as September 25.

The lowered rates are likely to help 40 million home buyers, or about two thirds of housing loans in the country.

The PBOC announced foreign exchange reserve requirements to 4% from 6% for banks, to support the weakening yuan which has been under pressure for the last five months.

The yuan has dropped around 6% as foreign investors pulled out of China amid deepening real estate crisis.

A private survey of the service industry highlighted uneven recovery as the growth slowed.

The Caixin China General Service PMI eased to 51.8 in August from 51.9 in July, S&P Global reported Tuesday.

The services sector activity growth was the weakest since the beginning of the year, amid persistent downward pressure on the economy.

New order growth slowed while export sales fell for the first time since December and at the same time sentiment index declined to a 9-month low.

The weakness in the construction sector and falling exports are negatively impacting services related to these industries. Moreover, the expected sharp rebound in travel related services is weaker than expected.

In Tuesday's trading, the Nikkei index increased 0.1%, the Shanghai SSE Composite index fell 0.5%, the Hang Seng index fell 1.5% and the KOSPI index decreased 0.08%.

In August, the Nikkei index fell 0.6%, the SSE Composite index declined 5.2%, the Hang Seng index fell 8.2% and the KOSPI index decreased 4.2%.

Movers: John Wood, Nestle, Novo Nordisk, Wizz Air

Inga Muller
04 Sep, 2023
New York City

Market indexes in London, Paris and Frankfurt advanced after the U.S. economy added moderate level of jobs, indicating that the economy is slowing but more likely to avoid a recession .

The DAX index increased 0.5% to 15,913.85, the CAC-40 index rose 0.5% to 7,334.16 and the FTSE 100 index advanced 0.5% to 7,498.0

Novo Nordisk AS advanced 1.4% to DKK 1,317.60 after the Danish drug maker launched its popular weight loss treatment Wegovy in the U.K.

Wizz Air Holdings Plc jumped 0.9% to 2,220.0 pence after the budget airline released its passenger data in August.

John Wood Plc jumped 0.3% to 156.80 pence after the company signed a partnership deal with Harbour Energy.

Under the new agreement, Wood will provide engineering, procurement and construction and operations and maintenance services, for a number of Harbour's offshore North Sea assets critical to UK energy security for $3300 million.

Base metal mining companies advanced after iron ore prices rose on hopes that the latest China stimulus measures will revive demand.

Glencore, Antofagasta, Anglo American advanced between 1% and 2%.

Nestle SA decreased 0.08% to CHF 105.38 after the Swiss food and beverage company announced its plan to divest its peanut allergy treatment business Palforzia to Stallergenes Gree.

Nestle said it will receive milestone and royalty payments from the the U.K. based allergy diagnosis and treatment company.

Nestle acquired the parent of Palforzia, Aimmune Therapeutics, in 2020 for $2.6 billion and earlier this year the company took a one time impairment charge of $2.1 billion related to the allergy business.

German Trade Surplus Shrank, Swiss Second Quarter GDP Growth Stalled

Bridgette Randall
04 Sep, 2023
Frankfurt

European markets advanced on Monday and investors overlooked weakening of German trade surplus and other economic data in the region.

Market indexes in London, Paris and Frankfurt advanced after the U.S. economy added moderate level of jobs, indicating that the economy is slowing but more likely to avoid a recession,

A growing number of investors are hoping that the latest jobs data will spur the Federal Reserve to pause rate hike at its next policy meeting in September.

Market sentiment in the region was also positive after China offered several stimulus measures to revive the property market and Country Garden, the largest real estate company in China, narrowly averted bond default on Monday.

Closer to home, Germany reported a decline in trade surplus in July after exports to non-EU countries dropped and imports edged up.

Switzerland said economic growth in the second quarter stalled, suggesting that the recent rate hikes are finally transmitting to the economy.

From a year ago, the Swiss economy expanded 0.5%.

Spain reported a rise in the jobless rate after more people joined the labor force and searched for jobs largely because of seasonal factors but jobless rate fell when adjusted for seasonal factors.

The number of people registering as jobless in Spain increased by 24,826 people, or 0.9%, to 2.7 million in August, the first increase in six months, the ministry of employment and social security services reported Monday.

However, the number of registered jobless rate increased to 40,400 in August 2022, leaving the total number of jobless people in August at the lowest since 2008.

After adjusting for seasonal factors, unemployment declined by 23,373 people.

German Trade Surplus Eased In July

Germany's trade surplus decreased to €15.9 billion in July from €18.7 billion in June, the Federal Statistics Office or Destatis reported Monday.

Exports declined 0.9% to €130.4 billion while imports edged slightly up 1.4% to €114.5 billion.

Shipments to countries outside the EU fell 2.5%, mainly due to lower shipments to the UK by 3.5%; while purchases from third countries fell 0.2%, driven by a decline of 5.8% to China and the UK.

On the other hand, imports rose from the US by 6.1%, largely because of higher imports of natural gas and Russia by 2.2%.

Sales to EU countries edged up 0.5%, of which those to the Euro Area went up 1.7%; while purchases from EU countries increased at a faster 2.9% with those from the Euro Area expanding 5.6%.

Total exports from a year ago declined 1.0% while imports dropped 10.2%.

Europe Indexes & Yields

The DAX index increased 0.5% to 15,913.85, the CAC-40 index rose 0.5% to 7,334.16 and the FTSE 100 index advanced 0.5% to 7,498.0

The yield on 10-year German bonds increased to 2.56%, French bonds traded higher to 3.09%, the UK gilts edged up to 4.43% and Italian bonds rose to 4.13%.

The euro edged to the lowest level since mid-June on the hopes that the central is more likely to pause its rate hike campaign and assess the impact of the multiple rate hikes on the economy.

The euro edged lower to $1.080, the British pound to $1.263 and the U.S. dollar fetched 88.41 Swiss cents.

Brent crude increased $0.13 to $88.68 a barrel and the Dutch TTF natural gas decreased €1.88 to €34.21 per MWh.

Asian Markets Extended Gains On Monday, Hong Kong Index Soared

Arjun Pandit
04 Sep, 2023
Mumbai

Market indexes in Asia traded higher following gains on Wall Street in Friday's trading after the U.S. economy expanded at a moderate pace and jobless rate as more people joined the labor force.

Moreover, China's additional stimulus measures to support property market and cut mortgage rates for first home buyers also revived market sentiment.

On Friday, China announced new measures to support property market and yuan.

In addition, the central bank also lowered interest rates on new mortgage rates by 40 basis points for the premium to its benchmark loan prime rate.

Regulators also said mortgage rates on existing loans can be renegotiated starting as early as September 25.

The lowered rates are likely to help 40 million home buyers, or about two thirds of housing loans in the country.

The PBOC announced foreign exchange reserve requirements to 4% from 6% for banks, to support the weakening yuan which has been under pressure for the last five months.

The yuan has dropped around 6% as foreign investors pulled out of China amid deepening real estate crisis.

A private survey of manufacturing industry showed a surprise expansion in August, marking the highest level since February and significant improvement in factory activities.

In Monday's trading, the Nikkei index increased 0.6%, the Shanghai SSE Composite index added 1.2%, the Hang Seng index jumped 2.4% and the KOSPI index added 0.6%.

Country Garden soared more than 15% after the largest real estate company in China narrowly averted its first-ever bond default after investors granted a grace period of 30 days for a yuan loan payment.

In August, the Nikkei index fell 2.6%, the SSE Composite index declined 5.2%, the Hang Seng index fell 8.2% and the KOSPI index decreased 4.2%.

U.S. Market Indexes Hold Weekly Gains, August Payrolls Show Moderating Job Market

Barry Adams
01 Sep, 2023
New York City

Market averages jumped in early trading after the release of nonfarm payrolls data and Treasury yields edged slightly higher.

However, after two hours of trading, averages turned lower and struggled to rise above the flatline.

Treasury yields edged higher after the U.S. economy added less than 200,000 net new jobs in August but jobless rate rose in the month as the labor market began to cool after multiple rate hikes over the last sixteen months.

For the week, the S&P 500 index is up 2% and the Nasdaq index is higher by about 3% as investors bid up stocks in energy and tech sectors.

U.S. Nonfarm Payrolls Expanded Third Month In a Row In August

The US economy added a net 187,000 jobs in August, and payrolls expanded at a faster pace for the third month in a row, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Employment increased in health care by 71,000, leisure and hospitality by 40,000, social assistance by 26,000, construction by 22,000 and professional services by 19,000.

On the other hand, transportation and warehousing lost 34,000 jobs, following the bankruptcy of Yellow, a leading trucking company, which left about 30,000 workers out of jobs.

The change in total nonfarm payroll employment for June was revised down 80,000 to 105,000, and the change for July was revised down by 30,000 to 157,000.

Jobless rate increased to 3.8% in August and the number of unemployed increased by 0.51 million to 6.4 million, and jobless rate increased from 3.7% and unemployed increased from 6.0 million a year ago.

Average hourly rates increased by 4.3% from a year ago, reflecting easting labor market conditions and slowing economy.

U.S. Indexes & Yields

The S&P 500 index traded down 0.02% to 4,507.02 and the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.02% to 14,003.02.

The yield on 2-year Treasury notes decreased to 4.88%, 10-year Treasury notes inched higher to 4.11% and 30-year Treasury bonds edged down to 4.30%.

Crude oil increased $1.50 to $85.13 a barrel and natural gas prices increased 5 cents to $2.82 a thermal unit.

U.S. Stock Movers

Dell Technologies soared 23% to $69.22 after the company reported quarterly results ahead of market expectations.

Second quarter revenue decreased 13% to $22.9 billion and net income dropped 10% to $455 million from $506 million and diluted earnings per share fell to 63 cents from 68 cents a year ago.

MongoDB Inc jumped 5.7% after the database developer reported mixed quarterly results.

The software company reported second quarter revenue of $423.8 million and adjusted earnings of 93 cents a share.

Lululemon Athletica Inc soared 4.5% to $401.72 after the athletic apparel retailer reported a jump in revenue and earnings.

Second quarter revenue increased 18% to $2.2 billion, driven by 11% in North American and 52% in international markets.

Net income jumped to $341.6 million from $289.5 million and diluted earnings per share rose to$2.68 from $2.26.

Euro Area Manufacturing Struggled In August, UK Home Prices Fell at Fastest Pace in 14 Years

Bridgette Randall
01 Sep, 2023
Frankfurt

European markets traded higher on the first day of September and final day of the week and investors reviewed economic news from the region, China and the U.S.

Market indexes advanced in London, Paris and Frankfurt after a manufacturing survey showed a pick up in activities to the level last seen three months ago.

The Eurozone manufacturing PMI increased to a three-month high of 43.50 points in August from 42.70 points in July, reported by S&P global.

Germany's manufacturing weakness continued in August.

The final factory PMI logged 39.1 in August, confirming the previous estimate and slightly above 38.8 in July.

France's manufacturing accelerated its decline in new orders putting production and employment under pressure.

The final PMI rose to 46.0 in August from 45.1 in July.

The overall numbers show ongoing weakness in the manufacturing industry and new orders declined in August and exports struggled and input costs continued to fall.

In other economic news, U.K. home prices fell at the fastest pace in more than 14 years in August as rising borrowing costs negatively impacted housing market activity, the Nationwide Building Society report highlighted.

Home prices posted an annual decline of 5.3% after easing from 3.8% in July, the decline was the largest fall since July 2009.

Europe Indexes & Yields

The DAX index decreased 0.1% to 15,926.96, the CAC-40 index rose 0.2% to 7,334.23 and the FTSE 100 index advanced 0.5% 7,475.25.

The yield on 10-year German bonds decreased to 2.47%, French bonds traded lower to 2.99%, the UK gilts edged down to 4.34% and Italian bonds fell to 4.12%.

The euro edged to the lowest level since mid-June on the hopes that the central is more likely to pause its rate hike campaign and assess the impact of the multiple rate hikes on the economy.

The euro edged lower to $1.086, the British pound to $1.269 and the U.S. dollar fetched 88.09 Swiss cents.

Brent crude increased $1.0 to $87.83 a barrel and the Dutch TTF natural gas decreased €0.21 to €36.82 per MWh.

Europe Stock Movers

Salzgitter AG increased 0.6% to €27.36 despite the steelmaker dropping its fiscal year 2023 outlook for now.

Electrolux AB declined 1.3% to kr 119.05 after the Swedish appliance maker recalled some models of Frigidaire gas cooktops to fix potential gas leaks.

Johnson Matthey Plc soared 11% to 1,809.50 pence after the U.S. based investment company Standard Industries doubled its stake in the company to 10%.

Aurubis AG declined 9.7% to €69.0 after the Germany-based copper smelter issued a profit warning.

Camellia Plc declined 5% to 5,200.0 pence after the British agriculture engineering company reported its first-half results.

Late Rally In Volatile August Lifted U.S. and Global Stocks Higher

Barry Adams
31 Aug, 2023
New York City

Stocks were volatile on the final day of the month but market averages retained upward bias.

Market averages are likely to stretch the latest winning streak to the fifth session in a row and Treasury yields edged lower.

The latest market gains helped the S&P 500 index trim its August losses to 1.5% and the Nasdaq to 2.3% after a rally in tech stocks lifted broader indexes.

Treasury yields edged lower after the release of alternative measure of inflation data.

Core personal consumption expenditures index increased 0.2% in July from the previous month and jumped 4.2% from a year ago, the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis reported Thursday.

The core PCE index, which significantly understates inflation felt by most families, is the preferred inflation measure of the Federal Reserve.

The PCE index increased 0.2% from the previous month and rose 3.3% from a year ago.

The inflation reading confirmed prices are still rising at a faster pace, despite multiple rate hikes over the last sixteen months.

The stubborn inflation data provided another signal to Fed's policymakers and supported the case for hawkish stance.

In other economic news, initial jobless claims adjusted for seasonal factors declined 4,000 to 228,000 in the week ending on August 26, the Labor Department reported Thursday.

Meanwhile, continuing claims rose 28,000 from the previous week's downwardly revised to 1.725 million in the week ending on August 19.

U.S. Indexes & Yields

The S&P 500 index traded up 0.3% to 4,518.44 and the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.3% to 14,060.16.

The yield on 2-year Treasury notes decreased to 4.89%, 10-year Treasury notes inched lower to 4.09% and 30-year Treasury bonds edged down to 4.20%.

Crude oil increased $1.54 to $83.16 a barrel and natural gas prices decreased 1 cent to $2.78 a thermal unit.

U.S. Stock Movers

Salesforce Inc jumped 4.9% to $226.0 after customer management software developer reported better-than-expected sales and earnings.

Revenue increased to$8.6 billion and adjusted diluted earnings per share of $2.12.

Costco Wholesale Corp increased 0.3% to $544.18 after the membership discount wholesale club said August sales increased 5% to $18.42 billion.

Five Below Inc declined 4.5% to $174.88 after the deep discount retailer forecasted weak third quarter results.

The retailer estimated revenue to fall between $715 million and $730 million and earnings per share between 17 cents and 25 cents, sharply lower than estimates set by some analysts.

Victoria's Secret & Company declined 4.9% to $17.06 after the lingerie retailer reported disappointing second quarter results.

The specialty retailer reported revenue of $1.43 billion and adjusted earnings per share of 26 cents.

Chewy Inc dropped 15.1% to $23.12 after the online pet food retailer said second quarter sales of $2.78 billion and diluted earnings per share of 4 cents.

Okta Inc jumped 14.2% to $83.83 and the identity access management reported sales and earnings ahead of market expectations.

Second quarter revenue increased to $556 million and adjusted earnings per share of 31 cents.

Crowdstrike Holdings Inc jumped 7.6% to $160.21 after the cybersecurity company reported better-than-expected revenue and earnings.

The company reported second quarter adjusted earnings per share of 74 cents on revenue of $734 million.

European Markets Trim August Losses, Inflation Stays Elevated

European markets advanced and investors overlooked German retail sales and the Euro Area inflation data.

Market indexes on the last day of the month in London, Paris and Frankfurt traded higher but popular averages are set to close down between 2% and 3% in August.

In volatile trading this month, investors remained divided on the future rate path as stubborn inflation remained significantly ahead of the European Central Bank's target level of 2%.

Consumer price inflation in the eurozone remained unchanged at 5.3% in August, the European Central Bank reported Thursday.

On the other hand, core inflation rate, which excludes volatile food, energy and tobacco prices, cooled to 5.3% from 5.5% in July.

In other economic news in the region, the Euro Area seasonally adjusted jobless rate stayed at a record low of 6.4% in July, lower than 6.7% in the period a year ago, Eurostat reported Thursday.

Jobless rate was the lowest in Germany with 2.9% and was the highest in Spain at 11.6% followed by 7.6% in Italy and 7.4% in France.

Europe Indexes & Yields

The DAX index increased 0.4% to 15,947.08, the CAC-40 index declined 0.7% to 7,316.70 and the FTSE 100 index advanced 0.2% 7,487.89.

The yield on 10-year German bonds decreased to 2.48%, French bonds traded lower to 3..0%, the UK gilts edged down to 4.43% and Italian bonds fell to 4.13%.

The euro edged to the lowest level since mid-June on the hopes that the central is more likely to pause its rate hike campaign and assess the impact of the multiple rate hikes on the economy.

The euro edged lower to $1.087, the British pound to $1.267 and the U.S. dollar fetched 88.19 Swiss cents.

Brent crude increased $1.60 to $86.63 a barrel and the Dutch TTF natural gas decreased €0.96 to €35.93 per MWh.

Europe Stock Movers

Pernod Ricard SA dropped 4.5% to €185.65 after the French spirits maker said sales in key markets in China and the U.S. are likely to decline in the fiscal first quarter ending in September.

Sanofi SA gained 1% to €99.61 after the company reorganized its executive management team.

Grafton Group Plc increased 1.5% to 867.90 pence after the building materials supplier hiked its dividend and announced a new stock repurchase plan of up to £50 million.

Frasers Group Plc added 1.6% to 809 pence after the sportswear retailer lifted its stake in online retailer Boohoo to 9.1% from 7.8%.

Boohoo Group Plc jumped 4.5% to 34.85 pence.

UBS Group AG jumped 5.8% to CHF 23.47 after the Swiss banking group reported significantly higher earnings on higher revenue.

Profit-before-tax jumped to $29.23 billion, primarily reflecting a $28.9 billion negative goodwill related to the acquisition of Credit Suisse Group and including net credit loss expenses of $740 million.

Net profit attributable to shareholders was $28.88 billion, with diluted earnings per share of $8.99.

Return on CET1 capital was 185.0% or 4.5% excluding negative goodwill, integration-related expenses and acquisition costs.

Revenue in the second quarter jumped to $9.5 billion from $8.9 billion and net income jumped to $28.9 billion from $2.1 billion and diluted earnings per share soared to $8.99 from 61 cents a year ago.

Credit Suisse group's performance appears to be stabilizing and net deposit outflow reversed to inflow in the second quarter was $18 billion, taking the total deposit inflow for the group including UBS increased to $23 billion.

UBS also said it plans to wind down noncore businesses of Credit Suisse, including its investment banking, wealth management and asset management units.

Movers: Costco, Chewy, Crowdstrike, Five Below, Okta, Salesforce, Signet Jewelers, Victoria's Secret

Scott Peters
31 Aug, 2023
New York City

Salesforce Inc jumped 4.9% to $226.0 after customer management software developer reported better-than-expected sales and earnings.

Revenue increased to$8.6 billion and adjusted diluted earnings per share of $2.12.

Costco Wholesale Corp increased 0.3% to $544.18 after the membership discount wholesale club said August sales increased 5% to $18.42 billion.

Five Below Inc declined 4.5% to $174.88 after the deep discount retailer forecasted weak third quarter results.

The retailer estimated revenue to fall between $715 million and $730 million and earnings per share between 17 cents and 25 cents, sharply lower than estimates set by some analysts.

Victoria's Secret & Company declined 4.9% to $17.06 after the lingerie retailer reported disappointing second quarter results.

The specialty retailer reported revenue of $1.43 billion and adjusted earnings per share of 26 cents.

Chewy Inc dropped 15.1% to $23.12 after the online pet food retailer said second quarter sales of $2.78 billion and diluted earnings per share of 4 cents.

The company said in a conference call with investors that active customers declined 0.6% to 20.4 million and customers are trading down amid high inflation.

Net sales for active customer increased 14.7% to $530 and auto customers sales increased 240 basis points to 75.5%.

Despite the customers substituting lower priced treats for pets, gross margin increased 20 basis points to 28.3%, indicating prudent promotional activities.

Net sales increased 14.3% to $2.78 billion and net income declined to $18.9 million from $22.3 million and diluted earnings per share fell to 4 cents from 5 cents a year ago.

Crowdstrike Holdings Inc jumped 7.6% to $160.21 after the cybersecurity company reported better-than-expected revenue and earnings.

The company reported second quarter adjusted earnings per share of 74 cents on revenue of $734 million.

Signet Jewelers Ltd increased 5.3% to $75.27 after the retailer reported better-than-expected quarterly results.

Sales in the second quarter ending in July declined 8.1% to $1.6 billion and same store sales plunged 12% from a year ago.

Same store sales in North America declined 12.2% and nonstore sales, which includes online sales, rose 5.2%, resulting in a decline of 7.1% to $1.5 billion.

Net income attributable to common shareholders plunged to $66.5 million from $136.8 million and diluted earnings per share fell to $1.38 from $2.56 a year ago.

The retailer guided third quarter sales to decline to between $1.36 billion and $1.41 billion and full-year revenue between $7.1 billion and $7.3 billion and diluted earnings per share between $9.55 and $10.64.

U.S. Stocks Rally Extend to 5th Session, Fed's Inflation Measure Inches Higher

Barry Adams
31 Aug, 2023
New York City

Market averages traded higher on the final day of the month as indexes are likely to stretch the latest winning streak to the fifth session in a row.

The latest market gains helped the S&P 500 index trim its August losses to 1% and the Nasdaq to 2% after a rally in tech stocks lifted broader indexes.

Core personal consumption expenditures index increased 0.2% in July from the previous month and jumped 4.2% from a year ago, the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis reported Thursday.

The core PCE index, which significantly understates inflation felt by most families, is the preferred inflation measure of the Federal Reserve.

The PCE index increased 0.2% from the previous month and rose 3.3% from a year ago.

The inflation reading shows prices are still rising at a faster pace, despite multiple rate hikes over the last sixteen months.

In other economic news, initial jobless claims adjusted for seasonal factors declined 4,000 to 228,000 in the week ending on August 26, the Labor Department reported Thursday.

Meanwhile, continuing claims rose 28,000 from the previous week's downwardly revised to 1.725 million in the week ending on August 19.

U.S. Indexes & Yields

The S&P 500 index traded up 0.3% to 4,528.90 and the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.5% to 14,095.94.

The yield on 2-year Treasury notes decreased to 4.89%, 10-year Treasury notes inched lower to 4.09% and 30-year Treasury bonds edged down to 4.20%.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil and Brent crude oil prices hovered near the levels last seen In April after a larger-than-expected weekly drawdown of weekly crude supplies last week.

Crude oil increased $1.48 to $83.11 a barrel and natural gas prices decreased 3 cents to $2.76 a thermal unit.