Market Update
Wall Street Stocks Lacked Direction After Stubborn Inflation Stays Above Fed's Target Rate In August
Arjun Pandit
13 Sep, 2023
New York City
Market indexes on Wall Street traded higher after investors reviewed the latest inflation report.
Overall inflation accelerated for the second month in August to 3.7% from 3.2% in July, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Wednesday.
The inflation picked up following the increase in oil prices in the last two months and weaker comparison from the previous year and cost of transportation services picked up in the month.
Core inflation, which exclude energy and food, slowed for the fifth month in a row to 4.3% from a year ago and rose 0.3% from the previous month.
The inflation data measured by the government understates the price increases faced my most urban families with children. The government data vastly understates housing price inflation and cost of shelter in most urban cities across the nation.
Overall inflation faced my most families, when including home price inflation, could run into upper double digits.
The yield on U.S. Treasury bonds and notes were nearly unchanged after the release of consumer price inflation data and focus shifted to wholesale price inflation data scheduled to be released on Thursday.
Despite multiple interest rate hikes over the last sixteen months, inflation has cooled largely because of base effect and rate of price increases has stayed above the Fed's preferred target range of 2%.
U.S. Indexes & Yields
The S&P 500 index inched up 0.2% to 4,472.03 and the Nasdaq Composite added 0.3% to 13,809.52.
The yield on 2-year Treasury notes hovered near 5.01%, 10-year Treasury notes inched slightly higher to 4.28% and 30-year Treasury bonds edged down to 4.37%.
Crude oil increased $0.29 to $89.12 a barrel and natural gas prices increased 0.05 cent to $2.69 a thermal unit.
The dollar index edged lower to 104.62 mark and hovered near the 105 mark reached last week but higher than the low of 99.85 on July 13.
Last week, the dollar index, which tracks the price of the U.S. dollar against major currencies, halted a five-day rally Friday but extended gains to the eight week in a row and rose to a six-month high on the expectations of higher interest rates.
U.S. Stock Movers
American Airlines Group Inc declined 4.5% to $13.42 after the international carrier said higher crude oil prices are expected to hurt quarterly profit.
The airline estimated third quarter adjusted earnings per share between 20 cents and 30 cents, citing higher fuel prices and a new compensation terms with pilot unions.
Spirit Airlines Inc dropped 3.3% to $16.70 after the discount carrier lowered its third quarter revenue estimate and operating margin of as much as -15.5% from the previous estimate of between -5.5% and -7.5%.
Moderna Inc increased 5.1% to $110.82 after the Center for Disease Control and Prevention recommended new Covid 19 vaccine for all Americans older than 6 months and older.
Europe Movers: Aviva, BP, Hunting, Inditex, Renault
Inga Muller
13 Sep, 2023
Frankfurt
European markets lacked direction ahead of the rate decisions by the European Central Bank on Thursday.
The DAX index decreased 0.8% to 15,593.30, the CAC-40 index eased 0.1% to 7,269.66 and the FTSE 100 index inched down 0.4% to 7,499.80.
Inditex SA decreased 2.4% to €35.05 despite the parent of Zara reporting a 40% jump in profit in the first-half.
BP Plc decreased 1.2% to 516.30 pence and chief executive Bernard Looney resigned over personal relationships with colleagues.
Renault SA advanced 1.9% to €37.43 and the European Commission launched an investigation into subsidies received by electric vehicle makers in China.
Europe is "Open to competition but not for a race to the bottom," said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
Hunting Plc jumped 4.4% to 270.50 pence after the engineering company reiterated its fiscal 2023 and 2024 outlook and forecasted growth for the rest of the decade.
Aviva Plc rose 2.9% to 387.20 pence after the British insurance company said it plans to exit from its Singlife joint venture.
Aviva plans to sell its 25.9% stake in Singapore Life Holdings and two debt securities to Japan based Sumitomo Life for £800 million.
Rate Decision Anxieties Keep European Indexes In Check, Euro Area Industrial Output Eased
Bridgette Randall
13 Sep, 2023
Frankfurt
Stock markets in Europe traded down after weak regional economic data added to investor anxieties ahead of interest rate decisions on Thursday.
Popular indexes in Frankfurt, London and Paris eased lower and the euro dropped to a three-month low ahead of the widely anticipated 25 basis points rate hike by the European Central Bank.
Euro Area Industrial Production Declined In July
Industrial output in the Euro Are declined 1.1% from the previous month in July, Eurostat reported Wednesday.
The weakness in durable goods production overshadowed the increase in energy production and the rebound in intermediate goods and non-durable goods output.
Industrial production declined 2.2% in July, and fell for the fifth month in a row and fell six months in the last nine months.
UK GDP Shrank In July
The U.K. economy shrank at the fastest pace in seven months in July, the Office for National Statistics reported Wednesday.
Weakness in the service sector of 0.5% was the main contributor to the decline in overall activities, driving the weakness in healthcare and computer programming related activities.
GDP decreased 0.5% from the previous month reversing the gain of 0.5% in June.
For the three months to July, GDP expanded 0.2%.
Europe Indexes & Yields
The DAX index decreased 0.8% to 15,593.30, the CAC-40 index eased 0.1% to 7,269.66 and the FTSE 100 index inched down 0.4% to 7,499.80.
The yield on 10-year German bonds increased to 2.68%, French bonds traded higher to 3.22%, the UK gilts edged up to 4.41% and Italian bonds rose to 4.47%.
The euro edged lower to a three-month low to $1.071, the British pound to $1.243 and the U.S. dollar fetched 89.25 Swiss cents.
Brent crude decreased $0.47 to $92.52 a barrel and the Dutch TTF natural gas decreased €0.78 to €35.48 per MWh.
Europe Stock Movers
Inditex SA decreased 2.4% to €35.05 despite the parent of Zara reporting a 40% jump in profit in the first-half.
BP Plc decreased 1.2% to 516.30 pence and chief executive Bernard Looney resigned over personal relationships with colleagues.
Renault SA advanced 1.9% to €37.43 and the European Commission launched an investigation into subsidies received by electric vehicle makers in China.
Europe is "Open to competition but not for a race to the bottom," said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
Hunting Plc jumped 4.4% to 270.50 pence after the engineering company reiterated its fiscal 2023 and 2024 outlook and forecasted growth for the rest of the decade.
Aviva Plc rose 2.9% to 387.20 pence after the British insurance company said it plans to exit from its Singlife joint venture.
Aviva plans to sell its 25.9% stake in Singapore Life Holdings and two debt securities to Japan based Sumitomo Life for £800 million.
Nikkei Rally Extended to Fourth Day, China Indexes Struggled
Arjun Pandit
13 Sep, 2023
New York City
Stocks in Asia traded mixed after the benchmark index in Tokyo advanced nearly 1% and in India traded hear record highs.
The Nikkei index in Tokyo advanced as investors piled into banks on the hopes that the Bank of Japan will soon shift its yield curve management and close yield gap with other advanced economies.
In Tuesday's trading. the yield on 20-year and 30-year Japanese Government Bonds rose as high as 1.47% and 1.725% respectively, highs not seen in nine years.
The yield on newly issued 10-year Japanese Government Bond rose to 0.72%, a level not seen since 2014 after the Bank of Japan Governor signaled tolerance for higher rates last week.
In economic news, Japan's producer price index, a measure of wholesale price inflation, declined for the eighth month in a row.
Producer price index in Japan rose 3.2% from a year ago in August, slowing from a downwardly revised 3.4% increase in July and dropping to the lowest level since March 2021.
Market indexes in China lacked direction after indexes declined for five days in a row in Hong Kong.
The Hang Seng index traded as high as 1% in earlier trading before reversing the direction on the hopes that the recent restriction of new public offering by the Chinese regulators may lift market indexes higher.
The number of new listings in September have fallen to 8 from 37 in July and 33 in June, according to data available from Post, Bloomberg and KPMG.
The new issue market in A-shares on Chinese exchanges raised about 30% less in the first half compared to last year, despite more companies completing public offering.
Asia Market Indexes
In Wednesday's trading, the Nikkei index increased 0.95% to 32,776.37, the Shanghai SSE Composite index jumped 0.2% to 3,137.06, the Hang Seng index declined 0.2% to 17,992.98 and the KOSPI index decreased 0.8% to 2,536.58
Stocks in Mumbai lacked direction and popular market indexes hovered near record highs.
Consumer price inflation in August eased to 6.83% in August from 7.44% in July, the MOSPI reported Wednesday.
The Sensex index decreased 18.16 points to 67,202.98 and the Nifty index fell 9.40 points to 19,986.30.
On the Mumbai stock exchange, 83 stocks traded at their 52-week highs and 14 traded at their 52-week lows.
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%.
Nasdaq Down 1% After Oracle Results and Ahead of Inflation Reports
Barry Adams
12 Sep, 2023
New York City
Trading in tech stocks dominated market sentiment and popular indexes traded down after Oracle's quarterly results disappointed some investors.
Oracle hardware and software license sales fell short of market expectations and also the guidance for the current quarter put the market on alert for a possible weakness in corporate spending.
Moreover, nervous investors sold stocks ahead of two inflation reports and retail sales data later in the week.
Crude oil jumped to a new 10-month high on the supply worries and sustained demand despite the recent increases in prices.
Energy stocks led gainers in early trading, following the rise in crude oil prices after the OPEC estimated global crude oil demand to grow by 225 million barrels per day, but lower than 2.44 million barrels per day increase estimated in 2023.
Investors are awaiting consumer price inflation data on Wednesday and economists are expecting core inflation rate to hold steady but overall inflation may edge slightly lower in August
U.S. Indexes & Yields
The S&P 500 index traded down 0.6% to 4,461.09 and the Nasdaq Composite eased 1.04% to 13,773.61.
The yield on 2-year Treasury notes decreased to 5.01%, 10-year Treasury notes inched lower to 4.28% and 30-year Treasury bonds edged down to 4.37%.
Crude oil increased $1.51 to $88.86 a barrel and natural gas prices increased 0.06 cent to $2.67 a thermal unit.
The dollar index edged lower to 104.90 mark and hovered near the 105 mark reached last week but higher than the low of 99.85 on July 13.
Last week, the dollar index, which tracks the price of the U.S. dollar against major currencies, halted a five-day rally Friday but extended gains to the eight week in a row and rose to a six-month high on the expectations of higher interest rates.
U.S. Stock Movers
WestRock agreed to merge with Smurfit Kappa and form one of the largest packaging companies in the world.
Smurfit WestRock, the newly formed holding company will be headquartered in Dublin, Ireland and will be listed on the London Stock Exchange and the New York Stock Exchange.
WestRock stockholders will receive one Smurfit WestRock share and $5 cash and Smurfit Kappa shareholders will receive one share of the newly formed company.
Smurfit Kappa shareholders will own 50.4% of the newly merged company.
The combined packaging company will have about $34 billion in annual sales with about 65% of the revenue located in the Americas.
WestRock jumped 7.7% to $36.75 and Smurfit Kappa Group Plc declined 8.0% in London trading to 2,824.0 pence.
Oracle Corp dropped 9.2% to $126.71 after the database company reported weaker-than-expected revenue in the fiscal first quarter.
Revenue in the quarter was $12.45 billion and adjusted earnings per share was $1.19, both fell short of some analysts' expectations.
The company also guided lighter-than-expected revenue growth in the fiscal second quarter between 5% and 7% and adjusted earnings per share between $1.30 and $1.34.
Cloud services and license support segment revenue increased 13% from a year ago to $9.55 billion but the cloud license and on-premises license segment revenue decreased 10% to $809 million.
Hardware revenue fell 6% to $714 million.
Casey's General Stores Inc jumped 4% to $246.30 after the retail chain reported better-than-expected quarterly results.
Quarterly revenue increased to $3.87 billion and diluted earnings per share rose to$4.52.
European Markets Turn Lower Ahead of Rate Decisions
European markets traded mixed and investors awaited interest rate decisions from the European Central Bank and the U.S. inflation data.
Investors looked for bargains in cautious trading amid uncertainty about the interest rate policy and looming global economic slowdown.
German wholesale inflation declined for the fifth month in a row, the Federal Statistics Office or Destatis reported Tuesday.
Producer price index declined 2.7% in August from a year ago because of a 15.8% decline in mineral oil products after prices eased from elevated prices compared to the previous year.
Producer prices rose 0.2% from the previous month, reversing a 0.2% decline in July.
On a monthly basis, mineral oil products prices rose 6.9% in August.
The U.K. jobless rate rose to 4.3% in the three months to July from 4.2% in the previous three months, the Office for National Statistics reported Tuesday.
UK weekly average earnings excluding bonuses rose 7.8% from a year ago to £617 in the three months to July 2023, the Office for National Statistics reported Tuesday.
The weekly average wage growth rose by the same amount as in the previous period, matching the highest regular annual growth rate since comparable records began in 2001.
Finance and business services reported the largest increase of 9.5%, followed by the manufacturing sector with 8.1%, one of the largest annual regular growth rates for the manufacturing sector since 2001.
Europe Indexes & Yields
The DAX index decreased 0.5% to 15,715.33, the CAC-40 index eased 0.1% to 7,270.28 and the FTSE 100 index inched up 0.6% to 7,527.53.
In the previous week, the DAX declined 1.6%, the CAC 40 fell 2.0% and the FTSE index dropped 0.3%.
The yield on 10-year German bonds increased to 2.63%, French bonds traded lower to 3.17%, the UK gilts edged up to 4.43% and Italian bonds rose to 4.38%.
The euro edged lower to $1.071, the British pound to $1.246 and the U.S. dollar fetched 89.19 Swiss cents.
Brent crude increased $1.21 to $92.21 a barrel and the Dutch TTF natural gas decreased €0.58 to €35.26 per MWh.
Europe Stock Movers
Smurfit Kappa Group Plc declined 9.7% to 2,772.0 pence after the packaging company announced a merger deal with the U.S. based WestRock.
Vallourec SA increased 0.2% to €12.32 after the French geothermal company reiterated its operating earnings outlook for the full-year 2023.
SAP SE declined 2.9% to €125.20 after the U.S. rival Oracle reported weaker-than-expected software license and hardware revenue in the fiscal first quarter.
Associated British Foods plc soared 7.0% to 2,141.04 pence after the company raised its full-year profit estimate for the second time in four months.
U.S. Movers: Apple, Casey's General, Oracle, WestRock
Scott Peters
12 Sep, 2023
New York City
Stocks on Wall Street traded lower and higher crude oil prices weighed on market sentiment.
The S&P 500 index traded down 0.2% to 4,471.24 and the Nasdaq Composite eased 0.4% to 13,8536.20.
WestRock agreed to merge with Smurfit Kappa and form one of the largest packaging companies in the world.
Smurfit WestRock, the newly formed holding company will be headquartered in Dublin, Ireland and will be listed on the London Stock Exchange and the New York Stock Exchange.
WestRock stockholders will receive one Smurfit WestRock share and $5 cash and Smurfit Kappa shareholders will receive one share of the newly formed company.
Smurfit Kappa shareholders will own 50.4% of the newly merged company.
The combined packaging company will have about $34 billion in annual sales with about 65% of the revenue located in the Americas.
WestRock jumped 7.7% to $36.75 and Smurfit Kappa Group Plc declined 8.0% in London trading to 2,824.0 pence.
Oracle Corp dropped 9.2% to $126.71 after the database company reported weaker-than-expected revenue in the fiscal first quarter.
Revenue in the quarter was $12.45 billion and adjusted earnings per share was $1.19, both fell short of some analysts' expectations.
The company also guided lighter-than-expected revenue growth in the fiscal second quarter between 5% and 7% and adjusted earnings per share between $1.30 and $1.34.
Cloud services and license support segment revenue increased 13% from a year ago to $9.55 billion but the cloud license and on-premises license segment revenue decreased 10% to $809 million.
Hardware revenue fell 6% to $714 million.
Casey's General Stores Inc jumped 4% to $246.30 after the retail chain reported better-than-expected quarterly results.
Quarterly revenue increased to $3.87 billion and diluted earnings per share rose to$4.52.
Apple Inc jumped 0.2% to $179.63 ahead of the company's annual event today and the company is widely expected to announce the release of iPhone 15.
Higher Oil Price and Inflation Worries Weighed On U.S. Stocks
Barry Adams
12 Sep, 2023
New York City
Stocks on Wall Street traded lower and higher crude oil prices weighed on market sentiment.
Popular market indexes traded down ahead of two inflation reports and retail sales data later in the week.
Crude oil jumped to a new 10-month high on the supply worries and sustained demand despite the recent increases in prices.
Energy stocks led gainers in early trading, following the rise in crude oil prices after the OPEC estimated global crude oil demand to grow by 225 million barrels per day, but lower than 2.44 million barrels per day increase estimated in 2023.
Investors are awaiting consumer price inflation data on Wednesday and economists are expecting core inflation rate to hold steady but overall inflation may edge slightly lower in August
U.S. Indexes & Yields
The S&P 500 index traded down 0.2% to 4,471.24 and the Nasdaq Composite eased 0.4% to 13,8536.20.
The yield on 2-year Treasury notes decreased to 5.01%, 10-year Treasury notes inched lower to 4.28% and 30-year Treasury bonds edged down to 4.37%.
Crude oil increased $1.40 to $88.70 a barrel and natural gas prices increased 0.06 cent to $2.67 a thermal unit.
The dollar index edged lower to 104.90 mark and hovered near the 105 mark reached last week but higher than the low of 99.85 on July 13.
Last week, the dollar index, which tracks the price of the U.S. dollar against major currencies, halted a five-day rally Friday but extended gains to the eight week in a row and rose to a six-month high on the expectations of higher interest rates.
U.S. Stock Movers
WestRock agreed to merge with Smurfit Kappa and form one of the largest packaging companies in the world.
Smurfit WestRock, the newly formed holding company will be headquartered in Dublin, Ireland and will be listed on the London Stock Exchange and the New York Stock Exchange.
WestRock stockholders will receive one Smurfit WestRock share and $5 cash and Smurfit Kappa shareholders will receive one share of the newly formed company.
Smurfit Kappa shareholders will own 50.4% of the newly merged company.
The combined packaging company will have about $34 billion in annual sales with about 65% of the revenue located in the Americas.
WestRock jumped 7.7% to $36.75 and Smurfit Kappa Group Plc declined 8.0% in London trading to 2,824.0 pence.
Oracle Corp dropped 9.2% to $126.71 after the database company reported weaker-than-expected revenue in the fiscal first quarter.
Revenue in the quarter was $12.45 billion and adjusted earnings per share was $1.19, both fell short of some analysts' expectations.
The company also guided lighter-than-expected revenue growth in the fiscal second quarter between 5% and 7% and adjusted earnings per share between $1.30 and $1.34.
Cloud services and license support segment revenue increased 13% from a year ago to $9.55 billion but the cloud license and on-premises license segment revenue decreased 10% to $809 million.
Hardware revenue fell 6% to $714 million.
Casey's General Stores Inc jumped 4% to $246.30 after the retail chain reported better-than-expected quarterly results.
Quarterly revenue increased to $3.87 billion and diluted earnings per share rose to$4.52.
Europe Movers: Associated British Foods, SAP, Smurfit Kappa, Vallourec
Inga Muller
12 Sep, 2023
Frankfurt
European markets traded mixed and German wholesale inflation declined for the fifth month in a row in August and UK's jobless rate edged higher in three-month period to July.
The DAX index decreased 0.3% to 15,748.48, the CAC-40 index eased 0.1% to 7,270.28 and the FTSE 100 index inched up 0.6% to 7,540.95.
Smurfit Kappa Group Plc declined 9.7% to 2,772.0 pence after the packaging company announced a merger deal with the U.S. based WestRock.
Vallourec SA increased 0.2% to €12.32 after the French geothermal company reiterated its operating earnings outlook for the full-year 2023.
SAP SE declined 2.9% to €125.20 after the U.S. rival Oracle reported weaker-than-expected software license and hardware revenue in the fiscal first quarter.
Associated British Foods plc soared 7.0% to 2,141.04 pence after the company raised its full-year profit estimate for the second time in four months.
Mixed European Markets, German Wholesale Inflation Fell for 5th Consecutive Month
Bridgette Randall
12 Sep, 2023
Frankfurt
European markets traded mixed and investors awaited interest rate decisions from the European Central Bank and the U.S. inflation data.
Investors looked for bargains in cautious trading amid uncertainty about the interest rate policy and looming global economic slowdown.
German wholesale inflation declined for the fifth month in a row, the Federal Statistics Office or Destatis reported Tuesday.
Producer price index declined 2.7% in August from a year ago because of a 15.8% decline in mineral oil products after prices eased from elevated prices compared to the previous year.
Producer prices rose 0.2% from the previous month, reversing a 0.2% decline in July.
On a monthly basis, mineral oil products prices rose 6.9% in August.
The U.K. jobless rate rose to 4.3% in the three months to July from 4.2% in the previous three months, the Office for National Statistics reported Tuesday.
UK weekly average earnings excluding bonuses rose 7.8% from a year ago to £617 in the three months to July 2023, the Office for National Statistics reported Tuesday.
The weekly average wage growth rose by the same amount as in the previous period, matching the highest regular annual growth rate since comparable records began in 2001.
Finance and business services reported the largest increase of 9.5%, followed by the manufacturing sector with 8.1%, one of the largest annual regular growth rates for the manufacturing sector since 2001.
Europe Indexes & Yields
The DAX index decreased 0.3% to 15,748.48, the CAC-40 index eased 0.1% to 7,270.28 and the FTSE 100 index inched up 0.6% to 7,540.95.
In the previous week, the DAX declined 1.6%, the CAC 40 fell 2.0% and the FTSE index dropped 0.3%.
The yield on 10-year German bonds increased to 2.63%, French bonds traded lower to 3.17%, the UK gilts edged up to 4.43% and Italian bonds rose to 4.38%.
The euro edged lower to $1.071, the British pound to $1.246 and the U.S. dollar fetched 89.19 Swiss cents.
Brent crude decreased $0.71 to $91.35 a barrel and the Dutch TTF natural gas decreased €0.56 to €35.27 per MWh.
Europe Stock Movers
Smurfit Kappa Group Plc declined 9.7% to 2,772.0 pence after the packaging company announced a merger deal with the U.S. based WestRock.
Vallourec SA increased 0.2% to €12.32 after the French geothermal company reiterated its operating earnings outlook for the full-year 2023.
SAP SE declined 2.9% to €125.20 after the U.S. rival Oracle reported weaker-than-expected software license and hardware revenue in the fiscal first quarter.
Associated British Foods plc soared 7.0% to 2,141.04 pence after the company raised its full-year profit estimate for the second time in four months.
Indexes In New York, Europe and Asia Advanced Ahead of Rate Decisions
Barry Adams
11 Sep, 2023
New York City
Tech stocks rebounded and investors searched for bargains after a selloff in the previous week.
Market indexes rebounded on Monday and awaited the release of inflation data later in the week.
Popular market indexes declined around 2% last week and trimmed year's solid advance on the ongoing uncertainty related to Fed's interest rate policy.
Market participants are divided about the interest rate direction and most economists are forecasting the Federal Reserve to pause rate hike at the end of its next policy meeting ending on September 20.
The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite index added 0.4% in early trading and tech stocks led gainers.
Apple, Qualcomm and Tesla were in news and traded higher as companies focus on improving technology and developing new products.
Apple was in focus ahead of the its annual product launch event on Tuesday and the popular computing devices maker is expected to release iPhone 15.
In merger news, J.M. Smucker revved up its deal making and agreed to acquire Hostess Brands for as much as $5.6 billion.
U.S. Indexes & Yields
The S&P 500 index traded up 0.7% to 4,489.11 and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 1.2% to 13,816.10.
The yield on 2-year Treasury notes decreased to 4.98%, 10-year Treasury notes inched lower to 4.28% and 30-year Treasury bonds edged down to 4.36%.
Crude oil increased $0.26 to $87.24 a barrel and natural gas prices increased 0.001 cent to $2.60 a thermal unit.
The dollar index edged lower to 104.4 mark and edged lower from the 105 mark reached last week but traded higher from the low of 99.85 reached on July 13.
Last week, the dollar index, which tracks the price of the U.S. dollar against major currencies, halted a five-day rally Friday but extended gains to the eight week in a row and rose to a six-month high on the expectations of higher interest rates.
U.S. Stock Movers
J.M. Smucker, the maker of peanut butter, jelly, coffee and pet foods, said it agreed to acquire Twinkies maker Hostess Brands for $34.25 a share in stock and cash.
The offer valued Hostess Brands for $5.6 billion including debt and the purchase is expected to close by the end of January 2024.
J.M. Smucker Co declined 6.8% to $132.0 and Hostess Brands Inc soared 19.1% to $33.47.
RTX Corp declined 6.6% to $77.90 after the company said it plans to take a pre-tax charge of $3 billion in its current quarter results because of issues related to some of Pratt & Whitney aircraft engine manufacturing that power Airbus A320 neo.
Tesla Inc jumped 7.4% to $266.81 after Morgan Stanley analyst made positive comments and said that the company has made significant breakthrough in its software for autonomous vehicle.
Analyst Adam Jonas said that stock could rally as much as 60% and add as much as $500 billion in market cap as the company makes advances in its supercomputing project Dojo.
Qualcomm Inc jumped 3.2% to $110.29 after the company said it will provide modems for smartphones made by Apple through 2026.
Apple has been working for more than four years to develop its own modem chipsets and purchased Intel's modem division in 2019.
European Indexes Rebounded After 8 Days of Slump, Eurozone Growth Estimate Lowered
European markets traded higher on Monday and investors looked for bargains beaten down tech and China-exposed stocks.
Market indexes in London, Paris and Frankfurt gained after eight days of decline in a row after China reported a slight rise in inflation in August after prices fell in the previous month.
The European Central Bank is set to lift its three policy rates higher by at least 25 basis points on Thursday as policymakers battle persistent inflation.
The Euro Area economic growth was revised lower to 0.8% from the previous estimate of 1.1%, the European Commission's Summer 2023 Economic Forecast noted.
The commission also lowered its 2024 economic growth outlook to 1.3% from the earlier estimate of 1.6%.
Economy in Germany is expected to contract 0.4% in the current year and recover by 1.1% in 2024 and France slow to 1% and rebound to 1.2% in 2024.
The commission also lowered its 2023 inflation estimate to 5.6% from the previous estimate of 5.8% but revised higher its 2024 estimate to 2.9% from 2.8%.
Industrial Production in Italy fell 0.70% in July from the previous month, the National Institute of Statistics or ISTAT reported Monday.
The annual inflation rate in Norway eased to 4.8% in August from 5.4% in the previous month, Statistics Norway reported Monday.
This was the slowest increase since March 2022, with housing & utilities costs falling 1% after rising 2.7% in July.
In Asian markets, the yen rebounded to 146.23 against the U.S. dollar but traded near a 25-year low after the Bank of Japan's Governor Kazuo Ueda left door open to lift rates higher if inflation rebounds to 2% level on a sustained basis.
The People's Bank of China warned currency speculators and said that the central bank is ready to defend the yuan after the currency dropped to a 16-year low of 7.35 in Friday's trading.
Europe Indexes & Yields
The DAX index increased 0.4% to 15,800.99, the CAC-40 index advanced 0.6% to 7,278.27 and the FTSE 100 index inched up 0.1% to 7,496.87.
In the previous week, the DAX declined 1.6%, the CAC 40 fell 2.0% and the FTSE index dropped 0.3%.
The yield on 10-year German bonds increased to 2.63%, French bonds traded lower to 3.17%, the UK gilts edged up to 4.48% and Italian bonds rose to 4.39%.
The euro edged lower to $1.071, the British pound to $1.250 and the U.S. dollar fetched 89.20 Swiss cents.
Brent crude decreased $0.23 to $90.43 a barrel and the Dutch TTF natural gas increased €1.34 to €35.87 per MWh.
Europe Stock Movers
Societe Generale SA increased 1.3% to €25.62 after the French bank struck announced a strategic partnership with Brookfield Asset Management to originate and distribute private credit investments through a private investment grade debt fund.
Hannover Re added 1.3% to €204.90 after the company forecasted increase in premium rates in reinsurance market citing rising frequency and severity of natural catastrophe losses and elevated inflation.
Restaurant Group PLC gained 2.8% to 48.83 pence after the company said it signed an agreement to sell its leisure business including trading sites and associated restaurants to Big Table Group.
Covestro AG increased 4.5% to €53.86 after the maker of advanced polymer said it has entered into merger talks with Abu Dhabi National Oil Company which may lead to an offer.
AstraZeneca declined 4.3% to 10,406.0 despite the company reporting encouraging preliminary results from the TROPION-Lung04 Phase Ib study evaluating datopotamab deruxtecan plus Imfinzi for the treatment of advanced non-small cell lung cancer.
In Asian Trading Yen and Yuan In Focus, India Marches Ahead
Markets in Asia traded mixed and the Japanese yen and China's inflation data dominated market sentiment.
The Nikkei index in Tokyo traded down and extended losses of the last two sessions after a weakness in tech stocks overwhelmed strength in financial stocks.
SoftBank, Screen Holdings, Advantest, Tokyo Electron and Mitsubishi Electric declined between 1% and 3% but Sumitomo Mitsui Financial, UFJ Financial and Mizuho Financial advanced between 1% and 2%.
M2 money stock in Japan was up 2.5% from a year ago to 1,238.6 trillion yen in August, the Bank of Japan said on Monday.
That was steady from the July level following an upward revision from 2.4%.
The M3 money stock increased at an annual 1.9% rate for the second month in a row at 1,594.7 trillion yen, while the L money stock increased 2.2% on year to 2,121.1 trillion yen.
The adjusted money stock was up 1.6% from a year ago at 2,114.6 trillion yen.
The yen jumped to a one-week high and traded at 146.23 against the U.S. dollar after the Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda said that Japan could end its negative interest rate policy after sustainable inflation rate of 2% is reached.
China's consumer price inflation rebounded to 0.1% from a year ago in August, the National Bureau of Statistics reported Monday.
Inflation rebounded from a decline of 0.3% in July, the first negative inflation in over two years.
But the market weakness persisted in mainland China and Hong Kong index traded at two-week low after Alibaba cloud unit chief Daniel Zhang surprisingly resigned amid leadership shakeup.
Alibaba Group declined 2.8% to HK$88.25 after the Zhang's resignation.
China's central bank warned currency speculators that it will defend its currency after the yuan dropped to a 16-year low of 7.351 in Friday's trading.
“We will not hesitate on taking actions when necessary to firmly correct the one-sided and pro-cyclical market moves, to resolutely address the actions which disturb market order, and to unswervingly avoid the overshooting risks in the exchange rate," said the People's Bank of China in a statement released after a meeting with the foreign exchange regulatory body.
Asia Market Indexes
In Monday's trading, the Nikkei index decreased 0.4% to 32,467.7, the Shanghai SSE Composite index jumped 0.8% to 3,142.78, the Hang Seng index declined 0.6% to 18,092.55 and the KOSPI index increased 0.4% to 2,556.88
Stocks in Mumbai advanced in a broad market advance as investors hunt for bargains ahead of the earnings season in three weeks.
The Sensex index increased 333.33 points to 66,932.24 and the Nifty index rose 110.45 points to 19,930.40.
On the Mumbai stock exchange, 311 stocks traded at their 52-week highs and 12 traded at their 52-week lows.
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%.
U.S. Movers: Apple, JM Smucker, Hostess Brands, RTX Corp, Tesla, Qualcomm
Scott Peters
11 Sep, 2023
New York City
Market indexes rebounded on Monday after investors searched for bargains in tech stocks and awaited the release of inflation data later in the week.
The S&P 500 index traded up 0.3% to 4,472.41 and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.4% to 13,816.10.
J.M. Smucker, the maker of peanut butter, jelly, coffee and pet foods, said it agreed to acquire Twinkies maker Hostess Brands for $34.25 a share in stock and cash.
The offer valued Hostess Brands for $5.6 billion including debt and the purchase is expected to close by the end of January 2024.
J.M. Smucker Co declined 6.8% to $132.0 and Hostess Brands Inc soared 19.1% to $33.47.
RTX Corp declined 6.6% to $77.90 after the company said it plans to take a pre-tax charge of $3 billion in its current quarter results because of issues related to some of Pratt & Whitney aircraft engine manufacturing that power Airbus A320 neo.
Tesla Inc jumped 7.4% to $266.81 after Morgan Stanley analyst made positive comments and said that the company has made significant breakthrough in its software for autonomous vehicle.
Analyst Adam Jonas said that stock could rally as much as 60% and add as much as $500 billion in market cap as the company makes advances in its supercomputing project Dojo.
Qualcomm Inc jumped 3.2% to $110.29 after the company said it will provide modems for smartphones made by Apple Inc through 2026.
Apple has been working for more than four years to develop its own modem chipsets and purchased Intel's modem division in 2019.
Tech Advance Lifts S&P 500 and Nasdaq Higher, Oil at 10-week High
Barry Adams
11 Sep, 2023
New York City
Market indexes rebounded on Monday after investors searched for bargains in tech stocks and awaited the release of inflation data later in the week.
Popular market indexes declined around 2% last week and trimmed year's solid advance on the ongoing uncertainty related to Fed's interest rate policy.
Market participants are divided about the interest rate direction and most economists are forecasting the Federal Reserve to pause rate hike at the end of its next policy meeting ending on September 20.
The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite index added 0.4% in early trading and tech stocks led gainers.
Apple, Qualcomm and Tesla were in news and traded higher as companies focus on improving technology and developing new products.
Apple was in focus ahead of the its annual product launch event on Tuesday and the popular computing devices maker is expected to release iPhone 15.
In merger news, J.M. Smucker revved up its deal making and agreed to acquire Hostess Brands for as much as $5.6 billion.
U.S. Indexes & Yields
The S&P 500 index traded up 0.3% to 4,472.41 and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.4% to 13,816.10.
The yield on 2-year Treasury notes decreased to 4.98%, 10-year Treasury notes inched lower to 4.28% and 30-year Treasury bonds edged down to 4.36%.
Crude oil increased $0.35 to $87.85 a barrel and natural gas prices increased 0.001 cent to $2.60 a thermal unit.
The dollar index edged lower to 104.4 mark and edged lower from the 105 mark reached last week but traded higher from the low of 99.85 reached on July 13.
Last week, the dollar index, which tracks the price of the U.S. dollar against major currencies, halted a five-day rally Friday but extended gains to the eight week in a row and rose to a six-month high on the expectations of higher interest rates.
U.S. Stock Movers
J.M. Smucker, the maker of peanut butter, jelly, coffee and pet foods, said it agreed to acquire Twinkies maker Hostess Brands for $34.25 a share in stock and cash.
The offer valued Hostess Brands for $5.6 billion including debt and the purchase is expected to close by the end of January 2024.
J.M. Smucker Co declined 6.8% to $132.0 and Hostess Brands Inc soared 19.1% to $33.47.
RTX Corp declined 6.6% to $77.90 after the company said it plans to take a pre-tax charge of $3 billion in its current quarter results because of issues related to some of Pratt & Whitney aircraft engine manufacturing that power Airbus A320 neo.
Tesla Inc jumped 7.4% to $266.81 after Morgan Stanley analyst made positive comments and said that the company has made significant breakthrough in its software for autonomous vehicle.
Analyst Adam Jonas said that stock could rally as much as 60% and add as much as $500 billion in market cap as the company makes advances in its supercomputing project Dojo.
Qualcomm Inc jumped 3.2% to $110.29 after the company said it will provide modems for smartphones made by Apple through 2026.
Apple has been working for more than four years to develop its own modem chipsets and purchased Intel's modem division in 2019.
Europe Movers: AstraZeneca, Covestro, Hannover Re, Restaurant Group, Societe Generale
Inga Muller
11 Sep, 2023
New York City
European markets traded higher after falling for eight days in a row and investors searched for bargains in beaten down tech stocks.
The DAX index increased 0.6% to 15,832.29, the CAC-40 index advanced 0.6% to 7,284.62 and the FTSE 100 index inched up 0.1% to 7,487.49.
In the week, the DAX declined 1.6%, the CAC 40 fell 2.0% and the FTSE index dropped 0.3%.
Societe Generale SA increased 1.3% to €25.62 after the French bank struck announced a strategic partnership with Brookfield Asset Management to originate and distribute private credit investments through a private investment grade debt fund.
Hannover Re added 1.3% to €204.90 after the company forecasted increase in premium rates in reinsurance market citing rising frequency and severity of natural catastrophe losses and elevated inflation.
Restaurant Group PLC gained 2.8% to 48.83 pence after the company said it signed an agreement to sell its leisure business including trading sites and associated restaurants to Big Table Group.
Covestro AG increased 4.5% to €53.86 after the maker of advanced polymer said it has entered into merger talks with Abu Dhabi National Oil Company which may lead to an offer.
AstraZeneca plc declined 4.3% to 10,406.0 despite the company reporting encouraging preliminary results from the TROPION-Lung04 Phase Ib study evaluating datopotamab deruxtecan plus Imfinzi for the treatment of advanced non-small cell lung cancer.
European Markets Edged Higher, Euro Area Growth Estimated Lowered
Bridgette Randall
11 Sep, 2023
Frankfurt
European markets traded higher on Monday and investors looked for bargains beaten down tech and China-exposed stocks.
Market indexes in London, Paris and Frankfurt gained after eight days of decline in a row after China reported a slight rise in inflation in August after prices fell in the previous month.
The European Central Bank is set to lift its three policy rates higher by at least 25 basis points on Thursday as policymakers battle persistent inflation.
The Euro Area economic growth was revised lower to 0.8% from the previous estimate of 1.1%, the European Commission's Summer 2023 Economic Forecast noted.
The commission also lowered its 2024 economic growth outlook to 1.3% from the earlier estimate of 1.6%.
Economy in Germany is expected to contract 0.4% in the current year and recover by 1.1% in 2024 and France slow to 1% and rebound to 1.2% in 2024.
The commission also lowered its 2023 inflation estimate to 5.6% from the previous estimate of 5.8% but revised higher its 2024 estimate to 2.9% from 2.8%.
Industrial Production in Italy fell 0.70% in July from the previous month, the National Institute of Statistics or ISTAT reported Monday.
The annual inflation rate in Norway eased to 4.8% in August from 5.4% in the previous month, Statistics Norway reported Monday.
This was the slowest increase since March 2022, with housing & utilities costs falling 1% after rising 2.7% in July.
In Asian markets, the yen rebounded to 146.23 against the U.S. dollar but traded near a 25-year low after the Bank of Japan's Governor Kazuo Ueda left door open to lift rates higher if inflation rebounds to 2% level on a sustained basis.
The People's Bank of China warned currency speculators and said that the central bank is ready to defend the yuan after the currency dropped to a 16-year low of 7.35 in Friday's trading.
Europe Indexes & Yields
The DAX index increased 0.6% to 15,832.29, the CAC-40 index advanced 0.6% to 7,284.62 and the FTSE 100 index inched up 0.1% to 7,487.49.
For the week, the DAX declined 1.6%, the CAC 40 fell 2.0% and the FTSE index dropped 0.3%.
The yield on 10-year German bonds increased to 2.63%, French bonds traded lower to 3.17%, the UK gilts edged up to 4.48% and Italian bonds rose to 4.39%.
The euro edged lower to $1.071, the British pound to $1.250 and the U.S. dollar fetched 89.20 Swiss cents.
Brent crude decreased $0.34 to $90.30 a barrel and the Dutch TTF natural gas increased €1.94 to €36.47 per MWh.
Europe Stock Movers
Societe Generale SA increased 1.3% to €25.62 after the French bank struck announced a strategic partnership with Brookfield Asset Management to originate and distribute private credit investments through a private investment grade debt fund.
Hannover Re added 1.3% to €204.90 after the company forecasted increase in premium rates in reinsurance market citing rising frequency and severity of natural catastrophe losses and elevated inflation.
Restaurant Group PLC gained 2.8% to 48.83 pence after the company said it signed an agreement to sell its leisure business including trading sites and associated restaurants to Big Table Group.
Covestro AG increased 4.5% to €53.86 after the maker of advanced polymer said it has entered into merger talks with Abu Dhabi National Oil Company which may lead to an offer.
AstraZeneca declined 4.3% to 10,406.0 despite the company reporting encouraging preliminary results from the TROPION-Lung04 Phase Ib study evaluating datopotamab deruxtecan plus Imfinzi for the treatment of advanced non-small cell lung cancer.
Asian Markets Extended Previous Week Losses, Yuan and Yen In Focus
Arjun Pandit
11 Sep, 2023
Mumbai
Markets in Asia traded mixed and the Japanese yen and China's inflation data dominated market sentiment.
The Nikkei index in Tokyo traded down and extended losses of the last two sessions after a weakness in tech stocks overwhelmed strength in financial stocks.
SoftBank, Screen Holdings, Advantest, Tokyo Electron and Mitsubishi Electric declined between 1% and 3% but Sumitomo Mitsui Financial, UFJ Financial and Mizuho Financial advanced between 1% and 2%.
M2 money stock in Japan was up 2.5% from a year ago to 1,238.6 trillion yen in August, the Bank of Japan said on Monday.
That was steady from the July level following an upward revision from 2.4%.
The M3 money stock increased at an annual 1.9% rate for the second month in a row at 1,594.7 trillion yen, while the L money stock increased 2.2% on year to 2,121.1 trillion yen.
The adjusted money stock was up 1.6% from a year ago at 2,114.6 trillion yen.
The yen jumped to a one-week high and traded at 146.23 against the U.S. dollar after the Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda said that Japan could end its negative interest rate policy after sustainable inflation rate of 2% is reached.
China's consumer price inflation rebounded to 0.1% from a year ago in August, the National Bureau of Statistics reported Monday.
Inflation rebounded from a decline of 0.3% in July, the first negative inflation in over two years.
But the market weakness persisted in mainland China and Hong Kong index traded at two-week low after Alibaba cloud unit chief Daniel Zhang surprisingly resigned amid leadership shakeup.
Alibaba Group declined 2.8% to HK$88.25 after the Zhang's resignation.
China's central bank warned currency speculators that it will defend its currency after the yuan dropped to a 16-year low of 7.351 in Friday's trading.
“We will not hesitate on taking actions when necessary to firmly correct the one-sided and pro-cyclical market moves, to resolutely address the actions which disturb market order, and to unswervingly avoid the overshooting risks in the exchange rate," said the People's Bank of China in a statement released after a meeting with the foreign exchange regulatory body.
Asia Market Indexes
In Monday's trading, the Nikkei index decreased 0.4% to 32,467.7, the Shanghai SSE Composite index jumped 0.8% to 3,142.78, the Hang Seng index declined 0.6% to 18,092.55 and the KOSPI index increased 0.4% to 2,556.88
Stocks in Mumbai advanced in a broad market advance as investors hunt for bargains ahead of the earnings season in three weeks.
The Sensex index increased 333.33 points to 66,932.24 and the Nifty index rose 110.45 points to 19,930.40.
On the Mumbai stock exchange, 311 stocks traded at their 52-week highs and 12 traded at their 52-week lows.
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%.