5 Hours AgoChinese and Hong Kong stocks soared 2% on Tuesday, with healthcare and tech stocks leading the gains. This follows measures taken by Chinese regulators to stabilize the recent market sell-off, including a statement from the country’s securities and regulatory commission indicating its intention to prompt institutional investors to enter the market more actively. Beijing Wantai Biological Pharmacy Enterprise was the biggest gainer on the CSI 300, jumping 10%, while tech giant Alibaba led the gains on the Hang Seng index with a 5.9% increase.
7 Hours AgoAustralia’s fourth-quarter retail sales saw a marginal increase according to the latest government data. Retail sales volumes in Australia rose 0.3% in the fourth quarter of 2023, surpassing the 0.1% rise in the previous quarter and the 0.1% growth estimated in a Reuters poll. The rise in December retail sales volumes was supported by lower price growth for retail goods, particularly for discretionary items like furniture and electronic goods, according to Ben Dorber, head of retail statistics at the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
6 Hours AgoFund manager Cole Smead remains optimistic about investment opportunities in the banking sector despite increased volatility and concerns over substantial losses at some lenders. Smead, the portfolio manager at Smead Capital, expressed bullishness on two banks, one being a U.S. regional bank and the other a former global systemically important bank.
9 Hours AgoThe Reserve Bank of Australia is expected to maintain its official cash rate at 4.35% with no anticipation for a dovish pivot. Despite inflation cooling to a two-year low of 4.1% in the fourth quarter of 2023, it still remained well above the RBA’s 2-3% target range, supporting the expectations for a hold. The S&P/ASX 200 extended losses from Monday, dropping 0.9%, while the Aussie dollar dipped 0.06% against the U.S. dollar.
6 Hours AgoGoldman Sachs advised investors to focus on long-term AI beneficiaries rather than near-term plays, citing that near-term beneficiaries are already well known and their performance reflects the “consensus view.”
9 Hours AgoHousehold spending in Japan declined more than expected in December, falling 2.5% year on year compared with the 2.1% estimated by economists polled by Reuters. The average monthly expenditure per household stood at 329,518 yen ($2,217.11) while the average monthly income per household fell 4.4% in nominal terms and 7.2% in real terms from the previous year.
12 Hours AgoOil prices settled higher on Monday after U.S. retaliatory strikes against Iranian forces and allied militias in the Middle East over the weekend. The West Texas Intermediate contract for March rose 50 cents, or 0.69%, to $72.78 a barrel, while the Brent contract for April gained 66 cents, or 0.85%, to settle at $77.99 a barrel.
16 Hours AgoTraders have tempered their expectations for interest rate cuts following cautionary statements from Federal Reserve officials. The probability of a previously anticipated March cut tumbled to just 14.5% Monday morning, according to the CME Group’s FedWatch gauge. For the full year, the market has switched from expecting six cuts to five and was even assigning about a 44.6% probability that the total could fall to four.
14 Hours AgoShares of Boeing declined around 1.7% on Monday after the company announced it would rework 50 undelivered 737 Max jets due to the discovery of misdrilled holes on some fuselages, potentially resulting in delivery delays. The stock is down 21% in 2024.
13 Hours AgoUBS advised investors to stick with quality stocks, especially in U.S. tech, stating that such companies can withstand a slowdown in economic growth. The firm indicated that quality stocks tend to outperform in periods of slowing economic growth and expressed a most preferred stance on the US IT sector.
