Tag: Top International news

1. U.S. Markets Gain after Fed Chair Comments

Stocks in the U.S. general market rallied up and bond yields moved down after Jerome Powell, Chair of the Federal Reserve said that there is no plan to change the ultra-low interest rates. 

He added that the U.S. economic recovery still hasn’t progressed enough to begin slowing down stimulus measures. Big tech shares once again pushed the S&P 500 to another record high. 

Stoxx Europe is down by 0.072%
Dow Jones is up by 0.20%
NASDAQ is up by 0.51%

2. Australia Extends Sydney Lockdown As Covid Infections Rise.

Australia on Monday extended the lockdown in Sydney by a minimum period of 14 days as the initial restrictions couldn’t control the rise in Covid cases. Even after the restrictions from June 26, cases were rising and a day before 97 new cases are reported taking the total count near 900. 

3. Apple Has Committed $1 Billion From $2.5 Billion California Housing Fund

Apple said on Wednesday the company has deployed more than $1 billion(Rs 7,448 crores) out of a $2.5 billion(Rs 18,620crores) California housing fund. The fund was expected to address California’s affordable housing crisis and as per the company’s new statement, the funding helped the creation of affordable housing in 25 of California’s 58 counties. 

4.Producer Price In The U.S Jumps Above Expectations

According to the latest data from Labor Department on Wednesday, the price given to the US producers increased 1% in June from May and 7.3% from the previous June. The core PPI also increased 1% and was up 5.6% from a year ago.

5. BlackRock’s Quarterly Earnings Beat Estimates

The world’s largest asset manager – BlackRock announced better than expected Q2 results power by asset growth. The assets under management rose to a record $9.49 trillion(Rs 700 lakh crores) in the second quarter against $7.32 trillion(Rs 545 lakh crores) a year earlier. The company’s adjusted net income increased to $1.55 billion(Rs 11,544 crores), or $10.03 per share, against $1.21 billion(Rs 9,012crores), or $7.85 per share, a year earlier.

6. China To Launch National Carbon Emissions Trading Scheme Soon

The Environment Ministry of China said the National Carbon Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) will begin towards the end of this month. The new ETS aligns along with China’s plans to make use of “market mechanisms” to reduce carbon emissions, aiming to net-zero by 2060. China expects its ETS to be the largest carbon market in terms of volume, in the world.

7. Reports Say, Samsung And Tesla Signs A Deal For Cybertruck Cameras

Reports say that electric car maker Tesla signed a deal worth $ 436 million(Rs 3,248 crores) for using Samsung’s camera modules in its cyber trucks. Tesla expects the Cybertruck that was unveiled in November 2019, will have nearly 1 million reservations.

8. Bank Of America’s Q2 Profit Doubles, Tops Estimates

Bank of America on Wednesday reported the Q2 net income rose 163% to $ 9.22 billion(Rs 68,694 crores) from $ 3.53 billion(Rs 26300 crores) a year ago. The Bank says it has earnings of $1.03 per share for the quarter ended June against 37 cents in the year-ago quarter The revenue was reported at $22.62 billion compared to $22.33 billion a year ago.

9. Vaccine-maker Moderna’s Market Cap Reaching $100 Billion

From an unprofitable company last year to a Pharma sector miracle, Moderna brought in $19 billion(Rs 1.4 lakh crore) in revenue in the year. The company’s mRNA-based Covid-19 vaccine proved effective, beating out other established vaccine making technologies.

As the company reaches a valuation of $100 Billion(Rs 7.4 lakh crore) in just 11 years of inception, there is still a long way to go. The company now hopes to treat everything from cancer to heart diseases with mRNA technology.

1. U.S. Markets Volatile after High Inflation Data

U.S. stocks remain volatile at record high levels after data published today showed consumer inflation unexpectedly increased for June. The dollar got stronger.

The S&P 500 remains flat with IT stocks moving up and financials falling. Apple and Microsoft are taking the technology sector higher and Financial shares are down after results from JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs reported mixed results for the April-June quarter.

Stoxx Europe is up by 0.043%
Dow Jones is down by 0.20%
NASDAQ is up by 0.09%

2. Covid Pandemic Boosts Productivity In The U.S: Goldman Sachs

Goldman Sachs on Monday said the pandemic situation helped the US economy to be more productive. Since the pandemic, the annualized growth in output per hour has risen 3.1%, compared with the previous 1.4%. This rise is led by sectors including IT, professional services, and wholesale trade.

3. The U.S June CPI Inflation Jumps 5.4%

The U.S Labor Department said on Tuesday, June CPI(Consumer
Price Index) Inflation rose 0.9% compared to 0.6% rise in May. The CPI rose 5.4% from the same month last year, the largest gain since August 2008. Core CPI Inflation increased 4.5% compared to last year, the largest increase since November 1991.

4. Boeing Cuts 787 Production Due To Structural Defect

Boeing said on Tuesday the company would cut the production of the 787 models as a new production-related structural defect has been discovered. The company will deliver only half of the models in the inventory. New production rates are not available now and at the time of writing the stock is down by 3%.

5. Temasek Reports 25% Rise In Portfolio Value

Temasek- a Singaporean holding company, owned by the Government of Singapore reported on Tuesday the portfolio value jumped 25% to $282 billion(Rs 21,03,636 crores) in the year ended March 2021. This is the highest in 10 years, after the 2% drop in the last year. Airbnb and food delivery business Doordash were some of Temasek’s portfolio companies that were listed.

6. Goldman Sachs Reports Better Than Expected Q2 Earnings

Goldman Sachs’s on Tuesday reported its Q2 earnings as $15.02 per share against $ 6.26 per share last year. Revenue increased to $15.39 billion(Rs 1,14,804 crores) against the estimate of  $12.43 billion(Rs 92,724). 24% of total revenue in the quarter is from investment banking. At the time of writing the stock is trading 1.7% down in NYSE.

7. VW Lifts Profit Target with Battery and Software Boost Sales

German Automaker Volkswagen has hiked up profitability goal for 2025 as it plans to become the electric-car leader and expects a massive new revenue stream from software. Potential revenue from software is the reason why Tesla’s valuation is so high compared to other automakers.

The company which owns Audi, ŠKODA, Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini, Porsche, among others will target an 8% to 9% operating return on sales in 2025, up from an earlier target of 7% to 8% previously.

8. Treasury Secretary Expects Corporate Support for Global Tax Deal

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has said that companies in the country are likely to provide support for a worldwide change in corporate taxation of an accord endorsed by a Group of 20 nations over the weekend. Internal political pressure in the U.S. is currently slowing pushing of the accord in G20 summit in the weekend.

The deal is backed by 132 nations in talks led by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. 

9. Philippines Markets Fall with Fitch Rating Cut

The Philippine’s currency – Peso fell along with the general market after Fitch Ratings revised outlook on the company. Fitch downgraded the rating of the Philippines’ sovereign from negative to stable. The peso dropped 0.4% to 50.30 per dollar, a 13-month low. The Philippine Stock Exchange Index fell 1.2%.

Fitch said it believes there are downside risks to medium-term growth prospects as a result of the health crisis and restoring sound public finances as the pandemic recedes.

10. Chocolate Demand Moving up in Europe

Chocolate demand is sharply moving back up in Europe as lockdowns are lifting and consumers turn to buy more chocolates again. Cocoa futures trade slightly lower in New York are still 17% down from Feb 2020 levels.

Cocoa processing jumped 14% YoY in the April-Jun months, compared to last years’ lockdown months. This is the largest Q2 volume in more than a decade.

1. Markets Mixed Ahead of Quarterly Results

U.S. stocks remained mixed as market particpants look forward to quarterly earnings from top companies, and to measure if the recent rally in the market can be justified with good profits. Both S&P 500 and NASDAQ remained flat, cooling down after hitting all-time highs on Friday.

Even in the European market, Realty stocks moved up like we are seeing in our market.

Stoxx Europe is up by 0.56%
Dow Jones is up by 0.28%
NASDAQ is down by 0.076%

2. Russia Looking To Grab Mining Profits Once Export Tax Ends

Russia is looking for measures to grab profits from mining companies as the temporary export tax finishes at the end of this year. Last month, the Government announced duties of at least 15% on Steel, Nickel, Aluminum, and Copper exports effective from August 1 

3. Plus500 Posts 32% Drop In Customer Income During H1

London-listed online trading platform – Plus500 on Monday reported a sharp fall in income during the first half of 2021. The income for the first half of 2021 fell 32 to $379.2 million. The numbers are looking not that bad as pre-pandemic income was at $175 million. They have added 1,36,980 new customers from Jan-to-June of 2021, against 1,98,176 in last year and 47,540 in 2019.

4. The Central Bank Of Indonesia Cuts 2021 GDP Outlook To 3.8%

The Governor on Monday said the Central Bank of Indonesia has cut the 2021 GDP forecast of the country to 3.8% from the previous target of 4.6%, based on the rise in Covid cases. Fitch Solutions also slashed the growth forecast of the country to 4.4% from 5.1%.

5. VinFast Starts Operations In North America And Europe

The first domestic car manufacturer of Vietnam – Vinfast said on Monday the company has opened representative offices in North America and Europe. The company targets to sell 15,000 electric vehicles in 2022, hugely down from the previous target of 56,000. The company will be launching two electric car models, the VF e35 and VF e36 in March next year.

6. ByteDance In Talks With Regulators Over Data Security Concerns

The owner of TikTok- ByteDance is trying to ensure it complies with data security requirements after the meetings with government officials over the issue this year. The company has been preparing for its IPO, but now raising some concerns as China and the US are fighting over overseas listed companies.

7. Billionaire Richard Branson Completes Space Flight

Space tourism is real and it is happening. Billionaire Richard Branson has completed his test flight to space, taken alongside five of his Virgin Galactic employees. This gives validation to the company’s plan to start space tourism trips next year. Within an hour of taking off, the space plane went up 83 kilometres above the earth and returned back safely.

Jeff Bezos plans to fly on a rocket made by his company Blue Origin after nine days. Both companies aim to give wealthy tourists an unforgettable experience for a high price.

8. China’s Slowing Economic Recovery Sends Warning

On Friday, the People’s Bank of China took an unexpected move to increase lending in the country – it reduced the amount of cash that banks need to hold in reserve. Also, estimates from analysts show only an 8% growth in the economy for the last quarter, much down from the 18.3% gain in the Jan-March quarter,

This slowing economic rebound is sending a clear message to other nations on how recovery won’t be an easy task. Important data regarding retail sales also came out to be disappointing.

9. Oil Dips after 2 Days; Break before More?

With the above data that China’s economic recovery is slowing earlier than expected, crude oil prices remained volatile. The rally in oil prices was broken last week with the fight between UAE and Saudi which you can read here. 

WTI Crude is now trading at $73.55/barrel, losing gains that it made on Friday. Concerns about the new Covid variant is also putting some pressure on the price. But if OPEC+ does not increase production drastically, prices will continue to move up.

10. GE Vows to be Net-Zero Emissions by 2050

General Electric Co has set a new goal on Monday to achieve net-zero emissions by the year 2050. Even though there have been no details or plans on how this will be achieved, at least for now it looks like just a plan to make investors and lenders happy.

GE is a top supplier in wind turbines but also involved in jet engines and gas power plants.

1. Global Markets Bounce Back. Bonds Yields Relax

U.S. stocks moved back up, along with European markets earlier in the day.  Bonds relaxed after an eight-day rally pumped by concerns of further spread of Covid-19 variants.

Financial shares led to the gains as tech shares followed along with the pressure of reform measures from the U.S. government.

Stoxx Europe is up by 1.28%
Dow Jones is up by 1.29%
NASDAQ is up by 0.79%

2. CaixaBank To Sell Two Bankia Businesses To Global Payments

The largest domestic bank of Spain- Caixabank on Friday announced the decision to sell two Bankia businesses to Global Payments for a combined total of 277 million euros (Rs 2,446 crores). The first one is a payment processing unit for retailers and the second one is a prepaid card business. Caixabank has a 20% stake in Comercia Global Payments.

3. Philip Morris To Buy Drugmaker Vectura For 1 Billion Pounds

The company which makes Marlboro cigarettes- Philip Morris said on Friday to buy UK drugmaker Vectura for 1 billion pounds(~Rs 10,292 crores). This is a part of the company’s new policy to bring more nicotine-free products to the portfolio. The shareholders of Vectura will get 150 pence per share in cash.

Vectura will withdraw from the previous offer from Carlyle group in May, 136 pence per share. 

4. The U.S To Add More Than 10 Chinese Companies To Its Economic Blacklist

The United States on Friday decided to blacklist more than 10 Chinese companies over alleged human rights abuses and high-tech surveillance in Xinjiang. China has already blacklisted more than 5 Chinese companies last month over allegations of forced labor in the far western region of China.

5. Clear Signs Of Fourth Covid-19 Wave In The Country: Pakistan Minister

Pakistan Minister for Planning Asad Umar said on Friday the country is showing clear signs of the fourth Covid wave. People not obeying the Covid restrictions and the spread of the Delta variant are considered as the reasons behind this. Pakistan has recorded 1,737 new Covid-19 cases in the last 24 hours which is the highest since 1,923 cases recorded on June 4.

6. Germany Declares Spain As Risk Area

Germany on Friday declared Spain as a ‘Risk Area’ after the rise in coronavirus infections in the area. Spain is third in ranking after the Balearic and Canary Islands. This rise is expected as travelers are returning back to the country.

7. Steve Ballmer Now 9th Person Worth $100 Billion

Former CEO of Microsoft, Steve Ballmer, now has a net worth of more than $100 billion(~Rs 7.4 lakh crore) making him the ninth person in the world to reach that level. Jeff Bezos, the richest man on earth is now worth more than $212 Billion.

Balmer had sold $1.3 Billion worth of Microsoft shares in 2010, which if he held today would make him worth $130 Billion more and the richest man on Earth.

Shares of Microsoft have gained 23% just this year, along with multiple other tech stocks. U.S. President Joe Biden is trying to bring in tax changes that aim to force the wealthy to pay their right shares of taxes.

8. #BoycottHeineken Trending on Twitter

Anti-vaccine Twitter members have gotten a new hashtag trending on Twitter. Heineken is now facing a boycott campaign after posting an ad featuring senior citizens enjoying themselves in a club and on a beach after vaccinations. 

The company earns a majority of income from social drinking in pubs and restaurants, and is clearly facing a drop in revenue due to lockdowns.

Do you believe that all press is good press?

9. Crude Oil Rises as Dollar Falls

Oil prices continued their recovery boosted by a falling dollar and yesterday’s U.S. report on falling inventories. The world’s biggest economy is also seeing higher fuel demand in the peak summer tourist season. There is still confusion between UAE and Saudi regarding OPEC+’s production policy, which we will discuss in an article tomorrow.

WTI Crude Futures is up more than 2.5% today, with prices reaching $74.55/barrel. It is still 3.3% down from Monday’s 6-year high near $77/barrel.

10. World’s Biggest Wind Turbine Coming soon in Germany’s Coast

Vestas Wind Systems has booked a pre-order for what will be the world’s largest wind turbine. German utility and electricity infrastructure company EnBW Energie will be the first customer to use the massive machine from Vestas. 

Vestas had unveiled the turbine that generates 15-megawatt in hopes to become the top supplier of turbines for offshore projects, which is one of the fastest growing segments in renewable energy. Britain’s energy giant BP said in its annual report yesterday that reveals renewable energy’s fastest ever growth year of 2020 coincided with a the worst fall in demand for oil since World War 2.

1. U.S. Markets in the red, Financial Stocks Fall

U.S. stocks continued to fall from record highs with markets around the world seeing profit booking. Concerns of a new Lambda variant of Covid-19, deadlier than the delta variant has also caused some worries.

Bond yields being volatile is also not helping, with money being pumped into U.S. bonds from the equity markets.

Stoxx Europe is down by 1.76%
Dow Jones is down by 0.82%
NASDAQ is down by 1.06%

2. Global Covid Death Number Reaches 4 Million 

The Official data shows the world has witnessed a total of 4 million or 40 lakhs Covid deaths in one and a half years. The U.S has the highest Covid death number of more than 6 lakhs, followed by Brazil and India. The actual death count is higher than the official data because of unreported or missed deaths worldwide.

3. Deliveroo Posts 88% Rise In Orders, Hikes Forecasts

The UK-based ‘Deliveroo’ on Thursday posted an 88% rise in food orders for the quarter and hikes annual order value growth to be in the range of 50%-60% against the previous expectations of 30%-40%. The share price of the company which connects 115,000 restaurants in the U.K, is still 14% below its listing price. 

4. LG Chem And LGES To Invest $13 Billion In Battery Business By 2030

Korea’s LG Chem Ltd and its wholly-owned battery subsidiary LG Energy Solution on Thursday announced the new decision to invest $13.17 billion(Rs 97,235 crores) in the battery business by 2030. LGES currently has battery orders worth $160 billion(RS 11,96,744 crores) and already supplies batteries to automakers including Tesla, General Motors, and Volkswagen

5. U.S. Jobless Claims Rise Up

U.S Initial Jobless Claims indicates the number of Americans filing for unemployment insurance. According to the Labor Department, the numbers have reached 373,000 for the week ended July 3, up by 2000 from the week before. The data is worse than expectations, as businesses in the country have reopened at a rapid pace boosted by more than 155 million Americans getting vaccinated

6. BMW And Volkswagen Shares Fall Over $1 Billion Fine

The share prices of German automakers BMW and Volkswagen moved down after the European Union fined a total of $1 billion (Rs 7,479 crores) on the two companies for restricting competition in emission cleaning for new diesel passenger vehicles. At the time of writing BMW and Volkswagen are trading in the red, down by 2.7% and 3.3% respectively. 

7. Tencent’s Alcohol Delivery Startup Raising $200 Million

Jiuxiaoer, an alcohol delivery company in China, is seeking to raise about $200 million(~Rs 1,500 crores) in fresh funding that will take its valuation above $1 Billion(~Rs 7,400 crores). The company has an app-based platform that sells and delivers alcoholic drinks and claims to deliver within 25 minutes. The firm is backed by Tencent Holdings and Sequoia China.

8. Tech Sell-Off Dragging China to a Bear Market

Heavy dumping of Chinese tech stocks due to the country’s recent crackdown on companies like Didi is inviting bears to the market. The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index fell by 3.2% today, with a 20% fall from February.

Also today, there was a surprise shift in policy from China’s central bank signalling that the country’s economy may be in worse shape than many expected.

9. Tokyo Olympics to Ban Spectators as Covid-19 Continues

The Tokyo Olympics said it will ban domestic spectators in events held in the capital city of Japan. This is a change from the earlier decision to allow some fans.

The government has declared a state of emergency in Tokya from July 12 till August 22. The return to emergency represents a political setback for PM Yoshihide Suga, who said no to cancelling the games despite opposition from Japanese public.

10. Crude Oil Moving Back with Demand Increase

Crude oil prices are now trying to rebound after this week’s fall from a 6-year high. A report from the U.S. Government has shown that inventories are falling and that there is a ‘record-high’ fuel demand in the summer travel season.

Western Texas Intermediate(WTI) crude is currently trading at $73/barrel, a recovery of nearly 3% from yesterday’s low.

1. U.S. Markets Await Fed Meeting Minutes

Stocks in the U.S. market traded near all-time highs as traders look forward to minutes from the Federal Reserve meeting. Investors are also looking for clues on stimulus and interest rate changes to see how inflation rates will be kept under control while it is likely to turn out as a non-event.

The market is trying to stabilise after yesterday’s random fall. Nasdaq hit an all-time high on opening today but fell. 

Stoxx Europe is up by 0.64%
Dow Jones is up by 0.15%
NASDAQ is down by 0.22%

2. Didi Co-founders Loses $1.5 Billion In Two Days

Co-founders of Didi, Cheng Wei, and Jean Liu lost $1.2 billion(Rs 8,970 crores) and $300 million(Rs 2,242 crores) respectively in just two days, an after-effect of app removal by China. The stock fell more than 30% during the last five days. The fall started after China’s decision to open an investigation and remove the app from stores over Mega US IPO drama. 

3. Emperador Looking For Singapore Listing

The biggest liquor firm in the Philippines –Emperador is considering the possibility of getting listed in Singapore and raise $742 million(Rs 5,547 crores). This will be the second listing of the company after Mania, Philippines. Emperador is controlled by Alliance Global Group and the products are available in 55 countries.

4. Yandex To Launch  Electric Scooter Rental In Russia

The Russian Giant Yandex on Wednesday announced the plans to launch electric scooter rental services in Moscow, Russia. The company said the demand is rising in the city and the service will be launched in the Yandex. Go app soon. The shift towards Electric Vehicles is good for any country.

5. Amazon Shares Takes Jeff Bezos’s Wealth To $211 Billion

The wealth of Jeff Bozos hits a record number of $211 billion(Rs 1,577,414 crores) after Amazon’s share rises up on Pentagon’s cancellation of the cloud-computing contract with rival Microsoft Corp.  The rally raised Bezos’s wealth by $8.4 billion(Rs 62,797 crores).

6. Saudi Aramco plans to Raise Tens of Billions of Dollars

Saudi Aramco has said it is planning to raise billions of dollars by selling more stakes in its businesses. The world’s largest oil company has already raised $12.4 Billion(~Rs 92,700 crores) by selling rights over oil pipelines to a group of investors three months ago.

Aramco aims to generate “double-digit billions of dollars” over the next few years, according to Abdulaziz Al Gudaimi, senior vice president for corporate development. The company plans to increase spending plans while cutting debt and paying $75 Billion in dividends to the Saudi Government.

7. South Kora and Netherlands Expand Chip Manufacturing Deal

South Korea and the Netherland’s heads of state have agreed to expand cooperation on manufacturing and trying to make the most advantage of the current global semiconductor shortage. 

Semiconductor shortage has become a major political concern, as U.S. and China both try to expand sand secure supply chains for the critical component in all modern electronics.

In 2020, Korean giant Samsung’s market share in the semiconductor industry worldwide was 12.4% with Dutch company ASML also holding a significant market share.

8. Binance CEO Defends his Firm Amid Regulatory Investigations

Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao has said that his company has not gotten everything right, and blamed the firm’s problems on rapid growth. “We are learning and improving every day. We hope to clarify and reiterate our commitment to partner with regulators”, in a recent blog post. 

The exchange, the world’s largest by turnover reported has been under regulatory scrutiny around the world from the U.S., the U.K to Thailand and Japan.

9. Crude Oil falls with OPEC+ Uncertainty

Oil prices fell sharply once again as the dollar strengthens and the argument between Saudi and the United Arab Emirates. West Texas Crude has fallen as much as 3% in early trade in New York.  

The OPEC+ uncertainty has been shaking crude oil prices in the last many days, as we have discussed here 

1. U.S. Markets Fall from Record Highs

Stocks in the U.S. market fell with the indices falling from their all-time highs. Energy stocks are leading the fall with the market re-opening after a 3-day weekend. Bond yields have also fallen. There are concerns about Crude Oil crashing as OPEC+ talks between Saudi and UAE failed again on Monday.

Amazon and Apple are trying to push up the tech-heavy NASDAQ index while Tesla and Facebook pull it down. In Europe, carmakers fell after the monthly and quarterly sales data updates.

Stoxx Europe is down by 0.60%
Dow Jones Futures is down by 1.10%
NASDAQ is down by 0.12%

2. Saudi Arabia To Restructure Its Pension Fund System

Saudi Arabia is planning to restructure the pension fund system, aiming to make the citizens work longer and contribute more. The process will include raising the retirement age and workers contributing more of their salaries to the General Organization for Social Insurance(GOSI). A final decision hasn’t been taken on this. 

3. Orders For German-Made Goods Fall Sharply In May

According to the Federal Statistics Office, the orders for German industrial goods fell by 3.7% in May due to lower demand and fewer contracts for machinery and intermediate goods. Demand for capital goods dropped 4.6% while orders for intermediate goods contracted by 3.6%.

4. China To Supervise Offshore Listed Companies

China’s Cabinet on Tuesday decided to supervise overseas-listed companies from the country. Beijing has already launched an investigation on ride-hailing giant Didi Global, related to its Mega U.S. IPO. China aims to regulate data transfer and security, and illegal activities and manipulation in the market. Didi has fallen below IPO price after the Chinese crackdown and is down 21% today.

5. Norway’s $1.4 Trillion Fund warns of Climate Change Effect

Norway’s sovereign wealth fund worth more than Rs 100 lakh crores has sounded its  caution that its investments might take a hit as climate change targets hit. “We should be careful about making major changes to the principles underlying the fund’s investment strategy,” Norges Bank Governor Oystein Olsen and wealth fund’s Deputy CEO Trond Grande said in a letter to the Finance Ministry.

Norway, which is western Europe’s biggest oil and gas producer, has transferred most profits to this wealth fund and reinvested it overseas.

6. Saudi Arabia Raises August Oil Prices For Asia

Major oil exporter Saudi Arabia on Tuesday decided to raise August Official Selling Prices (OSP) of Arab light crude to $2.70 a barrel 80 cents up from July. Saudi term crude supplies to Asia are priced as a differential to the Oman/Dubai average and the new price is above this level.

7. The Number of Short-Time German Workers Falls Sharply In June 

According to the Ifo institute, the number of German people working on short-time fell to 1.5 million in June. This is the lowest level since February 2020, as more and more people look for jobs. Short-time works are meant to prevent adverse effects of situations like the Covid pandemic, in a way that employers can switch staff onto shorter working hours to keep them on the payroll.

8. Oil Prices Fall from 6-year highs with concerns of Oversupply

WTI Crude oil prices fell from 6-year highs of $77/barrel after OPEC+ fails to reach an agreement in today’s meeting. We had talked yesterday about the inside fighting between Saudi and UAE. 

The fall was also from a technical resistance zone in Crude’s 1-day charts. WTI Crude is currently trading at $73.5/barrel.

9. Nintendo Releases New Gaming Console for $350

Japanese gaming giant Nintendo has announced a new Switch gaming console for $350. The plan is to release it on October 8th, ahead of the Christmas holiday season. It will be an addition to the highly popular Switch console series which has sold 85 lakh units worldwide as of March 2021.

10. Tesla Boosts Electric Vehicle Sales in England

Tesla has delivered 7,304 EVs in the U.K., more than any other European country for Q1.

And this has resulted in record electric vehicle sales in the market with EVs now reaching 11% market share of the overall auto market in the country. That’s a new record and the same market share as diesel-powered cars for the first time ever.

So electric is indeed becoming the future.

11. U.K. to Lift Most Covid-19 Restrictions from July 19

U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson has announced he aims to lift Covid-19 restrictions in the country from July 19 including social distancing rules and Work from Home mandates. All businesses will be allowed to re-open including nightclubs and there will be no more legal requirements to wear face coverings.

A legal requirement to self-isolate if you test positive for Covid will stay in place as the cases in the country are expected to top 1 lakh/day soon.

1. U.S. Markets Closed; Futures Steady

U.S. index futures remain steady with regular markets closed for the Independence Day weekend.

On Friday, jobs data from the country showed the economy has been growing back at a healthy pace. Keen investors are watching Federal Reserve’s June meeting minutes on Wednesday to see if policies are the same.

Stoxx Europe is up by 0.37%

Dow Jones Futures is up by +0.19%

NASDAQ is down by 0.11%

2. Saudi v/s UAE OPEC+ Fight Continues 

Tensions between Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates went up with a rare diplomatic fight between the two countries. The fight has caused OPEC+ to stop its talks twice now, and the next meeting is scheduled for Monday.

UAE is demanding a better piece of the crude oil market, while rejecting the extension of the current deal. Saudi and Russia want to increase production in the coming months. Crude oil prices have crossed $75/barrel.

3. Caixin PMI Shows Drop In China’s June Services Activity

The Caixin Services Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) dropped 8% to 50.3 in June compared to 55.1 in May. It cannot be considered as a contraction on a monthly basis as it is still above the 50 levels. 

Caixin’s June composite PMI, which includes both manufacturing and services activity, fell to 50.6 in June from May’s 53.8.

4. Sydney Airport Receives $16.7 Billion Takeover Bid

Sydney Airport on Monday received a takeover bid of $16.7 billion(~ Rs 1,24,090 crores) from a group of infrastructure investors. The consortium of infrastructure investors and Australian pension funds proposed the takeover at 8.25 Australian Dollars per share. At the time of writing stock is more than 30% up. 

5. German Automobile Manufacturers Cuts Growth Forecasts For The Year

The Association of German Automobile Manufacturers on Monday cut the growth forecast for the year to 3% from the previous 13% as the production was very low in the past months. It expects to produce 3.6 million cars during the year, 4 lakh down from the previous forecast numbers.

6. Daimler, Volvo, And Traton To Develop A Charging Network For Trucks And Buses

Three major auto manufacturers – Daimler Volvo and Traton announced on Monday the plan to form a Joint Venture and develop an electric battery-charging network for trucks and buses. The three companies will jointly invest 500 million euros( ~Rs 4407 crores) in the venture that they will own equally and the operations will start from 2022. 

7. Japan Considering A Supplementary Budget On Behalf Of Huge Leftover Money

The Finance Ministry of Japan said on Monday the country has a record amount of 40 billion dollars(Rs 2,97,180 crores) leftover money from the previous year’s budget due to greater than expected tax revenue. The fiscal law stipulates that half of the amount must be used to repay debt, and the rest can be considered for a supplementary budget for the current fiscal year. The previous record of leftover money was 17 billion dollars. 

8. Foodpanda Becomes Asia’s Largest Food Delivery App

German-based Delivery Hero owned Foodpanda has now become hte biggest food delivery app in Asia, excluding China according to Jakob Angele, its head for Asia-Pacific region. He quoted internal and public research.

“The food delivery industry is still a very young industry. We see exciting investment opportunities” Angele said. Do you remember Foodpanda closing in India, failing to compete with Zomato and Swiggy? It was acquired by Ola but shut down in 2019.

9. Pfizer Less Effective Against Delta Strain: Israel

Data released by the Israel Government has shown that Pfizer’s Covid-19 vaccine is much less effective against the delta variant of the virus. Efficacy dropped to 64% in June, down from 94% in May. This drop in effectiveness is also around the time when restrictions were lifted in the country.with the government lifting virus restrictions at the start of June.

The vaccine is still protecting against severe illness. Dervila Keane from Pfizer said, “The evidence gathered so far suggests that the vaccine “will continue to protect against these variants”.

10. France and Germany Trying to Ease Tensions with China

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron have together asked China to allow more flights from the continent. The two leaders are asking for closer cooperation and the restarting of business with each other in talks today with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Tensions have been high between China and Europe as the latter sharply criticised Beijing’s human rights violations. The video conference totay was to try fix these tension, even though the underlying problem still exists.

1. Markets Move up After Jobs Data

Markets reacted positively with the S&P 500 climbing for a seventh straight day. Data is showing that U.S. job growth increased the most in 10 months adding nearly 8.5 lakh jobs. Unemployment data is also looking positive to economists and market participants.

Jason Pride, chief investment officer of private wealth at Glenmede: said “Today’s report likely does not significantly change the Fed’s calculus here, as the U.S. labour market is far from its ‘full employment’.”

Stoxx Europe is up by 0.21%

Dow Jones is up by 0.13%

NASDAQ is up 0.32%

2. OPEC’s Crude oil output increased in June to as demand recovers

OPEC+ reported boosted oil production in June, as demand also recovered from economies opening up.

A Bloomberg survey has shown that production rose by 8,55,000 barrels a day in June to 26.47 million a day, with just over half the increase coming from group leader Saudi Arabia.

This was also the month when oil prices hit multi-year highs. This is a sign of high demand in the markets, and possibility that the high prices might sustain.

3. Japan Pension Fund Books $339 Billion Profits in FY21

Japan’s Government Pension Investment Fund booked a 25% profit on its investments of $339 billion(~Rs 25.26 lakh crores) between April 2020 and March 2021. It was the highest profit number since the fund started managing pension reserves in 2001.

Overseas stocks gave a return of 59.4%, while domestic stocks gave 41.6%. The funds President said it was a historically high number boosted by the equity market rally and that he does not expect it this year.

4. Didi Shares Fall after China Starts Review

Didi shares fell 7% as China’s crackdown on its biggest corporations continued. The country has started a cybersecurity review of the ride-hailing company. This comes just 2 days after the biggest public listing in the U.S. market in the last decade.

Fun fact – Didi was the company that forced Uber to get out of China with a buyout, but Uber gained $8 Billion(~Rs 57,000 crores) from the IPO from Didi shares.

5. Norway’s $1.4 Trillion Fund warns of Climate Change Effect

Norway’s sovereign wealth fund worth more than Rs 100 lakh crores has sounded its  caution that its investments might take a hit as climate change targets hit. “We should be careful about making major changes to the principles underlying the fund’s investment strategy,” Norges Bank Governor Oystein Olsen and wealth fund’s Deputy CEO Trond Grande said in a letter to the Finance Ministry.

Norway, which is western Europe’s biggest oil and gas producer, has transferred most profits to this wealth fund and reinvested it overseas.

6. Ant Group-Backed Kakao Pay Seeks Up to $1.4 Billion in IPO

South Korea’s largest online payment service with 3.6 crore users, Kakao Pay is looking to raise $1.4 Billion(~Rs 10,000 crores) in its IPO this week. The company is looking to raise this amount at a valuation of $11 Billion(~Rs 80,000 crores) from the public.

It is backed by China’s Ant Group and may set a precedent for PayTM India’s IPO which is coming up soon. “The Covid-19 has fueled transitions to online financial service,” Alex Ryu, CEO of Kakao Pay, said in an interview in May. 

7. Glaxo Reaches $2.2 Billion Dementia Drug Deal With Alector

British Pharma major GlaxoSmithKline has agreed to pay U.S-based Alector Inc a $2.2 Billion(~Rs 15,000 crore). This deal is to develop drugs against diseases such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s.

Shares of Alector gained as much as 90% in today’s trade before moving down.

8. London Back Ahead of Amsterdam as Europe’s Trading Capital

London moved back ahead of Amsterdam as Europe’s largest volume share-trading  center in June. The English city has claimed the top spot for the first time this year after Brexit pushed down volumes to Amsterdam.

Trading in London is still below pre-Brexit levels. FTSE, the country’s major stock market index, is still 7% under its February 2020 levels.

1. U.S. Markets Trading Up; Tech Rally Slows

Major indices in the U.S. market are trading with gains, as energy, financials stocks gained while tech consolidated.

Manufacturing data in June continued to show expansion at a solid but slower pace. Applications for state unemployment insurances fell more than expected this previous week.

Jobs data is expected to be out tomorrow.

Stoxx Europe is up by 0.62%

Dow Jones is up by 0.22%

NASDAQ is down by 0.12%

 2. Oil Prices Gain Ahead of OPEC+ Meeting

Prices of Brent Crude hit $75.63/barrel as Russia and Saudi Arabia have reportedly entered into an agreement to gradually increase output in the coming months. 

At its meeting today OPEC+ is moving towards adding about 2 million barrels per day (bpd) of oil to the market between August and December, an OPEC+ source told Reuters. Prices touched their 52-week highs today.

3. Singapore Reviewing Binance following Global Crackdown

Popular cryptocurrency exchange, Binance, which got banned in the U.K. earlier in the week is now under scrutiny from other countries.

Binance Asia has been given a grace period of operation while the Singapore authorities review their licenses for dealing with digital token services(cryptocurrencies). The entire sector is in the midst of a regulatory crackdown from China to the U.S.

4. Malaysia Tightens Restrictions as Virus Spikes

Malaysia said it will impose tight movement restrictions in Selangor, its richest state, and several localities in Kuala Lumpur beginning Saturday. The Covid-19 pandemic in the country is worsening and spiralling out of control even as they try to bring in more restrictions.

Only 17.2% of the population has been given only 1-dose of the vaccine even behind India’s 20% rate.

5. Tesla Delivery Record Number of Cars in Q2 Expected 

Analysts in Wall Street expect carmaker Tesla to report record deliveries in the April-June quarter. Deliveries are expected to cross 2 lakh from the all-electric car manufacturer led by CEO Elon Musk.

There were concerns of global chip shortages and delays in major ports, but Tesla is likely to have managed inventories intelligently to realise the records.

6. Electric Airplane Alice Ready for First Flight

Eviation Aircraft, an electric-plane startup, unveiled the production version of its aircraft. The inaugural flight of the commuter aircraft named Alice is expected in the coming months with a commercial launch expected in 2024.

The Alice can carry nine passengers for 650 miles (1,046 km), making it suited for replacements in the Private Jet market for the ultra-wealthy in the U.S.

7. Goldman to Move to Tokyo Headquarters

Investment bank Goldman Sachs is preparing to move its operation in Japan into its Tokyo building. Construction on the 49-story building is expected to finish by 2023.

This comes even as rivals of the company are shutting offices to change into a work-from-home future. CEO David Solomon had expressed his strong opposing feelings on the work-from-home culture along with Morgan Stanley. European and Asian banks have committed to hybrid models of work in the future. 

8. DNA Covid Vaccine 67% in Clinical Trials

India’s Cadila Healthcare is seeking approval for the world’s first DNA-based Covid-19 vaccine. Efficacy of 67% is being shown for the vaccine in a Phase-3 trial with more than 28,000 volunteers. This number is still lower than RNA based vaccines from Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech.

1. U.S. Markets Moving Up Again; Jobs Data Soon

Stocks in the U.S. market traded sideways with positivity in the global markets dying down. Airline stocks around the world are struggling with the emergence of the delta variant of Covid-19, and Bitcoin fell again.

The jobs data is to be out on Friday, although private polls show that a better than expected number of jobs have been added to the U.S. economy.

Stoxx Europe is down by 0.78%

Dow Jones is up by 0.39%

NASDAQ is down by 0.12%

 2. Japan’s Consumer Confidence Rises In June

The Japanese Govt said on Wednesday, a Cabinet Office survey showed the sentiment index for general households increased to 37.4 in June, against 34.1 in May. The sentiment index for general households includes views on incomes and jobs and this rise is due to the easing of Covid restrictions. 

3. Dixons Carphone Reports Good Profit Numbers

The British electricals retailer Dixons Carphone on Wednesday reported an adjusted pretax profit of $216 million(~Rs 1600 crores) in the year to May 1. The 34% increase in annual profit comes majorly from online sales as many of its stores were closed due to pandemics. 

4. China June PMI Fall To A Four-Month Low

According to the National Bureau of Statistics, China’s June official Manufacturing Purchasing Manager’s Index (PMI) drops to a  four-month low at 50.9 compared to 51.0 in May. This can’t be considered as a contraction because the PMI didn’t fall below 50. The drop is majorly due to chip shortage, higher material costs, and the Covid pandemic. 

5. Intel Reports Chip Production Delay

American multinational tech firm Intel said on Wednesday it has delayed the production of one of its new chips. This is due to the decision to work on improving its performance. At the time of writing the stock is 1.27% down on NASDAQ. 

6. Renault To Allocate More Space In Portfolio For EV 

Renault on Wednesday announced that 90% of the company’s total models will be Electric Vehicles by 2030 against the previous 90% target of electric and hybrid vehicles together by 2030. Renault Chief Executive Luca de Meo said Renault will launch 10 new electric models by 2025, boosting the long-term goals.

7. Bank of England Chief Economist warns U.K. about Inflation

Andy Haldane, Chief Economist in the Bank of England has said that inflation is likely to reach 4%. He has warned that it will be the biggest financial challenge since the pound fell in 1992.

Haldane, ahead of retiring on Wednesday, used his last speech to warn his colleagues of inflation rather than focussing on stimulating the economy.

8. 3 Billion Covid Shots Given Across the World

More than 3 billion or 300 crore vaccine doses have been given across the world according to Bloomberg. Just in the U.S., 32.5 crore doses have been given so far, with an average of 8.96 lakh doses per day last week.

In India, 33.2 crore doses have been administered so far., with 20% of the population now being given at least 1 dose. Only 4.2% of India’s total population have yet been fully vaccinated, which is the worst among top countries of the world.

9. China’s Biggest Bank Abandons Huge Coal Project

Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Ltd has abandoned a $3 Billion(~Rs 22,000 crores) project funding a coal project. The power plant project in Zimbabwe has been left in the dust without any funders.

Western and South African banks have been under pressure for funding projects that may contribute to climate change. With this, even Chinese banks have shown they are not interested in funding such projects. Green energy companies are the future, with even big companies from India like Reliance investing heavily into it.

1. U.S. Markets Moving Up Again; Jobs Data Soon

S&P 500 headed to fresh all-time highs with commodity, industrial leading gains today. Financial stocks are lagging behind with Tuesday, with financials lagging behind. Markets around the world are hitting fresh highs as the quarter ending June is about to close. U.S. Jobs report is due this Friday.

BlackRock Investment strategists are toning down expectations from the U.S. market in the short term saying that other developed countries can show faster economic growth. Will this include more investor confidence in India?

Stoxx Europe is up by 0.35%

Dow Jones is up by 0.35%

NASDAQ is down by 0.057%

2. JPMorgan Opens New Trading Hub In Paris 

French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday inaugurated JPMorgan’s new trading hub in Paris. The trading base is focused on European debt trading and is expected to give jobs to 800 people in Paris by 2022. The new Paris trading hub is a seven-story building, near the Louvre museum.

3. Bridgepoint Prepares For London Listing

Private equity firm Bridgepoint plans to get listed on the London Stock Exchange, and to raise $416 million(~Rs 3,000 crores), the company said on Tuesday. Bridgepoint, which focuses on mid-sized deals, will use the amount for growth plans and pay down debt.

4.SoftBank Stops Pepper Robot Production, Slashing Its Robotic Business

Reports say SoftBank Group has stopped the production of its humanoid robot named Pepper last year, dropping many jobs at its global robotics business. Funnily, Pepper was meant to help labor shortages, but the company will have to drop about 160 jobs in France in September as the model couldn’t find enough demand.

5. JPMorgan To Buy OpenInvest Startup

JPMorgan Chase & Co on Tuesday revealed the plans to buy OpenInvest, a fintech startup. The startup, which is backed by Andreessen Horowitz and Y Combinator, helps financial advisers to build, manage and report on their Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) portfolios. More details are not available right now

6. Walmart Will Start Selling Private-Label Insulin Soon

Walmart will start selling low-priced private-label analog insulin named ReliOn NovoLog this week. The company hopes to develop its healthcare business through this and to be in line with its competitors. ReliOn NovoLog is rapid-acting analog insulin used to control high blood sugar in adults and children with diabetes

7. Moderna’s Covid Vaccine Effective Against Delta Variant

Moderna researchers in data produced today have claimed that their vaccine produced antibodies against the Delta variant of Covid-19. This variant has been spreading rapidly across the world, causing more shutdowns.

The vaccine from Moderna was approved for use by India today, and will be imported by Cipla.

Shares of Moderna are up by more than 6% in the New York Stock Exchange(NYSE) today.

8. Gold Prices Drop to Two-Month Low; Dollar Strong

Gold prices have fallen to their lowest since mid-April as the dollar continues to gain strength. The dollar gaining strength indicates many players are holding it as a ‘safe-haven’ and thus putting pressure on Gold prices.

There are increasing concerns about the Delta variant of Covid-19 spreading in Europe. The asset is headed for its biggest monthly fall since 2017 after the U.S. Federal Reserve talked about its forecasts for interest rate increases.

9. Crude oil prices bounce back; UAE Warns of Slowing Supply

Crude oil prices in the international market jumped 1% with Brent reaching $74.77/barrel. This comes after yesterday’s steep fall ahead of the OPEC+ meeting later this week.

According to reports, Abu Dhabi National Oil Company(ADNOC) has said it will be cutting crude supply by 15%, even as Russia and Saudi plan to support increasing output in this week’s meeting.

10. U.K. House Prices Jump Sharply. Bubble Forming?

House prices in U.K. have grown at its fastest rate since 2004, as buyers eat up supplies ahead of stamp-duty rollback. A 13.4% year-on-year growth was seen since last June.

A nearly £15,000(~$21,000) stamp-duty cut on housing is set to expire this week in the country. But what causes concerns of a bubble is that it is not a regional phenomenon. Home prices in the U.S. today have jumped the most in more than 30 years in April, according to Bloomberg.

Is this the starting of a bubble? Let us know in the comments section of the marketfeed app!