Global Market Analysis
Canadian Markets
Canada’s TSX Composite Index rose in the morning, against a backdrop of declines in commodities, however the index finished the day deep in the red as traders were taking profits over the political uncertainty surrounding the Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau’s resignation. PMI data released today indicated a slowing economy, raising expectations of potential monetary easing, which likely bolstered investor sentiment.
Canada’s services economy continued to slow in December as the postal strike weighed, alongside a drop in work outstanding. The business activity index fell to 48.2 in December from 51.2 in November.
American Markets
U.S. stocks climbed, led by gains in technology shares, driven by ongoing optimism around artificial intelligence (AI) as Microsoft announced the company was investing 80 Billion into Artificial Intelligence. Investors positioned themselves ahead of critical U.S. economic data, which could influence expectations for the Federal Reserve’s interest rate trajectory.
European Markets
European markets edged higher, with chip stocks leading gains. This followed Microsoft’s major AI investment announcement, which fueled optimism around the tech sector’s growth prospects.
UK Stocks were also higher, as data showed the UK is now the largest market in the UK for EV’s.
Japanese Markets
The Nikkei 225 declined over 1% on its first trading day of 2024 as investors took profits after the index’s year-end rally.
Chinese Markets
Chinese stocks dropped to a three-month low, despite government efforts to stabilize the market. Investor sentiment remained weak amid concerns about the country’s economic recovery. The Chinese yuan fell to a 16-month low, further reflecting market pessimism.
Corporate Stock News
- AT&T Inc, T-Mobile US Inc & Verizon Communications Inc: A Chinese hack compromised several U.S. telecoms, including Charter Communications and Consolidated Communications. Hackers exploited unpatched network devices and large routers, raising national security concerns.
- Church & Dwight Co Inc: Piper Sandler raised the target price to $128 from $124, citing the company’s reliable growth profile.
- Cleveland-Cliffs Inc & U.S. Steel Corp: Cleveland-Cliffs CEO Lourenco Goncalves cast doubt on Nippon Steel’s $14.9 billion bid for U.S. Steel. U.S. President Biden blocked the deal, which may alter Nippon Steel’s growth strategy.
- First Quantum Minerals Ltd (FM:CA): Jefferies lowered the target price to C$22 from C$23, citing the impact of legal issues at its Cobre Panama mine on cash flow.
- Fox Corp, Walt Disney Co & Warner Bros Discovery Inc: These companies are appealing a court decision that blocked their Venu Sports streaming service, arguing it would benefit consumers with a low-cost sports option.
- Galp Energia: The company is investigating an anonymous complaint regarding an alleged personal relationship between its CEO and a manager.
- Kenvue Inc: Piper Sandler raised the target price to $26 from $21, anticipating improvements in the company’s cost profile and brand rebuilding efforts.
- KKR & Bain Capital: KKR requested Fuji Soft to file an injunction to stop Bain Capital from breaching a non-disclosure agreement in the ongoing competition for the company’s acquisition.
- Netflix Inc.: Netflix begins streaming WWE’s “Raw,” marking its entry into live programming with a $5 billion deal to stream WWE content.
- Perpetua Resources Corp: The Biden administration issued the final mining permit for Perpetua’s Idaho antimony and gold project, which is expected to boost U.S. production of critical minerals.
- Pony AI Inc: The company is seeking to launch robotaxi services in Hong Kong, joining Baidu in the race to expand autonomous vehicle operations globally.
- Republic Services Inc: RBC raised the target price to $237 from $219, following a pullback in share price and potential growth from mergers and acquisitions.
- Tesla Inc (TSLA): The FBI investigated the explosion of a Tesla Cybertruck outside the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas, which was linked to an active-duty Army soldier.
- United Airlines Holdings Inc: United plans to begin testing Starlink for in-flight internet services in February, with full rollout on its regional fleet by 2025.
- UBS: UBS is working with an independent ombudsman to investigate Nazi-linked accounts at Credit Suisse, which UBS acquired in 2023.
- Xpeng Motors & Volkswagen: These companies expanded their partnership to develop ultra-fast electric vehicle charging networks in China.
- Walt Disney Co, Fox Corp & Warner Bros Discovery Inc: The media giants are challenging a court ruling that blocked the launch of their Venu Sports streaming service, arguing it would reduce costs for sports fans.
STA Research (StockTargetAdvisor.com) is a independent Investment Research company that specializes in stock forecasting and analysis with integrated AI, based on our platform stocktargetadvisor.com, EST 2007.
