- Asian Stocks Rise on China’s Move to Boost Shares: Markets Wrap
Stocks in Asia rose after Chinese officials reassured investors of the government’s commitment to supporting
the market and boosting share prices. China’s benchmark CSI 300 Index rose as much as 1.8%, hitting its
highest level in almost three weeks before pairing some of its gains, while Hong Kong shares also jumped.
The MSCI Asia Pacific index advanced. The gains came after a briefing hosted by China’s securities regulator,
which said local insurers and mutual funds should boost their investments in the stock market. The move
helped improve the mood among Chinese investors, after a tariff threat from US President Donald Trump
earlier this week weighed on sentiment. - Stocks close higher, S&P 500 touches fresh record, bolstered by Trump optimism
Stocks climbed on Wednesday, with the S&P 500 hitting a fresh all-time high, as technology shares such as
Oracle and Nvidia rallied on artificial intelligence optimism and President Donald Trump’s new term in office.
The S&P 500 advanced 0.61% after hitting an intraday record of 6,100.81, exceeding the last milestone
touched in December before the market pullback. The broad index closed at 6,086.37, slightly below its all
time closing high. The Nasdaq Composite popped 1.28% to 20,009.34, underscoring the outperformance of
tech names. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 130.92 points, or 0.3%, to 44,156.73, boosted by Procter
& Gamble’s gain of nearly 2% on the back of strong earnings. - Oil prices fall as investors watch Trump policies
Oil prices fell Wednesday as the market considers how U.S. President Donald Trump’s proposed tariffs could
affect global economic growth and demand for energy. Brent futures fell 29 cents, or 0.37%, to close at $79 a
barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude (WTI) lost 39 cents, or 0.51%, lower at $75.44.
That puts Brent down for a fifth day in a row for the first time since September and WTI down for a fourth
day in a row for the first time since November. Both crude benchmarks were on track for their lowest closes
since Jan. 9. “Possible sanctions under the new Trump administration remain unclear with possible tariffs
related to Canada and Mexico now seemingly at the forefront of trader uncertainties,” analysts at energy
advisory firm Ritterbusch and Associates said in a note. Trump said his administration was discussing
imposing a 10% tariff on goods imported from China on Feb. 1, the same day that he previously said Mexico
and Canada could face levies of around 25%. - Trump uncertainties push safe-haven gold to near all-time high
Gold prices soared to near three-month highs on Wednesday, trading just below its record peak, fuelled by a
soft dollar and lack of clarity around U.S. President Donald Trump’s policy plans, which investors fear could
trigger trade wars and elevate market volatility. Spot gold added 0.4% to $2,755.58 per ounce as of 2:28 p.m.
ET. Prices were at their highest since Oct. 31 when they hit their all-time high of $2,790.15. U.S. gold futures
gained 0.3% to $2,768. The dollar index (.DXY), opens new tab dipped to a more-than-three-week low earlier
in the session, making greenback-priced bullion less expensive for holders of other currencies. - ECB Rate-Cutting Plans Survive First Contact With Trump’s Return
Plans by the European Central Bank (ECB) to push ahead with interest-rate cuts are withstanding the early
jolts in US economic policy driven by Donald Trump’s return to the White House. Speaking during the World
Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, officials including President Christine Lagarde said euro-zone inflation
remains primed to hit 2% this year, allowing them to further loosen the shackles on the faltering economy.
ECB will probably lower borrowing costs by another quarter-point on Jan 30, adding to four such moves last
year that took the deposit rate to 3%. Investors and analysts see further steps in the months ahead, until ECB
reaches a level that neither constricts nor stimulates economic activity. However, most policymakers remain
hesitant to offer predictions beyond the next two meetings, not least with much of Trump’s agenda still
unclear. But crafting any kind of response with so much still unknown — including possible counter-measures
by the European Union and China isn’t easy. - China tones it down at Davos this time ahead of Trump tariffs
In 2017, weeks after Donald Trump’s first presidential election victory, Xi Jinping became the first Chinese
head of state to address the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland winning applause as he inveighed
against protectionism and declared that a trade war would hurt both sides. This time around, China’s
presence at the annual Alpine confab of political, business and financial leaders is well toned down in the
wake of Trump’s return to the White House. The nation’s top official at the forum is a vice premier, Ding
Xuexiang. And in contrast with Xi’s sweeping language five years ago, Ding struck a conciliatory tone, vowing
to rebalance trade — an acknowledgment of a key concern for Trump by promising to import more
competitive, quality products and services. The representation is also a downgrade from last year, when Xi’s
top lieutenant, Premier Li Qiang, made the trek to Davos to assure the global elite that China’s economic
stewardship of the world’s second-biggest economy would ensure that its 5% growth target would be
reached. This year’s gathering comes as Beijing awaits a full picture of the Trump administration’s plans for
bilateral ties. An apparent reprieve from the U.S. leader’s highly anticipated tariff rollout lasted some 24
hours before he warned that a 10% levy could be imposed on China as soon as Feb. 1. The new president’s
threats so far have targeted America’s top four trading partners: Mexico, Canada, China and the European
Union. - South Korea GDP misses estimates as weak consumption, construction sector drive growth to 6-quarter
low
South Korea’s fourth-quarter GDP missed estimates Thursday, with weakness in consumption and the
construction sector driving growth to a six-quarter low of 1.2%, year on year. Advance figures missed the
1.4% expansion expected by economists polled by Reuters, and the growth was also softer compared with
the 1.5% rise seen in the third quarter of 2024. On a quarter-on-quarter basis, GDP growth also missed
expectations, with the economy growing just 0.1% compared to the 0.2% forecast in the Reuters poll.
However, full-year GDP growth for 2024 came in at 2% compared with last year’s 1.4% gain. The South
Korean won weakened 0.13% to 1,436.4, while the country’s benchmark stock index Kospi fell 0.47%. The
Bank of Korea said that in 2024, private consumption growth fell and investment in the construction sector
declined, but government consumption, facility investment, and exports growth rose. The BOK also said that
growth in the services as well as construction industry decreased, but manufacturing industry grew at a faster
rate compared to last year. - Trump threatens Russia with sanctions, tariffs if Putin doesn’t end Ukraine war
President Donald Trump threatened to impose “high levels” of sanctions on Russia and tariffs on imports
from there if the country did not reach a settlement to end its war against Ukraine. Trump’s warning, made in
a social media post, called out Russian President Vladimir Putin by name. “Let’s get this war, which never
would have started if I were President, over with! We can do it the easy way, or the hard way — and the easy
way is always better,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. - SK Hynix profit soars to a record high on AI boom, but shares drop on demand uncertainty
South Korea’s SK Hynix, one of the largest memory chipmakers in the world, posted record quarterly earnings
Thursday on the back of strong sales of high bandwidth memory used in generative AI chipsets. SK Hynix
shares, however, fell 2.7% as CFO Kim Woohyun warned that the outlook for memory demand in 2025 was
clouded by inventory adjustments from PC and smartphone manufacturers as well as strengthened
protective trade policies and geopolitical risks. Here are SK Hynix’s fourth-quarter results compared with
LSEG SmartEstimate, which is weighted toward forecasts from analysts who are more consistently accurate:
Revenue: 19.77 trillion won ($13.7 billion) vs. 19.91 trillion won; Operating profit: 8.08 trillion won ($5.6
billion) vs. 8.02 trillion won. Revenue rose about 75% in the October-December quarter compared with the
same period a year earlier, while operating profit surged 2,236% to 8.08 trillion, year on year. On a quarter
on-quarter basis revenue was up 12%, while operating profit grew 15% to a fresh record high. The chipmaker
has benefitted from a boom in artificial intelligence servers and is a key supplier to U.S. AI chip
designer Nvidia. - Samsung launches S25 smartphone with boosted AI as Apple battle heats up
Samsung Electronics on Wednesday launched its latest flagship smartphones — the Galaxy S25 series —
touting a custom chip and boosted AI features. The S25 release comes after a year in which Samsung’s
smartphone shipments came under pressure from Chinese players and Apple. Samsung’s S25 series comes in
three variants — the S25, S25+ and the S25 Ultra — as has been the case with previous flagship launches.
The starting prices are as follows: Galaxy S25: $799; Galaxy S25+: $999; Galaxy S25 Ultra: $1,299. Samsung
will start taking preorders for the S25 series on Wednesday and the devices will go on sale on Feb. 7. Last
year, Samsung launched Galaxy AI — its suite of artificial intelligence features — on the S24. With the S25,
Samsung unveiled additional AI applications with the aim of making the phone more like a digital personal
assistant. - Microsoft’s business development chief Chris Young resigns
Microsoft’s head of business development Chris Young, who helped orchestrate the software giant’s
acquisition of Activision Blizzard, is resigning from his post after about four years on the job, the company
said in a regulatory filing on Wednesday. No successor was named. Young joined Microsoft in 2020 after
almost three years as CEO of McAfee, where he ran the effort to separate the company from Intel.
Previously, he held executive positions at Cisco and RSA. At Microsoft, Young sat on the company’s senior
leadership team alongside CEO Satya Nadella and finance chief Amy Hood. He reported to Nadella. As one of
the highest paid Microsoft employees, Young received $12 million in total compensation in the 2024 fiscal
year, according to a filing. Young’s organization included the M12 corporate venture capital unit, which has
invested in startups like Innovaccer, Outreach, PsiQuantum, Skedulo and Typeface. In 2023, M12 said that
going forward, it would work more closely with Microsoft to better assist portfolio companies. Microsoft’s
$68.7 billion acquisition of video game publisher Activision, its largest deal ever, closed in 2023. Young also
played a role in Microsoft’s expansion of its partnership with artificial intelligence startup OpenAI and its ad
deal with Netflix. - Jensen Huang-led Nvidia overtakes Apple to be the most valued company in the world
AI-chipmaker Nvidia on Wednesday became the most valued company in the world. Jensen Huang-led
computer manufacturing corporation has a market capitalization of $3.46 trillion. The worth is more than
that of Apple’s $3.35 trillion, as per a report. Nvidia regained the numero uno status after achieving more
than 100 per cent growth in the third quarter of 2024. Apart from this the company shows a 94 per cent
uptick in its revenue which stands at $35.1 billion, as per a report on GuruFocus. Nvidia, the company whose
chips are powering much of the move into AI, shares rose 3.6 per cent on Wednesday. It had already nearly
octupled in the prior two years. - Netflix stock secures all-time closing high as Wall Street cheers ‘near flawless’ earnings
Netflix stock (NFLX) closed at an all-time high on Wednesday, finishing the day up nearly 10% as Wall Street
analysts praised the company’s fourth quarter earnings results. Shortly after the opening bell, the stock
leaped to around $1,000 a share as analysts rushed to increase their respective price targets. Pivotal
Research upped its target from $1,000 a share to $1,250, the highest on the Street. Shares backed off of their
intraday highs at the close, capping the session at just under $954. The streaming giant reported a whopping
18.9 million users in the fourth quarter, while revenue and earnings also handily beat expectations. It was the
biggest quarterly subscriber gain in the company’s history. “Q4 results were near flawless,” Jefferies analyst
James Heaney said in a note following the report. Including Wednesday’s price action, Netflix stock has
surged about 100% year over year. Shares hit several all-time highs in 2024 as many analysts called
Netflix the winner of the hard-fought streaming wars. The company also announced a $15 billion stock
buyback and boosted its full-year revenue outlook in its after-hours report on Tuesday. Netflix now projects
2025 revenue between $43.5 billion and $44.5 billion, ahead of the prior $43 billion to $44 billion range.
The strong subscriber gains come as the streamer ended 2024 with two back-to-back NFL games, a successful
“Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson” boxing match, and the return of “Squid Game.” To that end, the company said
price hikes will be hitting the service — which analysts had consistently teased heading into the print.
The company raised the price of its ad-supported plan to $7.99 from the prior $6.99. Its Standard, ad-free tier
will now be $17.99, up from $15.49, while its Premium plan will increase by $2 to $24.99. Users who want to
add an extra member will now pay $8.99, an increase of $1. - Procter & Gamble Stock Gains After Sales Exceed Expectations
Shares of Tide and Pampers parent Procter & Gamble (PG) rose 3% Wednesday after the consumer goods
giant posted fiscal 2025 second-quarter net sales that topped Wall Street estimates. Net sales grew 2% year
over-year to $21.88 billion, beating analysts’ consensus compiled by Visible Alpha of $21.59 billion. Net
income was $4.63 billion, or $1.88 per share, matching expectations. P&G’s Baby, Feminine & Family Care
segment, which includes Tampax and Pampers, saw sales rise 3%. Sales rose 2% at Fabric & Home Care,
featuring Tide and Febreze products, as well as at Health Care, which includes Crest and Pepto Bismol.
Grooming, featuring Gillette and Venus razors, saw revenue grow 1%, while Beauty sales, including the Head
& Shoulders and Old Spice brands, were flat. P&G affirmed its fiscal 2025 outlook, forecasting sales growth of
2% to 4% from $84 billion last year and earnings per share (EPS) growth of 10% to 12% from $6.02 in fiscal 2024.
The company also reiterated its plan to repurchase $6 to $7 billion worth of shares this fiscal year. - Johnson & Johnson stock down despite beat on full-year, Q4 2024 earnings
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) beat on fourth quarter and full-year 2024 results, but its stock traded down on
Wednesday morning to about $143 per share. Several negative impacts were highlighted in the look-back and
look-ahead on an earnings call, despite the company beating Wall Street expectations on revenue by $70
million and reporting results on earnings per share in line with estimates. J&J reported total sales of $88.8
billion for 2024, up 4.3% compared to 2023. That includes slowing COVID-19 vaccine sales — a theme other
vaccine makers are expected to see with a slower start to the respiratory virus season this year. The company
reported earnings per share of $5.79 for 2024, up 11% year over year. Meanwhile, fourth quarter earnings
were mixed, with $22 billion in sales, up 5.3% year over year, and earnings per share down 17% from the
prior year at $1.41. But the good news is somewhat tempered by the ongoing talc case, which has weighed
on its growth potential. A lawsuit in Texas is set to begin hearings on Feb. 18 and last up to a month
thereafter.
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