- Stocks in Asia Trade Mixed After US Rally Stalls: Markets Wrap
(Bloomberg) — Asian stocks opened mixed as traders brace for a flood of economic data this week including Chinese activity gauges and the Federal Reserve’s preferred measure of inflation. Australian shares rose, with banks and miners contributing the most to the benchmark gauge’s gain. - Goldman Strikes $1 Billion Private Credit Deal with Mubadala
(Bloomberg) — Goldman Sachs Group Inc. has clinched $1 billion from Mubadala Investment Co. to scour for more private credit deals in Asia. The Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund and Goldman’s asset-management arm struck a partnership to invest alongside each other in the Asia-Pacific region, with a particular focus on India. - Ant Outbids Citadel Securities for Credit Suisse’s China Unit
(Bloomberg) — Ant Group Co. Outbid Citadel Securities LLC for Credit Suisse’s investment bank venture in China, in a surprise move that will be subject to close regulatory scrutiny, people familiar with the matter said. The bid by Jack Ma-backed fintech giant to build a securities business using Credit Suisse’s operations. - Fed’s Favored Inflation Gauge Seen Rising Most in Year: Eco Week
(Bloomberg) — Underlying US inflation probably rose in January by the most in a year, as tracked by the Federal Reserve’s preferred metric, highlighting the long and bumpy path to taming price pressures. The core personal consumption expenditures price index, which excludes food and energy costs, is seen rising 0.4% from a month earlier. - Koch Network to Stop Funding Haley in Blow to Her 2024 Bid
(Bloomberg) — The Charles Koch-backed Americans for Prosperity Action will cut off funding for Nikki Haley’s presidential campaign, a blow to the sole remaining Donald Trump challenger. AFP, a conservative super political action committee, has spent millions of dollars since the fall on advertising and voter outreach efforts for Haley helping to fuel her bid for the Republican nomination. - Gold Steady After Weekly Gain as Market Waits for Fed Clarity
(Bloomberg) — Gold was steady — following its biggest weekly gain in two months — as the market waited for more clarity on when the Federal Reserve would start cutting interest rates. Bullion has largely held its ground this year despite investors pushing back expectations for how soon the Fed would start easing. - World’s Best Hedge Fund Bet Bumps Up Against a New Era of Risk
(Bloomberg) — As the best hedge fund strategy of 2023 becomes a magnet for mainstream investors, the risk models it relies on are getting a lot tougher to crack. The strategy in question is tied to insurance-linked securities, which are dominated by catastrophe bonds (often dubbed cat bonds). In 2023, no other asset class produced a better-performing bet for hedge funds, with firms including Fermat Capital Management and Tenax Capital booking their biggest – ever returns. - Largest Hedge Fund Bulked Up on Nvidia Stock as 2023 Ended
Ed Lin As Nvidia stock closed in on a 240% surge for 2023, the world’s largest hedge fund went in big on a bet that the chip maker’s rally still had legs. Bridgewater Associates quintupled its stake in Nvidia stock in the fourth quarter. It also more than doubled its investment in General Electric, scooped up AT&T. - Booking shares fall as much as 9.2% on Friday, the most intraday since February 2022, after the online travel agency reported its fourth-quarter results and noted a headwind from the Mideast War.
FOURTH QUARTER RESULTS: Gross bookings $31.7 billion, +16% y/y, estimate $31.3 billion (Bloomberg Consensus); Revenue $4.78 billion, +18% y/y, estimate $4.73 billion; Marketing expense $1.43 billion, +9.1% y/y, estimate $1.46 billion; Adjusted Ebitda $1.46 billion, +18% y/y, estimate $1.45 billion; Adjusted Ebitda margin 30.6% vs. 30.7% y/y, estimate 31%; Adjusted EPS $32.00 vs. $24.74 y/y, estimate $29.62;“We are pleased to report a strong close to 2023 with fourth-quarter room nights growing 9% year-over-year or 11% when excluding business associated with Israel, which was significantly impacted by the war. For the full year, we reached a significant milestone with over 1 billion room nights booked on our platforms, and we achieved record levels of gross bookings, revenue, and operating income.” - China’s Quant Clampdown Risks Damaging Fragile Markets for Years
(Bloomberg) — Chinese hedge funds were looking forward to a holiday break from the market turmoil when trouble started brewing last month. One manager had his short-selling orders abruptly rejected by brokers. Another was cut off from the stock market completely. Regulators turned up on trading floors at multiple funds to monitor transactions in person. - Block Inc. jumps as much as 23%, the most intraday since February 2022, after the payment’s technology company raised its forecast for adjusted Ebitda for 2024 to at least $2.63 billion, up from prior guidance for $2.4 billion.
YEAR FORECAST: Sees adjusted Ebitda of at least $2.63 billion, saw $2.40 billion, estimate $2.41 billion (Bloomberg Consensus); Sees adjusted operating income of at least $1.15 billion, saw $875 million, estimate $843.4 million. Sees FY Gross Profit at Least $8.65B. Blocks Plans to Operate Below 12,000 Person Cap. - China’s Weak Local Borrowing Raises Hope for More Central Aid
(Bloomberg) — China’s local governments so far appear reluctant or unable to borrow more despite pressure to stimulate growth, fueling expectations Beijing may pick up their slack and take on more debt. Regional authorities nationwide plan to issue new bonds totaling 1.08 trillion yuan ($150 billion) for the first quarter, about 13% less than they sold over the same period last year and the lowest since 2021, Bloomberg-compiled data showed. - Yen Volatility Set to Fall as Dueling Forces Curb Trading Range
(Bloomberg) — Traders hoping to profit from large swings in the dollar-yen may be in for a rude awakening as the currency pair risks being trapped between rising intervention odds and US interest-rate bets. One-month implied volatility on the dollar-yen, a measure of its expected movement over the period, may fall to its lowest level since March 2022, strategists said. - BYD Co Ltd unveiled its most expensive car last Sunday which costs around $233,450.
The high-performance fully electric supercar, Yang Wang U9, will initially be for the China market, with other pricey electric vehicles (EV) under the Yang Wang brand due to launch later in the year. The company became the biggest EV seller globally, overtaking Tesla in the last quarter of 2023 and sells models all along the price spectrum.
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