- Asian Stocks Rise as US Momentum Slows, Yen Steady: Markets Wrap
(Bloomberg) — Asian stocks climbed Friday as the latest round of US economic data signalled momentum is slowing, boosting the case for the Federal Reserve to start cutting interest rates this year. Australian and Japanese shares rose, while equity futures in Hong Kong pointed to an early gain. Contracts for US shares slipped after Dell Technologies Inc. - Tokyo Inflation Picks Up, Keeping BOJ on Track for Rate Hike
(Bloomberg) — Inflation in Tokyo accelerated in May, keeping the Bank of Japan largely on track to consider a rate hike in coming months even as the economy continues to show signs of weakness. Consumer prices excluding fresh food rose 1.9% in May in the capital, ministry of internal affairs data showed Friday. - China’s 60 Million Homes Are Hard to Sell Even in Big Cities
(Bloomberg) — Chinese policymakers have identified reducing a glut of housing inventory as the key to ending the nation’s unprecedented property slump. It’s easy to see why. The country has the equivalent of 60 million unsold apartments, which will take more than four years to sell without government aid, according to Bloomberg Economics. - Vista-Backed Tech Firm Moves Assets Away From Private Lenders
(Bloomberg) — Vista Equity Partners-backed Pluralsight Inc. shifted assets away from its private credit lenders as part of a move to raise fresh financing, according to people with knowledge of the matter. The company moved intellectual property into a new subsidiary and used those assets to obtain financing from Vista, the people said. - Donald Trump Becomes First Former US President Guilty of Crimes
(Bloomberg) — Donald Trump was found guilty in the first criminal trial of a former US president in the nation’s history, a verdict that could reshape the political landscape five months before Election Day. - Biden Sticks to ‘Tightrope’ Israel Policy as Rafah Deaths Mount
(Bloomberg) — President Joe Biden’s advisers have insisted for months to allies at home and abroad that his embrace of Israel has resulted in the least bad outcome in the Gaza war by reining in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s impulses and preventing even worse bloodshed. - US GDP Growth Was Slower Last Quarter on Soft Consumer Spending
(Bloomberg) — The US economy grew at a slower pace in the first quarter than initially reported, primarily reflecting softer consumer spending on goods. Gross domestic product rose 1.3% annualized in the first three months of the year, below the previous estimate of 1.6%, Bureau of Economic Analysis figures published Thursday showed. - Japan to Answer ¥9.4 Trillion Question on Currency Intervention
(Bloomberg) — Investors will learn Friday if Japan intervened to prop up the yen during the last month, with the beleaguered currency vulnerable to a selloff if authorities were absent or had to spend much more than expected. - Gold flat ahead of U.S. data, but set for 4th straight monthly gain
Gold prices were set for a fourth straight monthly gain, even as the market struggled for momentum on Friday ahead of a key U.S. inflation reading that could provide more indications on how the Federal Reserve might proceed with rate cuts later this year. Spot gold was unchanged at $2,343.04 per ounce, as of 0356 GMT. Bullion prices are up 0.3% so far this week and 2.5% so far in the month. - ECB Seen Making Fewer Rate Cuts in Fight to Curb Inflation Risks
(Bloomberg) — Economists are dialling back their expectations for how far the European Central Bank will lower interest rates after it starts cutting next week, according to a Bloomberg survey. Respondents anticipate that the first of six quarter-point reductions in the deposit rate — currently at 4% — will be announced next week. - Index Pricing Glitch Causes Minor Disruptions for US Equities
(Bloomberg) — A glitch prevented prices from printing on the biggest US equity index for over an hour Thursday morning, but did not affect individual stocks and resulted in only minor disruptions. Live pricing for the S&P 500 stopped at 10:41 a.m. in New York after S&P Dow Jones Indices had trouble disseminating the information. - Blue Crest Rebuilds Oil Trading Team After a Series of Departures
(Bloomberg) — Billionaire Michael Platt’s Blue Crest Capital Management is in the process of replenishing its oil trading team following the departure of at least three portfolio managers. London-based Tom Ogilvie left the private investment firm recently, according to people with knowledge of the matter. - Elon Musk Agrees to Testify in SEC’s Twitter-Buyout Probe
(Bloomberg) — Elon Musk has agreed to testify in the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s probe of his 2022 acquisition of the social-media platform once known as Twitter. The billionaire will sit for a five-hour deposition after dropping his plan to appeal a court order that he comply with a government subpoena. - Investors Are Picky About Buying Europe’s IPO Revival: ECM Watch
(Bloomberg) — The latest headlines about European initial public offerings suggest that while positive momentum around a revival is building, investors are being highly selective when deciding which deals are attractive enough to bet on. - HP Inc. jumped the most since its 2015 split with sister company Hewlett Packard Enterprise after reporting its first increase in PC sales in two years, an optimistic signal for a long-awaited rebound in the market.
Revenue from HP’s computer unit increased 3% to $8.43 billion in the fiscal second quarter, compared with the $8.28 billion expected by analysts. The business had been declining since May 2022 on a year-over-year basis. The jump was due to commercial sales, which rose 6% to $6.24 billion. Consumer sales continued to decline, slipping 3% to $2.18 billion, the company said Wednesday in a statement. The PC market had seen a historic decline over the last two years after many consumers, businesses and schools purchased laptops in the early months of the pandemic. In the first quarter, shipments picked up 1.5% — the first increase since the end of 2021 — industry analyst IDC said in April. PC-makers have been hopeful those numbers signalled the end of the slump and that growth would accelerate in 2024 with the launch of machines equipped with a new version of Microsoft Corp.’s Windows software as well as hardware that is built with chips to handle artificial intelligence tools. - Best Buy reported first-quarter results before market open Thursday
Shares of Best Buy Co. Inc. surged 12.6% in afternoon trading Thursday, after the consumer-electronics and appliances retailer saw an overall sales decline that was steeper than expected, but noted that laptop sales continued to show positive momentum. “We have seen early signs of improvement as year-over-year comparable sales for laptops turned slightly positive in the fourth quarter, and that trend continued in Q1,” Chief Executive Corie Barry said on the earnings call. See more: The S&P 500’s two biggest gainers offer bullish signs for tech spending. - Foot Locker Inc.’s shares surged after the sneaker retailer’s turnaround plan got back on track.
Profit, excluding some items, was 22 cents a share, almost doubling the average analyst estimate.
Comparable store sales, a key retail metric, fell 1.8% for the quarter ended May 4. That was slightly better than Wall Street’s expectation of a 1.9% drop. “Its business is stabilizing as turnaround efforts begin to pay off,” said Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Abigail Gilmartin. Foot Locker’s turnaround lost momentum in March when executives delayed their growth plan to hit $9.5 billion in annual sales by two years to 2028. That left investors worried about the retailer’s progress, and its shares sank about 30%. But now it appears on more solid footing as it reaffirmed its sales and profit outlook for this year. - Shares of software companies are broadly lower on Thursday, after Salesforce gave a weak outlook, spurring worries over a slowdown in the sector more generally and the firm’s relevance amid the advancement of AI.
Salesforce is down as much as 19%, its biggest intraday percentage drop since August 2008 - CrowdStrike continues to gain in US premarket trading, as Morgan Stanley boosts its price target on the stock and and names it as a top pick, predicting it could become the next cybersecurity company to surpass a $100b market capitalization.
Analyst Hamza Fodder Wala retains an overweight rating and moves his target to $422 from $372, citing in a note a catalog of upcoming catalysts for the firm with an expanding total addressable market, better upselling and free cash flow, Fodder Wala sees scope to pass the $100b level within the next 12 months. - Oil alliance OPEC+ could extend production cuts this weekend as focus shifts away from Middle East tensions, sources say
The oil-producing Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies could extend existing output cuts this week, delegates and analysts tell CNBC, even as focus shifts from Middle East tensions to summer demand. Four OPEC+ delegates, who spoke anonymously because of the sensitivity of talks, told CNBC the 2.2 million-barrels-per-day supply reductions will likely be prolonged, with one noting that the alliance would avoid shifting approach at a time when oil prices are relatively stable. - Fed’s favorite inflation gauge is expected to show very slow progress on Friday
The Commerce Department’s measure of personal consumption expenditures prices will be released Friday morning and is expected to show inflation in April running at a 2.7% annual rate, according to Dow Jones. Fed policymakers prefer the PCE measure as it accounts for shifts in consumer behavior, such as when shoppers will substitute less-expensive items for pricier ones. - Stock futures inch lower as investors review earnings, brace for inflation report
U.S. stock futures ticked lower Friday as investors reviewed a flurry of corporate earnings ahead of a key inflation report. Wall Street was also headed for a losing week after what has been a stellar month for stocks. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures fell by 37 points, or 0.10%. S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq 100 futures dipped 0.20% and 0.31%, respectively. - France is aiming to become a global AI superpower — but not without help from U.S. Big Tech
The Viva Technology conference in Paris last week was buzzing with talk about how far France has come as a leader in AI.
A great deal of chatter surrounded French AI firm H, which raised $220 million in a seed funding round from investors including U.S. e-commerce giant Amazon. A common theme was the boost France’s AI scene has gotten from U.S. tech firms, with Microsoft and Amazon investing billions into the country. - ‘No big deal’: Mark Mobius says he’ll stay bullish on India no matter the election results
Veteran emerging markets investor Mark Mobius said India’s election outcome will not change his bullish views on the country. India’s election results will be out on Tuesday next week. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his ruling Bhartiya Janata Party are widely expected to easily win a third term as pre-poll surveys seem to suggest. “The big question mark is whether [Modi] can get a number of seats to change the constitution,” Mobius told CNBC’s “Street Signs Asia” on Thursday.
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