- Global Stocks Hit Peak Level Before US Jobs Data: Markets Wrap
(Bloomberg) — Global equities were set to hold onto record highs achieved Thursday as traders turned their attention to US jobs data due Friday for clues on Federal Reserve rate cuts. Tokyo’s Topix index touched another record, before slipping. The moves followed gains for European shares, led by French equities. US stock futures were little changed in Asia after markets. - Gold Pushes Higher as Investors Expect Fed Will Start to Ease
(Bloomberg) — Gold headed for a back-to-back weekly gain on expectations that the Federal Reserve will trim interest rates before year-end, with traders looking ahead to US payrolls data for the next batch of clues on the outlook. Bullion for immediate delivery traded near $2,356 an ounce after rising by more than 1% this week. - Yen Traders Game Plan for Nail-Biting Run Into BOJ Decision
(Bloomberg) — Currency traders face a long and nail-biting wait this month until the Bank of Japan’s policy decision on July 31, when a potential interest-rate hike and cut to bond purchases may finally bring some relief to the embattled yen. It’s plumbed new lows versus the dollar four times since late June, piling pressure on authorities in Tokyo. - PBOC Readies Hundreds of Billions of Yuan Bond Sale Capacity
(Bloomberg) — China’s central bank took the next step toward selling government bonds to cool a record-breaking rally, saying it now has “hundreds of billions” of yuan of the securities at its disposal through agreements with lenders. After months of investor speculation about its intentions, the People’s Bank of China disclosed the clearest outline. - Lagarde Says ECB Needs More Data to Reassure It on Inflation
(Bloomberg) — The European Central Bank requires additional reassurance that inflation is headed back to the 2% target before it lowers interest rates further, according to President Christine Lagarde. While disinflation is continuing in the euro zone, officials must stay alert, Lagarde said Thursday. - Labour Landslide in Sight – What Next for UK Economy: Economics
(Bloomberg Economics) — OUR TAKE: The exit poll for the UK general election suggests the Labour Party is on course for a landslide victory. The new government will inherit an economy where growth is buoyant, inflation is low and interest rates could soon be on their way down. - Emerging Stocks Hit Highest Since 2022 as Fed Optimism Lingers
(Bloomberg) — Emerging-market stocks advanced to the highest in more than two years as the latest economic indicators from the US continue to boost risk appetite in a quiet session for global markets. Emerging-market assets extended Wednesday’s gains following weaker-than-expected US economic data on Thursday, a day where global liquidity was low due to the US holiday. - Glencore’s Teck Coal Deal Approved by Canada With Conditions
(Bloomberg) — Canada’s government approved Glencore Plc’s $6.9-billion acquisition of Teck Resources Ltd.’s metallurgical coal business with several stringent conditions to protect local jobs and the environment. Industry Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne approved the Glencore transaction of the British Columbia-based business, Elk Valley Resources. - Starmer’s Labour Heads for Big Win, Election Exit Poll Says
(Bloomberg) — Keir Starmer’s Labour Party is projected to win the UK general election with a huge majority, a result that would reflect a seismic realignment in British politics as Rishi Sunak’s governing Conservatives imploded. - FTSE 100 Futures Rise With Pound Steady as Labour Seen Winning
(Bloomberg) — UK equity futures climbed and the pound was steady after an exit poll indicated the Labour Party will secure its long-predicted landslide election victory, with Keir Starmer set to become Prime Minister on a pledge of greater economic stability. Contracts on the FTSE 100 Index advanced 0.3%, while the pound was little changed around $1.276. - Modi’s BJP ‘Shaken’ by Stronger Opposition, Says Congress Leader
(Bloomberg) — Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other ruling party leaders have been rattled by India’s newly emboldened opposition, which now plans to use its expanded presence in parliament to challenge the Bharatiya Janata Party on multiple fronts, a senior opposition leader said. - BNP, UBS Are Said to Show Interest in HSBC’s German Wealth Unit
(Bloomberg) — HSBC Holdings Plc’s sale of its German wealth-management unit is attracting initial interest from peers including BNP Paribas SA and UBS Group AG, people familiar with the matter said, as the London-listed lender looks to streamline its global footprint. - BNP Paribas, Axa Said to Mull €1.4 Trillion Asset Manager JV
(Bloomberg) — Axa SA is studying options for its investment manager and has been contemplating a combination with BNP Paribas SA’s asset manager, a joint venture that would have total assets under management of about €1.4 trillion ($1.5 trillion). - HedgeWeek: Point72, Citadel and Millennium lead H1 hedge fund performance
Steve Cohen’s Point72, Ken Griffin’s Citadel and Izzy Englander’s Millennium Management emerged as the top performers in the first six months of 2024, marking a strong recovery for major Wall Street hedge funds after a sluggish 2023, according to a report by Business Insider. - French State Investment Firm Eyes Stake in Sanofi Consumer Unit
(Bloomberg) — Bpifrance SACA is looking at a potential investment in Sanofi SA’s consumer health unit as it eyes bigger health investments, according to its executive director Jose Gonzalo. The French state-owned investment firm is in talks with “many funds” about the Sanofi business and may team up with the winning bidder. - Barclays has agreed to sell its German consumer finance business to a subsidiary of Bawag Group, as part of its plan to simplify its business.
The British lender’s Hamburg-based Consumer Bank Europe offers diversified retail banking services to the German and Austrian markets. The sale should release around €4.0 billion in risk-weighed assets for Barclays. As for Bawag Group, the transaction is expected to represent a pretax profit contribution of more than €100 million in 2027 after the business is integrated. - Volvo Car AB shares dropped 6.19%, after the European Union confirmed tariff plans on electric vehicles imported from China.
The strong reaction of Volvo Car AB compared to its peers is due to its high electric vehicle production volume in China. - S&P 500 futures are little changed as investors await jobs data
S&P 500 futures are near flat Thursday night as investors readied for Friday’s closely watched jobs report. Futures connected to the broad index sat near their flatline, while Nasdaq 100 futures slipped 0.1%. Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 19 points, or 0.1%. - While much of Europe embraces hard-right parties, the UK has swung wildly to the left.
The Brexiting, euroskeptic and anti-immigrant U.K. we’ve seen in recent years has swung back to the center left. Many nations in western Europe are meanwhile now seeing their own electorates shift to the hard right, with nationalist, populist and euroskeptic parties not only riding high in voter polls, but coming to power. - Samsung shares hit over 3-year high after better-than-expected guidance on strong AI demand
The stock climbed as much as 2.24% on Friday morning, trading at a high of 86,500 Korean won ($62.73), according to LSEG data. Samsung shares closed at 84,600 on Thursday. Samsung on Friday expects operating profit for the April to June quarter to be approximately 10.4 trillion won, about a 1,452.2% rise from 670 billion won a year ago. The expected operating profit beat a LSEG estimate of 8.51 trillion won. - India and China to ‘redouble’ efforts for resolving border issues ‘at the earliest’
India and China have agreed to ‘redouble’ efforts to resolve border issues, according to a statement by India’s external affairs ministry. In June 2020, 20 Indian and four Chinese soldiers died in a face-off in Western Himalayas. Although no shots were fired, this was the biggest loss of life in combat between the two countries since 1967. - Saks Fifth Avenue parent HBC to acquire Neiman Marcus Group in $2.65 billion deal
Saks Fifth Avenue parent HBC said Thursday that it would purchase Neiman Marcus Group in a deal valued at $2.65 billion. The combination will establish Saks Global, which will include Saks Fifth Avenue, Saks OFF 5TH, Neiman Marcus’ namesake department store chain and Bergdorf Goodman. - Trump ally Nigel Farage elected to British parliament for first time
After seven failed attempts, Nigel Farage has won a seat in the U.K.’s parliament. “My plan is to build a mass national movement over the course of the next few years and hopefully be big enough to challenge the general election properly in 2029,” Farage said after the result was announced.
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