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☆ European shares edge up on pharma boost, UK's FTSE 100 nears record-high
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-16 | by ( Bansari Mayur Kamdar | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The pan-European STOXX 600 (.STOXX) gained 0.1% in early trading, boosted by a 0.8% rise in healthcare stocks (.SXDP). UK's FTSE 100 (.FTSE) rose 0.1% to 7,852.84, inching closer to a record 7,903.50. "Investors appear to have fallen back in love with UK assets, after a difficult period when FTSE 100 was the wallflower among global indices," said Susannah Streeter, senior investment and markets analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown. Weakness in luxury heavyweights such as LVMH (LVMH.PA) and Hermes International (HRMS.PA) weighed on Europe's STOXX 600 on Monday. German arms maker Rheinmetall (RHMG.DE) gained 2.9% on acquiring a stake in Dutch IT hardware specialist Incooling B.V.

☆ Futures muted ahead of key inflation data
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SummarySummary Companies Futures muted: Dow, S&P flat; Nasdaq down 0.1%Jan 12 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures were subdued on Thursday ahead of the keenly awaited December inflation data that would offer more clues on the Federal Reserve's path of monetary tightening. ET (1330 GMT), is expected to show U.S. consumer prices grew 6.5% year-on-year in December, moderating from a 7.1% rise in November. Wall Street's main indexes ended sharply higher on Wednesday, led by major technology stocks, with the S&P 500 (.SPX) and Nasdaq (.IXIC) gaining more than 1% each. This week marks the start of the quarterly earnings season, with big banks expected to report lower profits, while overall S&P 500 earnings are expected to decline year-over-year, according to Refinitiv. ET, Dow e-minis were up 1 point, S&P 500 e-minis were down 0.5 point, or 0.01%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were down 11 points, or 0.1%.

☆ Britain's Tesco to target value offers after strong Christmas
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( James Davey | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] Clubcard branding is seen inside a branch of a Tesco Extra Supermarket in London, Britain, February 10, 2022. Tesco, like Sainsbury's, is absorbing some of its cost inflation rather than passing it all on to consumers. The group maintained its forecast for 2022-23 retail adjusted operating profit of between 2.4 billion pounds and 2.5 billion pounds ($2.9-$3.0 billion), down from the 2.65 billion pounds earned in 2021-22. It expects retail free cash flow of at least 1.8 billion pounds and profit from Tesco Bank of 120-160 million pounds. Shares in Tesco have fallen 17% over the last year, but are up 7% over the last month.

☆ Futures edge lower ahead of Powell's speech
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The highly awaited U.S. Labor Department's inflation report on Thursday is expected to show some moderation in year-on-year consumer prices in December. Money market bets pointed to a 77% chance of a 25-bps hike to 4.50%-4.75% in the Fed's upcoming policy meeting, with the terminal rate seen slightly below 5% by June. This is in contrast to the 5%-5.25% peak policy rate expected by San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly and Atlanta President Raphael Bostic. Along with economic data and comments from Fed officials, investors are also awaiting corporate earnings reports, with big U.S. banks expected to report lower fourth-quarter profits this week. Bed Bath & Beyond Inc (BBBY.O) was up 4.9% in premarket trading, ahead of its quarterly earnings report due later in the day.

☆ Lund-Yates: The market is nervous about Apple because it doesn't know how to map future demand
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-04 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailLund-Yates: The market is nervous about Apple because it doesn't know how to map future demandSophie Lund-Yates of Hargreaves Lansdown discusses the continued declines in shares of Apple and Tesla.

☆ Futures edge higher ahead of Fed meeting minutes
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SummarySummary Companies Futures up: Dow 0.20%, S&P 0.31%, Nasdaq 0.46%Jan 4 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures edged higher on Wednesday as hopes of an economic recovery in China lifted sentiment, while focus was also on minutes from the Federal Reserve's December policy meeting for clues on the outlook for interest rate hikes. Minutes from the Fed's previous meeting, when it raised interest rates by half a percentage point and cautioned rates may need to remain higher for longer, are due to be released at 2 p.m. "The minutes of the latest Fed meeting will be devoured later, in a search for clues about how much higher rates will go before policymakers consider pressing the pause button," said Susannah Streeter, senior investment and markets analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown. ET, Dow e-minis were up 65 points, or 0.2%, S&P 500 e-minis were up 11.75 points, or 0.31%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were up 50.25 points, or 0.46%. Reporting by Shubham Batra and Amruta Khandekar in Bengaluru; Editing by Shounak DasguptaOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ We are cautious of FTSE in 2023 given downbeat sentiment, says strategist
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-29 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailWe are cautious of FTSE in 2023 given downbeat sentiment, says strategistHigher interest rates will have a negative impact on the majority of the U.K. equity market and begin to hit corporates and consumers next year, said Emma Wall, head of investment analysis and research at Hargreaves Lansdown.

News of the loosening lifted stock markets worldwide, with luxury shares in particular benefiting. Shares in LVMH (LVMH.PA), the world's biggest luxury group and Europe's number 1 company by market capitalisation, were up 2.7% while Cartier-owner Richemont (CFR.S) rose almost 4%. Before the current slowdown, it had for years been the fastest growing region, with young, urban, middle class professionals powering the luxury market by splashing out on Hermes' 10,000 euro-plus ($10,633) Birkin handbags and Gucci's 1,000 euro fur-lined loafers. According to a recent report by the McKinsey consultancy, while non-luxury fashion sales are expected to rise between 2% and 7% in 2023, luxury sales should climb 9% to 14% over the same period. ($1 = 0.9405 euros)Reporting by Silvia Aloisi; Editing by Louise Heavens Editing by Robert BirselOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Futures subdued after BOJ's policy surprise
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SummarySummary Companies Futures: Dow climbs 0.12%, S&P up 0.01%, Nasdaq off 0.13%Dec 20 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures came under pressure on Tuesday after the Bank of Japan surprised global investors with a policy shift that would allow long-term interest rates to rise more. The BOJ decided to allow the 10-year bond yield to move 50 basis points either side of its 0% target, bigger than the previous 25 basis point band, against expectations of no change at its policy meeting. Treasuries fell following BoJ's shock move, with benchmark 10-year Treasury yield rising more than 8 basis points to a three-week high of 3.6676%. A slew of other economic data due this week including consumer confidence, existing home sales and core inflation will provide more clues to investors on future interest rate hikes. ET, Dow e-minis were up 41 points, or 0.12%, S&P 500 e-minis were up 0.25 points, or 0.01%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were down 14.25 points, or 0.13%.

☆ FTSE 100 tracks global risk-off mood; Petrofac plummets
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | by ( Johann M Cherian | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SummarySummary Companies FTSE 100 down 0.2%, FTSE 250 down 0.6%Petrofac plummets to all time lowSage group slumps to bottom of FTSE 100Dec 20 (Reuters) - UK's export-oriented FTSE 100 index fell on Tuesday as investors turned risk-averse after the Bank of Japan unexpectedly tweaked its monetary policy, while oil services provider Petrofac dropped to an all-time low. The blue-chip FTSE 100 (.FTSE) fell 0.2%, while the mid-cap FTSE 250 was off 0.6%. The Europe-wide STOXX 600 index (.STOXX) was down 0.5%. Weighing on global equities, the Bank of Japan widened long-term yield controls that allow long-term interest rates to rise more. Reporting by Johann M Cherian in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju SamuelOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Elon Musk Twitter poll shows majority want him to step down as chief
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-19 | by ( Nivedita Balu | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Dec 19 (Reuters) - Twitter users voted in a poll for Elon Musk to step down as chief executive of the social media platform, in a backlash against the billionaire less than two months after he took over. The poll results capped a whirlwind of actions over the past few days, including the suspension of journalists which drew condemnation from news organizations, advocacy groups and officials across Europe. The sudden banning of accounts that promoted rival social media platforms such as Facebook sparked retaliation even among long-time supporters. "THERE IS NO SUCCESSOR"Replying to one Twitter user's comment on a possible change in CEO, Musk said on Sunday "There is no successor". "Elon" and "CEO of Twitter" were among the trending topics on the social media platform on Monday.

HSBC "underperforms its peers, violates dividend commitments (and) ignores shareholders' interests," Ken Lui, convener of the group , said in a Thursday newspaper advertisement. London-headquartered HSBC, which is opposed to breaking up its business, dismissed the possibility of the proposal gaining traction among large shareholders. Hong Kong is HSBC's biggest market and home to many retail shareholders. DIVIDEND SUSPENSIONHong Kong retail shareholders were particularly upset when HSBC scrapped its formerly stable dividend in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic, when the Bank of England asked lenders to conserve capital. It has resumed paying a dividend but not quarterly, and retail investors are dissatisfied with payouts that, overall, are smaller than before.

☆ UK's FTSE 100 falls; BAT, Frasers flag challenging outlook
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( Johann M Cherian | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SummarySummary Companies FTSE 100 down 0.1%, FTSE 250 falls 0.2%Frasers drop to bottom of FTSEDS Smith rises on resilient demandDec 8 (Reuters) - UK's FTSE 100 was dragged lower by consumer staples and retailers on Thursday after forecasts from British American Tobacco and Frasers fuelled concerns over economic outlook. The blue-chip FTSE 100 (.FTSE) dipped 0.1% while the FTSE 250 was down 0.2%, as of 0949 GMT. Frasers Group (FRAS.L) was the biggest drag on retailers index (.FTNMX404010), which shed 0.9%, after the sportswear and clothing firm warned of a challenging and uncertain outlook despite posting an upbeat half-yearly profit. UK markets are bracing for a long uncertain winter amid rising borrowing costs and double-digit inflation that have sparked worker unrest in the recent past. Reporting by Johann M Cherian in Bengaluru; Editing by Saumyadeb Chakrabarty and Sherry Jacob-PhillipsOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Lund-Yates: Salesforce is geared towards sales & marketing, the exact part of the economy that suffers the most during a downturn
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailLund-Yates: Salesforce is geared towards sales & marketing, the exact part of the economy that suffers the most during a downturnSophie Lund-Yates of Hargreaves Lansdown discusses the difficult stretch the cloud sector and market leader Salesforce have gone through, but says it's important to differentiate between a downturn and a crisis.

☆ Sweden's H&M to lay off 1,500 staff in drive to cut soaring costs and rescue profits
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( Stine Jacobsen | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The cuts by H&M, which employs roughly 155,000 people, are part of a plan laid out in September to save 2 billion Swedish crowns per year. "Keeping the lights and heating on in vast stores is becoming increasingly unaffordable with energy prices so volatile," she added. In contrast to H&M, Inditex reported in September quarterly sales growth and said it planned to hike prices to offset soaring costs. British fashion retailer Primark has announced plans to add 1,800 jobs in Spain and Britain as it expands. H&M said its savings would start to kick in from the second half of next year, while it will take a restructuring charge of 800 million Swedish crowns in the fourth quarter.

☆ Lund-Yates: Apple's holiday quarter will be dented by supply issues, but it won't be totally derailed
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-25 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailLund-Yates: Apple's holiday quarter will be dented by supply issues, but it won't be totally derailedSophie Lund-Yates of Hargreaves Lansdown discusses Apple's supply chain issues for the iPhone from Foxconn's main factory in China, and how much this may impact Apple's bottom line.

☆ Zoom shares down 90% from peak as pandemic boom fades
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Nov 22 (Reuters) - Shares of Zoom Video Communications Inc (ZM.O) have tumbled about 90% from their pandemic peak in October 2020 as the former investor darling struggles to adjust to a post-COVID world. The stock was down 9% in premarket trading on Tuesday after the company cut its annual sales forecast and posted its slowest quarterly growth, prompting at least six brokerages to cut their price targets. Reuters Graphics"Zoom has a fundamental flaw - it has needed to spend heavily to keep hold of market share. Spending to cling onto, rather than grow, market share is never a good place to be and was a sign of trouble ahead," Hargreaves Lansdown equity analyst Sophie Lund-Yates said. Competition from Microsoft's Teams and Salesforce's Slack has blunt its edgeReporting by Chavi Mehta and Aditya Soni in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D'SilvaOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

He froze until 2028 a threshold at which employers start to pay social security contributions, which will cost companies more. Public spending would grow more slowly than the economy but rise in overall terms, he said. It now expects gross domestic product to contract by 1.4% next year compared with its projection in March for growth of 1.8%. The OBR forecasts GDP growth of 1.3% in 2024 and 2.6% in 2025, compared with previous forecasts of 2.1% and 1.8% respectively. Thursday's forecasts by the OBR showed that target would be met in the 2027/28 financial year.

☆ Futures slip as investors assess mixed economic data
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SummarySummary Companies Futures off: Dow 0.12%, S&P 0.12%, Nasdaq 0.07%Nov 17 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures edged lower on Thursday following mixed economic data this week, while chip designer Nvidia rose after reporting better-than-expected quarterly revenue. Peers Advanced Micro Devices Inc (AMD.O) and Intel Corp (INTC.O) added 1.2% and 0.4%, respectively. "Wall Street was rattled by a conflicting retail picture," said Susannah Streeter, senior investment and markets analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown. This has added to expectations that higher rates will have to linger for a lot longer to make a difference." ET, Dow e-minis were down 41 points, or 0.12%, S&P 500 e-minis were down 4.75 points, or 0.12%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were down 8.75 points, or 0.07%.

☆ Instant View: UK finance minister Jeremy Hunt outlines budget
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Much of Hunt's budget had been widely expected, meaning markets offered a muted reaction. Sterling fell against the dollar, while UK government bond prices also eased, but remained clear of the day's lows. FOREX: Sterling fell 0.9% against the dollar to $1.1809 from $1.1845 prior to the budget. MARCUS BROOKES, CHIEF INVESTMENT OFFICER AT QUILTER INVESTORS, LONDON:"Today’s Autumn Statement has painted a bleak picture for the UK... Markets originally reacted well to the steady hand of Jeremy Hunt. SIMON HARVEY, HEAD OF FX ANALYSIS, MONEX EUROPE, LONDON:"The austerity’s going to be welcome (to the Bank of England) purely because there’s going to be less support for UK consumers.

☆ Burberry looks to reignite spark under new leadership duo
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Suban Abdulla | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

He has already made his key appointment in choosing Daniel Lee to replace Riccardo Tisci as chief designer at the 166-year-old label. Leather goods account for around 20% of Burberry's sales versus 70% at Bottega Veneta. Tisci, in turn, changed Burberry's design language by introducing a TB monogram, that increased the brand's appeal to younger luxury consumers. The final stages of Burberry's five-year plan were expected to see an acceleration in revenue growth and an increase in profits. Burberry's rivals - led by French luxury leaders LVMH (LVMH.PA) and Kering (PRTP.PA) - in contrast, have most recently reported double-digit sales growth in the quarter to the end of September.

☆ FTSE 100 rises on Informa boost; pound weakens
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( Shashwat Chauhan | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SummarySummary Companies Media stocks lead sectoral gainsIndivior up on deal to buy Opiant PharmaUK budget, due later in the week, in focusFTSE 100 up 0.4%, FTSE 250 falls 1.2%Nov 14 (Reuters) - UK's export-oriented FTSE 100 climbed on Monday, lifted by events organiser Informa's over 5% jump and a weaker pound. The FTSE 100 (.FTSE) was up 0.4% by 0941 GMT. The company's announcement of raising its full-year earnings outlook pushed the broader FTSE 350 media index (.FTNMX403010) 1.0% higher. Among other stocks, Indivior (INDV.L) gained 0.9% after it said it would acquire Opiant Pharmaceuticals for approximately $145 million in cash. The domestically-focused FTSE 250 midcap index (.FTMC) dropped 1.2% after marking its biggest weekly gain in almost two years on Friday.

☆ Futures decline on cautious Fed tone on inflation
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SummarySummary Companies Futures down: Dow 0.24%, S&P 0.35%, Nasdaq 0.60%Nov 14 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures edged lower on Monday as hawkish comments from a U.S. Federal Reserve official tempered hopes of a less aggressive pace of monetary policy tightening. Traders now expect the Fed to hike interest rates in December by a half point, and expect terminal rate in the range of 4.75%-5.0% in May 2023. ET, Dow e-minis were down 82 points, or 0.24%, S&P 500 e-minis were down 14 points, or 0.35%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were down 71.5 points, or 0.60%. read moreIn the week ahead, investors will closely monitor a slew of economic data, including retail sales numbers on Wednesday. Reporting by Shubham Batra, Bansari Mayur Kamdar in Bengaluru; Editing by Shounak DasguptaOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Nov 7 (Reuters) - Shares of Digital World Acquisition Corp, the blank-check company looking to take Donald Trump's social media venture public, rallied on Monday over the former president's possible run for the 2024 presidential election. The rally in DWAC, which was also the top trending ticker on retail investor focused social media forum Stocktwits, helped lift shares of other Trump-linked companies. Trump's social media venture Truth Social announced it would join Rumble's new ad platform as its first publisher in August. Artificial intelligence solutions company Remark Holdings (MARK.O), which has been linked to the former president on social media sites, gained 6%. Reporting by Shreyashi Sanyal, Akash Sriram and Anisha Sircar in Bengaluru; Editing by Vinay DwivediOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ European shares rise ahead of Fed, Novo Nordisk boosts healthcare stocks
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-02 | by ( Shreyashi Sanyal | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The pan-European STOXX 600 index (.STOXX) rose 0.3% by 0858 GMT, hovering near seven-week highs. Novo Nordisk (NOVOb.CO) jumped 5.4% as it raised its full-year earnings outlook on strong sales of diabetes treatment Ozempic and reported a better-than-expected profit. European healthcare stocks (.SXDP) led sectoral gains with a 1.2% rise, while banks (.SX7P) advanced 0.3% ahead of what is expected to be the Fed's fourth straight 75-basis-point increase to interest rates. "There are high hopes that he will signal that there could be some softening in the U.S. central bank's aggressive approach to taming inflation." Danish hearing aid maker Demant (DEMANT.CO) tumbled 13.6% to the bottom of the STOXX 600, after it cut its full-year revenue and profit guidance for the second time in the year.

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