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☆ China should consider boosting consumption as real estate slump drags on, IMF says as it downgrades forecast
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-12 | by ( Charmaine Jacob | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

The slowdown in real estate is the main reason for China's sluggishness, Krishna Srinivasan, director of the Asia and Pacific department at the IMF said. "There has not been a comprehensive response to the problem and that has weighed both on investment in the real estate sector and consumer confidence." "One would have hoped that after China reopened, consumption would come back very strongly, but that has been undermined by confidence not coming back in the real estate sector," Srinivasan said. "A lot of the wealth is in the real estate sector, and that has not been resolved." The IMF trimmed its 2023 growth forecast for China's economy from 5.2% to 5% in its October update of its World Economic Outlook.

Persons: China's sluggishness, Krishna Srinivasan, Srinivasan Organizations: Economic, International Monetary Fund, IMF Locations: Asia, Pacific, China

☆ Stocks to bet on China’s economic future after the real estate pain ends
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-08 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

For example, China's urbanization rate in 2022 was 64%, the same as Japan's back in the 1960s, she said, noting Japan's urbanization rate in the 1990s was a much higher 77%. China is also leading in innovation based on research and development spending as a percentage of sales, the report said. Easier said than done, especially since that debt and urban development are linked to a struggling real estate sector that's accounted for about a quarter of China's economy. After a summer of mounting worries about China's growth prospects, KKR's head of global macro, Henry McVey, made yet another trip to the region . He pointed to China's push to reduce carbon emissions and increase the integration of tech in the economy — such as through automation.

Persons: Yao Yang, Yao, Bernstein, Rupal Agarwal, Bernstein's Agarwal, BYD — Bernstein, Meituan, Henry McVey, CNBC's Michael Bloom Organizations: Tokyo, CNBC, National School of Development, Peking University, KKR, Citi Locations: China, Japan, Asia, Hong Kong

“The strongest, yet not the only, headwind is Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, and how China positions itself on this issue,” he said. Dombrovskis spoke before high-level economic and trade talks with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng. EU leaders have expressed concern about the bloc's growing trade deficit with China, which reached 396 billion euros last year. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said that China provides a market-oriented, law-based business environment for foreign companies. “So it’s very difficult for us to understand China’s stance on Russia’s war against Ukraine, as it breaches China’s own fundamental principles.”

Persons: Valdis Dombrovskis, ”, Dombrovskis, Ursula von der Leyen, Wang Wenbin, “ Organizations: BEIJING, Tsinghua University, EU, Ukraine, Lifeng, Tsinghua, Foreign Ministry, United Locations: China, Ukraine, Europe, EU, United States, Russian, Latvian

The stock market can be many things. However, the stock market stayed open. A move of a few percentage points in the underlying stock can amount to a double- or triple-digit percentage point increase in the options market. The "premium" is what the buyer pays upfront for the option contract. Rather than buy 100 shares of Apple at $180 each, which would cost $18,000, John decides to use an options contract.

Persons: We're, John, you've, Jim Cramer's, Jim Cramer, Jim Organizations: Gamblers, Social, Bloomberg Intelligence, Apple, Jim Cramer's Charitable, CNBC, Mbbirdy, Getty Locations: 0DTEs, Las Vegas

☆ The company with the ticker 'AI' doesn't appear to be benefiting from AI boom, Bank of America says
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-07 | by ( Alex Harring | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

"Results do not suggest that C3 is benefiting from growing demand for AI," analyst Brad Sills said of the company, which trades under the ticker AI. AI is the hottest trend going in the stock market with chipmaker Nvidia leading the way, up more than 200% this year. But it only reaffirmed its full-year revenue guidance, which to Sills "does not suggest C3 benefiting from AI tailwinds." "Following the release of ChatGPT in November of 2022, we're seeing a dramatic increase in demand for enterprise AI adoption," he said on the call. "In Q1, we experienced strong traction with our enterprise AI applications and especially strong traction with C3 Generative AI."

Persons: Brad Sills, Sills, Thomas Siebel, — CNBC's Michael Bloom, John Melloy Organizations: Bank of, Nvidia, LSEG, Bank of America Locations: Wednesday's

☆ Downside risk in crypto market is ‘limited’ after August correction, says JPMorgan
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-25 | by ( Tanaya Macheel | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Bitcoin remains stuck in an environment of low liquidity, thin trading volumes and few, if any, catalysts to take it higher. After the recent correction, however, most downside risk is behind us, according to JPMorgan. As a result, we see limited downside for crypto markets over the near term." Panigirtzoglou highlighted the district court decision in the SEC vs. Ripple case, PayPal's launch of a stablecoin, Coinbase's new "Base" chain launch and anticipation that the SEC will approve a spot bitcoin ETF. Bitcoin is down 10% in August but remains higher by more than 57% in 2023 as a whole.

Persons: Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou, Bitcoin, — CNBC's Michael Bloom Organizations: JPMorgan, SEC Locations: Washington, China

☆ Nvidia drops from record high, tracking market fall; AI bets support outlook
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-22 | by ( Medha Singh | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

A view of a Nvidia logo at their headquarters in Taipei, Taiwan May 31, 2023. Rising bets that Nvidia's revenue target will once again surpass Wall Street estimates have lifted the stock about 19% from a two-month low hit last week. That pushed its market capitalization above $1 trillion, making its stock the best performer on the S&P 500 index (.SPX). At least 19 brokerages have this month raised their target price on Nvidia, pushing the median view to $500, which is a 6.5% increase to the stock's last closing price. If Nvidia were to miss (expectations), this market would be in a world of pain," Dick said.

Persons: Ann Wang, Dennis Dick, Brian Mulberry, Goldman Sachs, Dick, Medha Singh, Amruta Khandekar, Gertrude Chavez, Dreyfuss, Anil D'Silva, Arun Koyyur, Lisa Shumaker Organizations: REUTERS, Nvidia, Dow, Nasdaq, Wall, Triple D Trading, Reuters Graphics, Big Tech, Zacks Investment Management, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Taipei, Taiwan, Bengaluru, Bengalaru, New York

☆ South Korea think-tank raises inflation forecast on higher energy prices
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SEOUL, Aug 10 (Reuters) - A South Korean government think-tank revised its annual inflation projection upwards on Thursday, citing the recent rise in energy prices, although it said the need for interest rate hikes has lessened. The forecast compares with the government and the central bank's inflation estimates of 3.3% and 3.5%, respectively. "While the economic sluggishness eased and the labour market continued a solid trend, a slowdown in inflation reduced the need for interest rate hikes," the KDI said in a statement. On growth, KDI kept its forecast unchanged at 1.5% for this year, higher than the government and the central bank's 1.4%. Risk factors to its growth forecast include sluggish growth in China, continued monetary tightening in major economies on higher inflation, and weaker domestic demand on smaller fiscal spending due to limited tax revenues, the KDI added.

Persons: KDI, Jihoon Lee, Muralikumar Organizations: Korea Development Institute, The Bank of Korea, Thomson Locations: SEOUL, China

☆ Reaction to China inflation data
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Below are comments from analysts on the inflation data:XING ZHAOPENG, SENIOR CHINA STRATEGIST, ANZ, SHANGHAI"Both CPI and PPI in year-on-year terms fell into negative territory and confirmed economic deflation. "With destocking and credit expansion, we expect PPI and CPI will rebound from the bottom in the fourth quarter. The CPI deflation may put more pressure on the government to consider additional fiscal stimulus to mitigate the challenge." XIA CHUN, CHIEF ECONOMIST, YINTECH INVESTMENT HOLDINGS, HONG KONG"The lower inflation data reflects weak demand on the mainland, which is biggest challenge facing China's economy. It also shows China's slower-than-expected economic rebound is not strong enough to offer the weaker global demand and lift commodity prices."

Persons: XING ZHAOPENG, CHUAN, FRANCES CHEUNG, Rather, ZHIWEI ZHANG, MARCO SUN, XIA CHUN, GARY NG, Liangping Gao, Ellen Zhang, Winni Zhou, Samuel Shen, Li Gu, Sam Holmes Organizations: ANZ, CPI, PPI, OCBC, SHANGHAI, MUFG BANK, ASIA PACIFIC, Thomson Locations: BEIJING, CHINA, SHANGHAI, China, SINGAPORE, HONG KONG, Japan, Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong

☆ Mattel plans to go all in on Barbie for Christmas
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-26 | by ( Parija Kavilanz | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

New York CNN —Mattel, riding high on the pink wave of the box office success of the “Barbie” movie, plans to go all in to deliver a Barbie kind of Christmas this year. The “Barbie” movie, from director Greta Gerwig, scored the largest opening weekend of 2023, pulling in $155 million domestically over its US opening weekend and $337 million globally. On June 1, Mattel released a new collection of toys tied to the “Barbie” movie, which included Barbie and Ken dolls pegged to characters in the movie and a toy replica of Barbie’s three-story DreamHouse. Kreiz said the initial movie-related products had sold out and that Mattel plans to release more products timed for the holidays. Mattel's new Barbie and Ken dolls tied to their characters in the "Barbie" movie.

Persons: New York CNN —, Barbie, Greta Gerwig, Barbie ”, Ynon Kreiz, we’ve, ”, Kreiz, Ken, Anthony DiSilvestro, it’s Organizations: New, New York CNN, New York CNN — Mattel, Warner Bros . Pictures, Warner Bros . Discovery, Mattel Locations: New York

☆ Americans are building fewer pools in their backyards
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-24 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

The pool company Leslie's has been particularly hard-hit, with its stock tumbling 41% over the past month. Pool-products retailer Leslie's, for example, has seen its stock plunge more than 41% over the last month. "The discretionary business has proven to be extremely sensitive to macroeconomic pressure including items such as hot tubs and aboveground pools," Egeck told analysts. And while its stock hasn't taken the same hit as Leslie's, leadership struck a similarly cautious tone on its earnings call. "Additionally, we have seen some indication that more discretionary purchases like heaters and high-end cleaners have been deferred."

Persons: There's, Mike Egeck, Egeck, Peter Arvan Organizations: Service, Pool Corp, Federal Reserve Locations: Wall, Silicon

☆ China's earnings season is just getting started. Here are some winners to watch
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-23 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Their screen found that home appliances, media and software sectors were among those that fit the bill. When it comes to individual stocks, HSBC looked for names where their estimates were most above the consensus. Top on the list is software company 360 Security, which HSBC's earnings estimate for the year is double the consensus. Baosight, another software company, also made the top 10, as did home appliance company Sanhua. But not all software stocks made the cut.

Persons: Price, That's, Ding Wenjie, There's, Ant, Didi, Ding, Goldman Sachs, Lei Meng, Meng, Steven Sun, iFlytek Organizations: HSBC, That's, China Asset Management, CNBC, Alibaba, UBS Securities China Equity, CSI, HSBC Qianhai Securities Locations: China, Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen

☆ Bitcoin’s chart shows a new cycle is taking hold and investors should make use of current sluggishness, says Canaccord Genuity
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-19 | by ( Tanaya Macheel | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

He told investors to "utilize pending near-term weakness to add exposure near important technical support at their 50-day moving averages." Investors should expect the first level of resistance at about $30,493 on the upside and the next at $31,476, he said. Should the bitcoin price turn lower, first support would be at $28,717, about the level of its 50-day moving average. "This confirms the long-term trend is now up, a strong technical positive, and is consistent with a four-year cycle taking hold in cryptocurrencies," Mirza wrote. Lately, investors have been drawing similarities between the cryptocurrency's recent behavior and its moves in the lead up to the last halving.

Persons: Canaccord, Bitcoin, Javed Mirza, Canaccord Genuity, Mirza, bitcoin, CNBC's Michael Bloom Locations: cryptocurrencies

☆ JPMorgan upgrades Cisco as orders near a trough, says shares look inexpensive and can rally more than 20%
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-19 | by ( Samantha Subin | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

JPMorgan says it may be time for investors to consider scooping up Cisco Systems as order trends normalize after a spending trough, adding that the shares trade at a cheap valuation. Analyst Samik Chatterjee upgraded the networking stock to overweight from neutral, citing limited enterprise spending downside from current levels. Chatterjee also views the stock as cheap, currently trading at a forward price-to-earnings ratio of 12.5. He raised his 12-month price target to $62, up from $55 a share, reflecting 21% upside from Tuesday's close. Cisco has risen 7.6% year to date and added about 2% before the stock market's opening bell.

Persons: Samik Chatterjee, JPMorgan, Chatterjee, — CNBC's Michael Bloom Organizations: JPMorgan, Cisco Systems, Cisco

July 19 (Reuters) - A look at the day ahead in Asian markets from Jamie McGeever, financial markets columnist. The disconnect between Asia and the rest of the world has widened recently, and correlations between the MSCI Asia ex-Japan index and leading U.S. and global indexes are the weakest in about a month. Bulls in Asia will be hoping some of that momentum drives local trading on Wednesday. The MSCI Asia equity index ex-Japan is up 4.6% this year, significantly underperforming the MSCI World index, S&P 500 and Nasdaq which are up 17%, 19% and 38%, respectively. Disappointing second quarter growth figures this week pushed the Chinese economic surprises index to its lowest in more than three years.

Persons: Jamie McGeever, John Kerry, Li Shangfu, Henry Kissinger, Pita Limjaroenrat, Josie Kao Organizations: Bulls, Nasdaq, Bank of America, Bank of New York Mellon, Biden, Thomson, Reuters Locations: Asia, Japan, U.S, China, Beijing, Thailand, Zealand

MSCI's broad Asia ex-Japan index shed 1.5% last week, its third consecutive week without rising, and is flat for the year. Much of that is due to the sluggishness of China's markets, and key indicators from the region's largest economy on Monday will get the trading week underway. Annual producer price inflation, already the most negative since 2016, is seen falling to -5.0% from -4.6% in May. Chinese banking stocks, measured by the Hong Kong-listed Hang Seng Mainland Banks Index (.HSMBI), plunged 10.5% last week. Reflecting just how poorly China's post-lockdown economy has performed relative to consensus forecasts, Citi's Chinese economic surprises index has now fallen 11 weeks in a row.

Persons: Jamie McGeever, Janet Yellen's, Yellen, Fed's Barr, Daly, Mester, Diane Craft Organizations: U.S, Mainland Banks Index, Treasury, China CPI, PPI, Thomson, Reuters Locations: China, New Zealand, South Korea, Wall, MSCI's, Asia, Japan, Hong Kong, Mainland, underperformance

☆ U.S. factory orders miss expectations in May
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Factory orders rose 0.3% after advancing by the same margin in April, the Commerce Department said on Wednesday. Orders increased 1.1% through May from a year earlier. Orders for transportation equipment increased 3.8% in May after accelerating 4.8% in the prior month. Civilian aircraft orders soared 32.8%, but motor vehicle orders fell 0.6%. Excluding transportation, orders fell 0.5%.

Persons: Lucia Mutikani Organizations: U.S, Commerce Department, Reuters, Institute, Supply, Civilian, Thomson

☆ 10 things that happen to your body when you stop drinking coffee
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-09 | by ( Brooke Nelson | Reader'S Digest | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

While there are numerous health benefits to drinking coffee, cutting the habit can make a major impact on your body as well. But if you suspect you're drinking too much coffee or caffeine and want to cut back, here's what could happen. Here are some signs you're drinking too much coffee. When you stop drinking coffee, you deprive your body of adrenaline and dopamine, hormones that act as natural stimulants and keep you awake. Here are some things that happen to your body when you switch from coffee to tea.

Persons: —, tiredness —, Wesley Delbridge, you'll, it's, Justin Caba, Caba, MedicalDaily, pesky, minty Organizations: Service, Duke University, telltale, Academy of Nutrition, University of Scranton, British, of Psychology

☆ Strong US consumer spending, inflation readings put Fed in tough spot
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-26 | by ( Lucia Mutikani | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

Consumer spending jumped 0.8% last month after gaining 0.1% in March. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast consumer spending, which accounts for more than two-thirds of U.S. economic activity, would rise 0.4%. Adjusting for inflation, consumer spending shot up 0.5% after being unchanged in March. Consumer spending is being supported by strong wage gains in a tight labor market. The current pace of consumer spending is, however, unlikely to be sustained as Americans grow weary of inflation.

☆ ‘A problem in the political culture": Serbians call for more than disarmament to end violence after mass shootings
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-19 | by ( Christian Edwards | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Despite having one of the world’s highest rates of gun ownership in the world, mass shootings like this are extremely rare in Serbia. Most people simply inherited weapons from their parents and grandparents – remnants of the sort of violence that no longer plagues the region. While the two “gratuitous” acts of violence that shocked the country this month were without precedent, O’Donnell said, other types of violence are more banal. ‘Serbia against violence’Since the shootings, tens of thousands of Serbians have taken to the streets in opposition-led “Serbia against violence” marches, demanding the resignation of several government ministers. Against this public demand for a mellowing of the political culture, Vučić has seemed unsure how to respond.

☆ Investors have turned away from a key part of the stock market. Here's why.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

A trader works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, U.S., October 23, 2018. US stock futures rise early Thursday, as investors await the weekly jobless claims report to measure the strength of the labor market. It revealed just a week ago that it already holds $1.5 billion of the world's most popular token. Here are the five bank stocks to bet on now. The tech giant's stock has rallied on its AI efforts, and it surpassed the key threshold for the first time since May 2022.

SINGAPORE, May 9 (Reuters) - China's imports of major commodities lost momentum in April as the strong start to the year faded amid uncertainty about the strength and composition of the recovery in the world's second-biggest economy. Crude imports were the lowest since January and the decline places a question mark over just how strong demand is in the world's largest oil importer. One factor worth noting is that China's exports of refined fuels also dropped sharply in April to 3.75 million tonnes, down 31.2% from 5.75 million tonnes in March. Part of the strength in China's crude imports in the first quarter was driven by a massive 59.8% surge in exports of refined fuels. Iron ore imports dropped to 90.44 million tonnes in April, down 9.8% from March but up 5.1% from April last year.

☆ Stocks making the biggest moves premarket: Palantir, Skyworks, Under Armour & more
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( Sarah Min | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

It also reaffirmed full-year revenue guidance, though it raised its full-year adjusted EBITDA forecast. Western Digital — The chip stock rose about 2% in premarket after the company reported a revenue beat in the latest quarter. Earnings guidance for the full year was more upbeat and the company posted better-than-expected earnings and revenue, according to Refinitiv. The company reported revenue of $149.4 million against Refinitiv analyst expectations of $209.9 million. The company reported adjusted earnings of $7.19 per share, just topping a StreetAccount forecast of $7.18 per share.

☆ UK economy flat in February as strikes and inflation bite — and the IMF delivers reality check
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( Elliot Smith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

LONDON — The U.K. economy flatlined in February as widespread industrial action and persistently high inflation stymied activity. Large-scale strike action has been carried out in recent months by teachers, doctors, civil servants and rail workers, among others — members of the sectors that were the largest contributors to the fall in February services output. The independent Office for Budget Responsibility no longer expects the U.K. economy to enter a technical recession in 2023 — defined as two consecutive quarters of contractions. "Industrial strike action was the primary root cause of stagnating growth in the U.K. over the month. Much of the population also remains mired in a cost-of-living crisis, as inflation continues to vastly outpace wage growth, exacerbating the threat of further industrial action.

☆ CNBC Daily Open: State of the economy: Slowing, but strong
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( Yeo Boon Ping | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

This report is from today's CNBC Daily Open, our new, international markets newsletter. CNBC Daily Open brings investors up to speed on everything they need to know, no matter where they are. Markets in the U.S. reopened Monday but seemed to retain a post-holiday sluggishness as investors digested multiple signs of a slowing — but still strong — economy. Traders will certainly pore through those reports, but they'll also want to see what the U.S. consumer price index and producer price index say about the economy. Subscribe here to get this report sent directly to your inbox each morning before markets open.

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