The Traders' Update, 16-17 September 2024
Realeboha Molaba
Actuarial Junior Consultant; Actuarial Science Honours Graduate from the University of Cape Town; Actuarial Science and Mathematical Statistics Graduate from the University of the Witwatersrand
Segment 1: Overseas Markets
European Markets
Equity markets closed mostly mixed on Tuesday, i.e.:
The pan-European Stoxx 600 closed 0.2% lower with tech stocks shedding 1.26% to lead the losses.
On the individual shares front, French financial services firm Worldline shares plunged after the company announced the departure of its CEO and adjusted its full-year earnings guidance on the back of "slower trading conditions".
On the data front, the Italian National Institute of Statistics reported that the consumer price index in August rose by 0.2% on a monthly basis and 1.1% on an annual basis.
Asia-Pacific Markets
Hong Kong
The Hang Seng closed 0.31% higher at 17,422.12.
China
Mainland markets were closed for the Mid-Autumn festival; however, the government released a slew of data over the weekend, i.e.:
Japan
Markets were closed for a public holiday.
South Korea
Markets were closed for the Mid-Autumn festival.
Singapore
The Straits Times Index closed 0.22% higher at 3,570.43.
Australia
The S&P/ASX 200 closed 0.27% higher at 8,122.60.
U.S. Markets
Equity markets closed mixed on Monday as investors wait for the U.S. Federal Reserve's monetary policy meeting decision to be delivered on Wednesday, i.e.:
Chipmaker Intel shares surged to the top of the S&P 500 on reports that the company reached a deal with the federal government to make semiconductors for the U.S. military. As part of the 2022 Chips and Science Act, the company is eligible to receive US$3 billion (R52.9 billion) in government funding.
Retailer of fragrance and personal care products Bath & Body Works shares surged, making a partial recovery after the stock's price came under pressure after the company reported that soft consumer spending contributed to the company lowering its sales forecast. In the last week, the company announced that it plans to hire over 30,000 seasonal associates for the holidays.
Software technology firm Oracle shares rose after some investment research firms cited the company's strength in the cloud computing business. Melius Research upgraded the stock to "buy" citing that the company's partnerships with three big cloud providers could assist in ensuring the sustainability of the firm's pipeline and hence alleviate margin pressure. Jeffries boosted its price target on the stock to US$190 citing "backlog growth and strength" in the Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI).
Wall Street firms reported that data shows that pre-orders for tech giant Apple's iPhone 16 were lower compared to last year's iPhone 15 pre-orders noting that there may be higher U.S. supply and lower demand. As a result, Apple shares cratered.
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Provider of radiofrequency chips and antenna components Qorvo shares plunged to the bottom of the S&P 500 and supplier of radio-related chips for iPhones Skyworks Solutions shares also fell.
Memory-chip maker Micron Technology shares fell after Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on the stock citing oversupply in the memory-chip market.
Segment 2: African Markets
Nigeria
The National Bureau of Statistics reported that inflation in August fell for the second-straight month from 33.4% reported in July to 32.15% year-on-year.
State oil company NNPC Ltd. increased the national fuel price by 11%, this marks the second increase in two weeks. The second increase comes a day after the company started purchasing oil from the Dangote oil refinery.
Kenya
The auditor-general has begun to examine the government's debt to guarantee the amounts owed to various creditors.
The government has awarded a public-private partnership to build transmission lines to Indian conglomerate's Adani Group and a unit of the African Development Bank.
Ivory Coast
Arrivals of cocoa at the country's ports by 15 September fell by 25.3% year-on-year to 1.73 million metric tons.
Ghana
The government has lost more than a third of its 2023/24 cocoa output to "smuggling". Some farmers are increasingly selling their output to trafficking rings due to low prices and payment delays.
Angola
The government aims to load a total of 33 crude oil cargos in November.
Segment 3: South African Markets
Sentiment amongst the country's agricultural businesses advanced in August on the back of political uncertainty receding. The confidence index compiled by the Agricultural Business Chamber and the Industrial Corp. rose to 48 points in the three months, including September, compared to the 38 recorded in the prior three-month period.
The Absa Manufacturing Survey for the third quarter showed that sentiment amongst businesspeople in the manufacturing sector improved despite persistent headwinds. The confidence index remained steady at 28 points.
Real estate investment trust (REIT) Spear has managed to raise around R458 million (US$26 million) through the equity capital markets. The company's vendor consideration placement programme will allow the issuance of 50,302,197 new shares to public shareholders at a issuance price of R9.10 per share. The company has recently acquired Emira Western Cape to be part of its portfolio, and this further strengthens the company's growth status to focus mainly on the Western Cape.
Solar energy company Hohn Energy Services has filed for voluntary liquidation with the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission (CIPC). It has also informed creditors with claims of over R1,000 (US$56.7) that they are eligible to nominate a liquidator. The company assisted homeowners with solar installers, product suppliers and embedded solar finance.
Investment company African Rainbow Capital (ARC) reported its financial results for the year through June 2024, i.e.:
Fishing company Oceana Group is expecting released a trading update for the 11 months through August 2024 on Monday and noted that:
Segment 4: JSE Lunch-Time Market Update