Stocks & Markets

The News

• • BUSINESS – Accenture hits $2 billion in bookings for Q3
    • Accenture’s shares surged 7.29%.
    • The company reported over $900 million in bookings for generative AI in Q3.
    • This brings the fiscal year total to $2 billion.
    • The figures indicate robust growth in Accenture’s AI segment.

  Accenture growing steadily

  • PHARMA – Gilead’s HIV drug is 100% effective in trial
    • This followed a successful Phase 3 trial of its HIV prevention drug, lenacapavir.
    • Lenacapavir demonstrated 100% efficacy in women.
    • This marks a significant breakthrough in HIV treatment.
  • MICROCHIPS- Nvidia’s stock experienced a dramatic downturn.
    • This marked the largest single-day market cap loss on record.
    • Nvidia had briefly led as the largest U.S. company by market value.
    • The stock ended the day down 3.5%.
    • $246 billion was wiped off its market cap.

  NVIDIA stock stops momentum

  • USD-YEN going out of control!
    • The yen is approaching a critical 160 per dollar mark, trading around 158.90.
    • Japan’s Masato Kanda asserts readiness for intervention.
    • There are no U.S. accusations of currency manipulation.
    • Rising inflation may prompt central bank rate hikes soon.

  USD-YEN trading as never seen in the last years

  • SOLAR Power in the US Surging
    • Solar energy is rapidly expanding as the top electricity source in the U.S.
    • Big Tech’s demand for sustainable power for data centers is driving this growth.
    • Solar installations are leading the growth in the energy sector.
    • Challenges include:
      • Grid connectivity issues.
      • The need for more affordable batteries to facilitate continuous renewable power.

  Solar Energy revamping in the US

  • OIL in a 7-week high
    • Rising equity prices and investor optimism contributed to this increase.
    • Concerns about growing US crude stockpiles were tempered.
    • Brent crude peaked at $85.78 a barrel.
    • US crude inventories showed a third consecutive weekly rise.

  Oil keeps hiking

  • MICROCHIPS – TSM 1.38%
    • Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) is approaching a $1 trillion market cap.
    • Wall Street raised price targets due to increased demand for AI.
    • TSMC may adjust its 2024 revenue and capital expenditure (capex) forecasts accordingly.
  • COCOA (for chocolate and so…) reaching all time highs
    • Cocoa prices have reached all-time highs.
    • This is putting pressure on confectionery manufacturers.
    • Hershey and Mondelez are currently shielded by hedging strategies.
    • Future product pricing and innovation could be impacted.
    • Contributing factors include:
      • Crop disease in West Africa.
      • Delayed shipments from Ghana.
  • COPPER- nice commodity to track?
    • Citi analysts forecast copper to outperform crude oil in the coming year.
    • They describe the upcoming period as a “spectacular year for commodities.”
    • Copper is expected to continue its strong performance.
    • Copper recently reached all-time highs, similar to gold and cocoa.

  Copper becoming scare and desired

  • SOFTWARE – ORACLE Cloud services on the go with AI
    • The cloud services company’s stock climbed following partnership announcements with Google and OpenAI.
    • Oracle will make its database services available on Google Cloud starting in November.
    • Oracle is planning to expand computing capacity through collaborations with Microsoft and OpenAI.
  • OIL – Saudi Aramco – King of Oil
    • Saudi oil titan Aramco’s shares increased following a stock sale.
    • The stock sale is poised to garner approximately $11.2 billion.
    • Aramco shares are trading at 28.85 Saudi riyals ($7.69) on the Tadāwul Saudi stock exchange.
    • This price exceeds the initial offer of 27.25 Saudi riyals.

  Aramco stock doing great

  • MICROCHIPS – ASML Chips on the rise… again
    • Shares of Dutch chip firm ASML surged 8.1%.
    • This marks ASML’s highest close since March 7.
    • The surge followed a positive note from Jefferies.
    • ASML overtook LVMH in market value.
    • ASML is now Europe’s second-largest listed company for the first time.

  Still talking about Microchips…

  • TEXTILE & FASHION – Zara and Inditex Stock
    • Inditex, owner of Zara, saw a 7% sales rise in Q1.
    • Sales increased by 12% from May 1 to June 3.
    • Inditex stays ahead by quickly adapting to fashion trends.
    • The company is also investing in logistics to maintain its competitive edge.

  Inditex Clothing Stores

  Shorts:

  • 10-Year Treasury Yield Climbs Above 4.6%
  • BHP Group has decided not to pursue a firm offer for Anglo American.
  • Salesforce shares dropped 16%; weaker-than-expected revenue of $9.13 billion vs $9.17 billion
  • Costco expects earnings and revenue growth; forecast expected revenues of $57.97 billion.
  • The U.S. economy expanded at a modest 1.3% annual rate in the first quarter, marking the slowest growth in almost two years.
  • HP’s stock soared on exceeding Q2 expectations with earnings and revenue beats ($12.8 bill)
  • Oil prices fluctuated as OPEC+ announced phased production increases despite demand concerns and strong output elsewhere.
  • GSK shares dropped over 9% due to U.S. court rulings linking Zantac to cancer risks.