The latest market news, commentary and strategy by Adrian Rowney
5 Things that Grabbed my Attention
1. PayPal is punting 7% of its workforce.
2. After coming down heavy on Chinese BIG TECH, it would appear that the Xi Man is now happy to see the sector grow again.....I maintain my BUY recommendation on ASIA TECH TIGERS ETF.
3. The giant Las Bambas copper mine (2% of global supply) is halting production due to the continued social unrest in Peru....GOT COPPER??
4. I was happy to hear the the majority of Aussies are saying NO to the endless booster shots....What's going to happen to the 100 MILLION vaccines that Moderna is going to be pumping out of the new factory in Melbourne?? Plus Moderna now want to charge US$130 a pop - so does that mean us taxpayers are on the hook for US$13bn a year for their useless product???....Shocking that SCOMO,ALBO and DAN ANDREWS have kept the financials of this deal a secret.
5. Flight Center (FLT) is back on the acquisition path after buying the travel company SCOTT DUNN - they offer all sorts of specialized packages from LGBTQ+ GETAWAYS to Malaria Free Safaris....I'm feeling kind of discriminated against that Scotty has nothing for people like me in the BIG NOSE COMMUNITY...Anyway I will suck it up (through my left nostril) and fight on - that's all you can do!
ASX Market Update
ASX 200 down 5 points to 7476
We are now coming into earnings season, which is generally the trickiest time of year - but one of great opportunity as well....Companies that MISS consensus analyst expectations will get whacked, while those that BEAT get to enjoy some gains.
Shares in communications infrastructure outfit, Megaport (MP1) crashed 24% after MISSING sales expectations; CITI Group also thinks its balance sheet is looking a bit stretched, so perhaps a capital raising is on the cards....Fortunately we don't have any exposure to the stock as it is now down 73% from its high of $21.88 back in late 2021....Below is a bit of commentary from the company which is not painting the rosiest of pictures. MP1 could have an oversold bounce from here, but I am not keen on it at this stage.
Random Observation
I look optimistic compared to these dudes....YIKES!!!
The Day Ahead
- Our SPI is up 30 points
- Bitcoin up 1.7% to $23,103
Movements affecting our resource stocks today (USD)
- BHP in the US up 0.49%
- Gold up 0.3% to $1943
- Paper Silver up 0.25% to $23.79
- Copper up 0.46% to $4.22
- Brent Crude down 0.5% to $84.47
- Iron ore up 0.3% to $123.37
Asian Market Update
China down 0.42%, HK fell 1% and Japan dipped 0.39%
Chinese economic data is improving faster than the market was expecting....I am super surprised we are not seeing a far stronger move higher in OIL.
#BREAKING#China's factory activity returned to expansion in Jan, with official #manufacturing #PMI coming in at 50.1, vs prev 47, expected 49.8.
Non-manufacturing PMI for Jan comes in at 54.4, vs prev 41.6, expected 52.
— YUAN TALKS (@YuanTalks) January 31, 2023
Global Market Update
US Market
DOW up 368 points to 34,086
General Motors (GM) put the market in a good mood after posting earnings that SMASHED expectations, plus the auto giant gave very bullish forward guidance. GM shares rallied 8%.
European Markets
FTSE down 0.17%, DAX & CAC were FLAT
I don't even know how this can be true but the EURO ZONE economy grew @ 0.1% in the last quarter; the market was expecting a contraction of 0.1%.