Newsquawk Daily European Equity Opening News - 11th September 2023

11th September 2023

ASIA

Asia-Pac stocks traded mixed as yields climbed following comments from BoJ Governor Ueda who said that they cannot rule out that they might have sufficient data by year-end to determine whether they can end negative rates and that his focus is on a quiet exit. ASX 200 (+0.2%) was rangebound with gains in the top-weighted financial industry making up for the underperformance in the tech and healthcare sectors. Nikkei 225 (-0.5%) was subdued after the comments from BoJ Governor Ueda which lifted the 10yr JGB yield to above 0.70% for the first time since 2014 although further downside in the index was stemmed as banks were lifted on the exit-related talk and with Japan aiming to take drastic economic stimulus measures. Hang Seng (-1.5%) and Shanghai Comp. (+0.6%) were varied with the Hong Kong benchmark pressured as last Friday’s losses caught up to the index following the black rainstorm closure and with declines led by weakness in the property sector, while Alibaba shares also suffered after its former CEO Daniel Zhang stepped down from the cloud business. Conversely, the mainland was kept afloat following somewhat mixed inflation data from China which showed headline CPI Y/Y was softer-than-expected but no longer in deflationary territory and after China’s National Administration of Financial Regulation eased rules for insurers to buy stocks.

SoftBank (9984 JT) - Unit Arm Holdings eyes pricing US IPO at the top or above the indicated range, according to people familiar with the matter, via Bloomberg. (Bloomberg)

EUROPEAN CLOSES

CLOSES: DAX +0.14% at 15,740, FTSE 100 +0.49% at 7,478, CAC 40 +0.62% at 7,240, Euro Stoxx 50 +0.41% at 4,238, IBEX 35 +0.59% at 9,364, FTSE MIB +0.26% at 28,230, SMI -0.38% at 10,951

SECTORS: Consumer Disc 0.90%, Utilities 0.54%, Energy 0.44%, Consumer Stpl 0.39%, Telecoms 0.32%, Financials 0.14%, Healthcare -0.03%, Industrials -0.17%, IT -0.24%, Materials -0.45%

FTSE 100

AstraZeneca (AZN LN) - CEO, Sir Pascal Soriot, has discussed leaving the firm with a number of people, according to The Mail, though has not spoken to the board yet. In other news, Datopotamab deruxtecan plus Imfinzi showed promising clinical activity in the first-line advanced non-small cell lung cancer setting in TROPION-Lung04 Phase Ib trial (City AM/ AstraZeneca)

Barclays (BARC LN) - Co. is near private credit partnership with AGL, according to people familiar with the matter, via Bloomberg. In other news, Barclays is to cut hundreds of jobs across trading and investment banking to cut costs amid quieter markets, according to Bloomberg. (Bloomberg)

Glencore (GLEN LN) - Plans to expand Democratic Republic of Congo exposure as it pushes into lithium market, according to the FT. (FT)

Restaurant Group (RTN LN) - Co. is in advanced talks to sell its leisure division to The Big Table which could lead to an imminent agreement, according to Sky News. (Sky News)

OTHER UK COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

Melrose (MRO LN) downgraded to Sector Perform from Outperform at RBC

DAX

Bayer (BAYN GY) - Receives US FDA NDA supplement 12 approval for Aliqopa. (Newswires)

OTHER GERMAN COMPANIES

Adler (ADJ GY) - Sells Berlin-based rental portfolio with lettable area of 47Ksqm to a real estate investor by Quantum for EUR 130mln. (Newswires)

Covestro AG (1COV GY) - The German chemical company is considering an acquisition by Abu Dhabi's ADNOC after it increased its offer to around EUR 14bln, FT reports. Adnoc's latest offer is EUR 60/shr, up from EUR 55/shr offered in June. The deal's conditions and sustainability strategy are still under negotiation, along with Adnoc's commitment to Covestro's growth. (FT)

Envacis (ECV GY) - Launches further Strategic Development Partnership with GreenGo Energy in Germany, increasing its European solar project pipeline to 3.2 GWs. (Newswires)

Hannover Rueck (HNR1 GY) – Anticipates improved global reinsurance market terms and conditions to reflect rising loss costs. Anticipates further price increases in renewals at 1 Jan 2024. Can be attributed to ongoing geopolitical uncertainties and the increasing frequency of natural catastrophes as well as high inflation.

BROKER MOVES

Siemens (SIE GY) downgraded to Hold from Buy at HSBC

CAC

OTHER FRENCH COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

Saint-Gobain (SGO FP) reiterated with Overweight at JP Morgan

PAN EUROPE

Banking Names - Greece has been upgraded to BBB at DBRS Morningstar; i.e. to investment grade from junk. S&P affirmed Portugal at BBB+; Outlook Revised to Positive from Stable. Elsewhere, Italy reportedly could amend the 40% tax on banks’ windfall profits which was unveiled last month. (Newswires)

Kingspan (KRX ID) - Co. made an informal approach to combine with Carlisle (CSL), aiming to build a global building materials giant, according to people familiar with the matter, via Bloomberg. Carlisle rejected the pitch, but signalled it would be open to reviewing a more attractive offer. (Bloomberg)

BROKER MOVES

ageas (AGS BB) upgraded to Neutral from Underweight at JP Morgan

Elia (ELI BB) initiated with Hold at Deutsche Bank

Pirelli (PIRC IM) reiterated with Overweight at JP Morgan

SMI

Alcon (ALC SW) - Cataract surgery with AcrySof IQ Vitivity IOLS demonstrates sustained high patient satisfaction and reduce spectacle dependence. (Newswires)

Novartis (NOVN SW) - Sandoz unit has entered an exclusive deal to commercialise biosimilar ustekinumab with Samsung Biopis. (Newswires)

OTHER SWISS COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

Partners Group (PGHN SW) reiterated with Neutral at JP Morgan

SCANDINAVIA

Nokia (NOK FH) - Announces charging software solution targeting enterprises to drive monetisation capabilities. (Newswires)

BROKER MOVES

Electrolux (ELUXB SS) upgraded to Neutral from Sell at Citi

Vestas Wind Systems (VWS DC) upgraded to Hold from Reduce at HSBC

US

CLOSES: SPX +0.14% at 4,457, NDX +0.14% at 15,280, DJIA +0.22% at 34,577, RUT -0.23% at 1,851.

SECTORS: Energy +0.97%, Utilities +0.96%, Communication Services +0.35%, Financials +0.24%, Technology +0.21%, Consumer Staples +0.16%, Materials +0.12%, Consumer Discretionary +0.03%, Health -0.04%, Industrials -0.46%, Real Estate -0.63%.

Boeing (BA) - Vietnam Airlines is expected to sign an agreement to purchase around 50 Boeing 737 Max jets, valued at about USD 7.5bln, CNBC reports. The exact terms and discounts were not disclosed in the report. The agreement coincides with President Biden's visit to Hanoi to strengthen ties with Vietnam. Boeing and Vietnam Airlines have not commented yet. (Newswires)

Meta Platforms (META) - Meta is developing a powerful AI system to rival OpenAI, WSJ reports. It aims to create an AI model more advanced than their recent Llama 2 release, with a focus on generative AI for human-like text and analysis. This system could assist other companies in creating sophisticated services. Training for this large language model is expected to begin in early 2024. (Newswires)

Raytheon (RTX) - RTX will host a conference call today at 08:30EDT to provide an update on the impact to the Pratt & Whitney GTF fleet arising from the previously disclosed rare condition in the powdered metal used to manufacture certain engine parts, including an update on the operational and financial impacts associated with this matter. Earlier in July, RTX said more than 1,000 engines must removed from Airbus (EADSY) planes and checked for microscopic cracks. (Newswires)

11 Sep 2023 - 06:48- Exclusive- Source: Newsquawk