Newsquawk Daily European Equity Opening News - 23rd December 2024

ASIA

APAC stocks opened firmer across the board on a holiday-thinned week, following a similar performance from Wall Street on Friday, with broad risk-on sentiment through the US afternoon, albeit with indices closing off peaks. ASX 200 saw its gains supported by gold miners following the rebound of the yellow metal, with IT also among the top performers after a similar stateside sectoral performance on Friday. Nikkei 225 conformed to the broader risk tone amid a lack of macro drivers, whilst a stable JPY also boded well for the Nikkei. Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp traded firmer alongside the region as sentiment from Wall Street reverberated through APAC. However, macro news flow remained quiet, and the indices drifted off their best levels.

Honda (7267 JT), Nissan (7201 JT) - Honda and Nissan are set to announce plans for a merger, forming a joint holding company with the goal of completing the deal by June 2025, Reuters reports. The new group would become the third-largest global automaker. The holding company is expected to list in August 2026. The two automakers will likely host board meetings on Monday about the talks, and to hold a press conference around 08:00 GMT. (Reuters)

NIO (NIO, 9866 HK) - CEO William Li stated that the company will accelerate the construction of battery swapping stations in Europe, with costs for those designed for Firefly EVs reduced by a third compared to stations for NIO-branded cars, according to Reuters. (Reuters)

Nippon Steel (5401 JT) and US Steel (X) - Cos have alleged that the White House exerted impermissible influence over the CFIUS review of their proposed tie-up, a claim the White House denies. The companies have vowed to challenge the expected block of the deal, according to Reuters, citing a letter. (Reuters)

EUROPEAN CLOSES

CLOSES: DAX -0.27% at 19,917, FTSE 100 -0.26% at 8,085, CAC 40 -0.27% at 7,274, Euro Stoxx 50 -0.38% at 4,861, AEX -0.39% at 875, IBEX 35 +0.24% at 11,467, FTSE MIB -0.06% at 33,766, SMI +0.26% at 11,432.

SECTORS: Consumer Disc 0.39%, Utilities 0.16%, Industrials -0.30%, Energy -0.41%, Materials -0.41%, IT -0.41%, Consumer Stpl -0.51%, Telecoms -0.61%, Financials -0.74%, Healthcare -4.41%

FTSE 100

HSBC (HSBA LN) - French insurer Matmut is planning to purchase HSBC Assurances Vie for EUR 925mln in cash. (Newswires)

Rolls-Royce (RR/ LN) - Rolls-Royce received a USD 1.43bln US Air Force contract modification for T108 propulsion system sustainment, raising the total contract value to USD 3.96bln.

Unilever (ULVR LN) - Co. merges sustainability role after revising environmental goals, via the FT. Will combine two separate roles of Chief Sustainability Officer and Global Head of Communications and Corporate Affairs into one. (FT)

OTHER UK COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

DAX

Volkswagen (VOW3 GY) - IG Metall says it agreed with Volkswagen there will be no redundancies, no plant closures and no cuts to current monthly incomes. VW's in-house wage agreement has been secured for the long term. There will be no dismissals for operational reasons until the end of 2030. If no follow-up deal is agreed after end-2030, VW would have to pay EUR 1bln to employees. The 5% pay increase agreed in November will initially be suspended at Volkswagen. From January 1, 2031, payment table will increase by a good 5% in real terms. From 2027 already, wage negotiations can lead to higher salaries before 2030. Golf production to move to another location. Vehicle production in Dresden will end end-2025. Volkswagen brand CEO says co. has reduced technical capabilities at German sites by more than 700k units; no significant impact on 2024 guidance is expected. Secures option to reduce staff in Germany by over 35k until 2030. Looking into alternative options for the Dresden plant and an alternative use of the Osnabrueck site. Shifting production of Golf, Golf variant to Mexico from 2027. (Newswires)

OTHER GERMAN COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

CAC

BNP Paribas (BNP FP) - Signing of the share purchase agreement for AXA Investment Managers by BNP Paribas Cardif. The agreed price for the acquisition and the long-term partnership is EUR 5.1bln, with the closing expected mid-2025 and an anticipated impact on BNP Paribas Group's CET1 ratio of 25bps subject to agreements with the relevant authorities. (BNP Paribas)

L'Oreal (OR FP) - Co. is in talks to buy Gowoonesang Cosmetics from Migros, via Reuters citing sources. Announcement could be made as soon as Monday. (Reuters) Subsequently confirmed.

Sanofi (SAN FP) - Sanofi initiates phase 3 program for PCV21 and expands collaboration with SK bioscience for next-generation pneumococcal conjugate vaccines. To pay EUR 50mln upfront to SK Bioscience. (Newswires)

OTHER FRENCH COMPANIES

Eurofins Scientific (ERF FP) - Launches fourth share buyback program, for a max amount representing up to 2% of its share capital. (Newswires)

Ipsos (IPS FP) - Received competition clearance to acquire Infas to create a major player in market, opinion and social research in Germany. Set to be completed beginning of Jan 2025. (Newswires)

URW (URW FP) - Sold 80% stake in Trinity Office Tower to Norges Bank Investment Management; implied offer around EUR 0.45bln. (Newswires)

BROKER MOVES

PAN EUROPE

Auto Sales - Global car sales are expected to grow +1.7% in 2025 to 89.6mln units, driven by improved supply chains. However, production levels will fall as manufacturers adjust inventory, with US sales seen rising 1.2% to 16.2mln vehicles, according to S&P Global Mobility projections. (S&P)

Defence Names - President-elect Trump's team has told European officials that the incoming US president will demand NATO member states increase defence spending to 5%, but plans to continue supplying military aid to Ukraine, via FT. (FT)

Energy names - E.on (EOAN GY) CEO says Europe's energy taxes are worsening industry woes, via Reuters. (Reuters)

EDP (EDP PL) - Signs sale agreement with Skyline Fund; total consideration corresponds to an EV of BRL 2.37bln. (Newswires)

Gas names - Hungary is negotiating with Russia and Ukraine to ensure continued gas transit to Europe after the current contract expires at the end of 2024. Prime Minister Viktor Orban emphasised the country's commitment to maintaining gas flows through Ukraine. (Bloomberg)

Intesa Sanpaolo (ISP IM) - CEO said the Government should stay away from bank mergers, unless financial stability is at risk, via FT. Also noted that the bank had invested more than EUR 30mln to set up a new internal controls system and segregate politicians' accounts. (FT)

Snam (SRG IM) - CEO said the LNG terminal the co. is planning in Ravenna will be in place in Feb and will start operations in April. (la Repubblica)

UniCredit (UCG IM) - Germany's Habeck concerned about UniCredit move on Commerzbank (CBK GY), according to Bloomberg; elsewhere, Goldman Sachs cuts its stake in UniCredit to 0.87% (prev. 5.58%). (Bloomberg)

BROKER MOVES

SMI

OTHER SWISS COMPANIES

Swisscom (SCMN SW) - Swisscom has received regulatory approval to acquire Vodafone Italia (VOD LN) for EUR 8bln. The deal will see Vodafone Italia merged with Swisscom's Fastweb subsidiary, marking a significant shift in Italy's competitive mobile market. Swiss Government says following the review of a majority stake in Swisscom, is still seen as necessary from a security policy perspective. (Newswires)

BROKER MOVES

SCANDINAVIA

Novo Nordisk (NOVOB DC) - FDA approves Alhemo injection as once-daily prophylactic treatment to prevent or reduce the frequency of bleeding episodes for adults and children 12 years of age and older with hemophilia A or B with inhibitors. (Newswires)

SBB (SBBB SS) - Dissolves additional JV with a total property value of SEK 2.16bn. SBB receives a positive total liquidity effect of SEK 5mln after payment of purchase price. (Newswires)

BROKER MOVES

US

CLOSES: SPX +1.09% at 5,931, NDX +0.85% at 21,289, DJIA +1.17% at 42,839, RUT +0.86% at 2,241.

SECTORS: Real Estate +1.82%, Utilities +1.53%, Technology +1.53%, Financials +1.39%, Materials +1.25%, Health +1.22%, Industrials +1.12%, Energy +0.88%, Communication Services +0.46%, Consumer Discretionary +0.14%, Consumer Staples +0.12%.

Eli Lilly (LLY) - Eli Lilly's Zepbound received FDA approval as the first prescription treatment for moderate-to-severe obstructive sleep apnea in adults with obesity.

Qualcomm (QCOM), Arm Holdings (ARM) - A US jury ruled Qualcomm did not breach a licensing agreement with Arm over chip technology acquired via Nuvia. However, jurors deadlocked on Nuvia’s alleged breach, leaving the issue open for potential retrial.

OpenAI - OpenAI’s GPT-5 project, codenamed Orion, has faced significant delays and escalating costs, raising doubts about its completion, WSJ reports. Initially expected by mid-2024, the project is hindered by data limitations and technical challenges. OpenAI’s largest investor Microsoft (MSFT) reportedly remains uncertain about its timeline or feasibility, complicating efforts to advance ChatGPT's underlying technology. (WSJ)

23 Dec 2024 - 06:55- Research Sheet- Source: Newsquawk