13 Dec 2022

• Last night, the three major U.S. stock indexes opened lower and moved higher, with new energy vehicles and Chinese concept stocks leading the decline. As of the close, the Dow rose 1.58%, the Nasdaq rose 1.26%, and the S&P rose 1.43%. The yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury bond rose 0.865% to close at 3.615%, a difference of -77 basis points compared to the yield on the two-year Treasury bond. The panic index VIX rose 9.51%, Brent crude oil closed up 1.98%, and spot gold closed down 0.9% to $1,781.29 an ounce. The U.S. dollar index remained high, closing at 104.3.
• The monthly rate of GDP in the three months of October in the UK recorded -0.3%, the largest drop since March 2021; the monthly rate of manufacturing output in October recorded 0.7%, the largest increase since March 2021; after seasonal adjustment in October The goods trade account recorded -14.476 billion pounds, the smallest deficit since December 2021.
• The G7 will hold a video meeting of leaders in the evening, and Zelensky will attend the meeting. The Russian Foreign Ministry is conducting consultations with the International Atomic Energy Agency on the safety of the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant. According to Birol, director of the International Energy Agency, the energy crisis in 2023 may be even more severe. Saudi Aramco is said to be approaching investors about a $110 billion Saudi gas project. The U.S. Department of Energy on Monday finalized a $2.5 billion low-cost government loan to Ultium Cells, a battery joint venture between GM and LG Energy, to fund construction of a new lithium-ion battery manufacturing plant.
• The U.S. Treasury Department auctioned 32 billion US dollars of 10-year treasury bonds, with a bid rate of 3.625% and a bid multiple of 2.31. (The pre-release transaction rate was 3.588%, and the bid multiple last month was 2.23) US Senate Majority Leader Schumer said: A week-long short-term spending bill (to prevent a government shutdown) may be needed. According to the New York Fed: In November, inflation expectations for the coming year fell the most on record.
• According to the IMF: Total global debt will reach a record US$235 trillion in 2021, and its share of GDP is still 19% higher than the pre-pandemic level. In 2022, high inflation will continue to reduce debt ratios, but governments should use fiscal policy to reduce inflationary pressures. Global public debt fell by 4% to 96% of GDP, the largest drop in a decade. Among them, the largest decline in debt was in advanced economies, but total debt in low-income developing countries rose. If the economic outlook deteriorates further, managing high debt levels will become increasingly difficult.
• The market is focusing on the U.S. November CPI data released on Tuesday, looking for signs of whether inflation will continue to cool down, and the decision of the Federal Reserve’s December interest rate meeting announced on Wednesday, focusing on the terminal interest rate level and the duration of high interest rates implied by the "dot plot".
• Apple rose 1.64%, and Tata Group was authorized to open 100 Apple stores in India; it is reported that the iPhone 15 Ultra entry-level capacity model may be as high as $1,299, which is $200 higher than the iPhone 14 Pro Max, which means that the model The domestic price may exceed 10,000 yuan.
• Microsoft rose 2.89%. Microsoft acquired about 4% of the shares of London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) and launched a 10-year strategic cooperation with it on next-generation data and analysis and cloud infrastructure solutions.
• Tesla fell 6.27%. Tesla was approved to build a virtual power plant in Texas.
• Rivian fell 6.16%, announcing that it will suspend its plan to build a joint venture with Mercedes-Benz in Europe to produce electric trucks, and will focus on consumers and existing commercial businesses.
• Amgen fell 0.67%, HZNP rose 15.49%, Amgen agreed to acquire the European pharmaceutical company Horizon Therapeutics at a price of US$116.5 per share (a premium of about 20%), with a transaction value of US$20 billion, the largest pharmaceutical M&A this year.

Sources from: Investing.com; Reuters.com

Louis Yap

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