2023-11-24 23:45

Nvidia down as Reuters reports AI chip launch delay in China iRobot up on report Amazon wins EU approval for takeover Vista Outdoor gains on Colt CZ's merger offer Indexes: Dow up 0.33%, S&P up 0.06%, Nasdaq off 0.11% NEW YORK, Nov 24 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks ended little changed in holiday-shortened trading on Friday, with low volume and conviction as investors watched the start of the seasonal shopping season for signs of consumer resiliency. The S&P 500 (.SPX) closed nominally higher, while the Dow (.DJI) eked out a modest gain. The Nasdaq (.IXIC) was dragged slightly lower by weakness in megacap momentum stocks. All three indexes notched their fourth consecutive weekly gains. "We had mixed macroeconomic data and the post-Thanksgiving session is only half a day, so there aren't that many participants," said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Spartan Capital Securities in New York. "But we're seeing a market that's on the right path of a year-end rally." Retailers around the world were attempting to attract millions of shoppers, many offering steep "Black Friday" discounts the day after the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday. "Consumers are being very frugal and while they might spend, they're looking for bargains," Cardillo added. "The higher cost of money is hitting consumers' pocketbook." A survey by NRF, a U.S. retail trade group, showed U.S. shoppers are planning to spend an average of $875 on holiday purchases this year, an annual increase of about 5%. S&P Global's advance purchasing managers' index (PMI) showed steady U.S. business activity in November, but private sector employment declined for the first time in almost 3-1/2 years, possibly due to the Federal Reserve's restrictive monetary policy. Next week's most anticipated data include the Commerce Department's second estimate on third-quarter gross domestic product on Thursday, followed on Friday by its wide-ranging Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) report, which will provide further clues on the extent of the Fed's rate-hike impact. The focus has increasingly shifted to the likely timing of the U.S. central bank's first rate cut, which will be largely determined by the rate at which inflation cools down toward the Fed's average 2% target. New and pending home sales, home prices, consumer prices and ISM PMI are also expected next week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) rose 117.12 points, or 0.33%, to 35,390.15, the S&P 500 (.SPX) gained 2.72 points, or 0.06%, at 4,559.34 and the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) dropped 15.00 points, or 0.11%, to 14,250.86. Of the 11 major sectors in the S&P 500, nine ended with gains, led by healthcare (.SPXHC). Communication services (.SPLRCL) and tech (.SPLRCT) closed in the red. Nvidia (NVDA.O) dipped 1.9% after Reuters reported a delay in the launch of the company's China-focused AI chip designed to comply with U.S. export rules until the first quarter of 2024. IRobot (IRBT.O) surged 39.1% in the wake of a report that Amazon (AMZN.O) is set to win unconditional EU antitrust approval for its $1.4 billion acquisition of the robot vacuum maker. Vista Outdoor (VSTO.N) advanced 3.9% after Czech gunmaker Colt CZ Group's (CZG.PR) cash-and-stock merger offer worth nearly $1.7 billion. U.S.-listed shares of Chinese EV maker Xpeng jumped 6.085% after Volkswagen (VOWG_p.DE) said it will develop a new platform for entry-level electric vehicles in China. Advancing issues outnumbered decliners on the NYSE by a 2.64-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 2.29-to-1 ratio favored advancers. The S&P 500 posted 23 new 52-week highs and no new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 77 new highs and 51 new lows. Volume on U.S. exchanges was 4.97 billion shares, compared with the 10.49 billion average for the full session over the last 20 trading days. https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/futures-drift-shortened-trading-session-2023-11-24/

2023-11-24 23:38

Nov 24 (Reuters) - Rescue crews in Alaska have halted active searching for victims of a landslide that killed at least three people and left three others missing in tons of mud and debris that swept down a rain-soaked mountain slope four days ago, officials said on Friday. Search teams ceased operations on Thursday after scouring the debris field that buried three houses and a coastal stretch of highway in the island fishing and logging town of Wrangell in southeast Alaska, according to Austin McDaniel, a spokesperson for the state Public Safety Department. The heavily wooded mountainside gave way on Monday night above the Zimovia Highway following a storm that lashed the region with heavy rain and high winds. The cascade of muck and splintered trees roared across the highway and over the shoreline at the bottom of the slope, swallowing everything in its path. On Friday, the Public Safety Department said that a canine scent-detection team would remain on standby in Wrangell to resume searching should new information point to a specific area that warranted further examination. The agency identified the three confirmed fatalities as Timothy Heller, 44; his wife, Beth Heller, 36; and their 16-year-old daughter, Mara. The teen's body was found immediately after the slide, and her parent's remains were recovered the following day. Two younger children, Derek and Kara Heller, aged 12 and 11, are among the three individuals who remain listed as missing and were presumed dead. The third missing person was identified as 65-year-old Otto Florschutz, whose wife, Christina, 63, was found alive but injured on Tuesday morning. The Hellers' home stood between the edge of the highway and the shoreline, while the Florschutz couple lived on the opposite side of the highway. No one was home in the third house destroyed by the landslide, officials said. The borough of Wrangell, settled by Russians in the 19th century in a region inhabited for centuries by the Native Tlingit people, occupies the northern tip of Wrangell Island in the Alaska Panhandle region about 155 miles (250 km) sound of Juneau, the state capital. https://www.reuters.com/world/us/five-member-family-identified-among-victims-alaska-landslide-2023-11-24/

2023-11-24 23:20

Nov 24 (Reuters) - Brazil has signed onto an agreement to triple renewable energy globally by 2030 and shift away from using coal, the country's Foreign Ministry said on Friday, joining a prospective deal backed by the European Union, U.S. and United Arab Emirates. South America's largest country is now one of roughly 100 countries that have signed onto the deal, according to a European official familiar with the matter. Sources told Reuters earlier this month the aim is for the deal to be officially adopted by leaders attending the United Nation's COP28 climate negotiations that begins next week in Dubai. Brazil's embassy in Abu Dhabi said in a letter to the United Arab Emirates' Foreign Ministry that it would join the deal titled the "Global Renewables and Energy Efficiency Targets Pledge." A spokesperson for Brazil's Foreign Ministry confirmed the country has decided to join the pact. Brazil is already a major player in renewable energy. More than 80% of the country's electricity comes from renewable sources, led by hydropower with solar and wind energy expanding rapidly. While Brazil supports tripling renewables globally, mathematically it is not possible domestically, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson said. "Brazil won't be able to triple its own renewable energy because it's already very high, but Brazil is once again reinforcing its support for renewables," he said. The draft renewable energy pledge, reviewed by Reuters, commits to "the phase down of unabated coal power," including ending financing for new coal-fired power plants. Coal makes up just over 1% of Brazil's electricity, according to official statistics. It also includes a pledge to double the global annual rate of improving energy efficiency to 4% per year until 2030. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/brazil-signs-global-climate-deal-triple-renewable-energy-2023-11-24/

2023-11-24 23:11

Nov 24 (Reuters) - Investors are torn over when global interest rates are likely to start falling, which is weighing on the dollar at a seasonally tricky time of year, meaning upcoming inflation data will be more important than ever, while China mulls its growth outlook. World leaders gather in Dubai for a summit on climate change, but any agreement on how to deal with it or pay to tackle it seems a distant prospect. Here's your week ahead in world markets from Lewis Krauskopf in New York, Kevin Buckland in Tokyo, and Naomi Rovnick, Marc Jones and Amanda Cooper in London. 1\BUCK UP, IT'S DECEMBER The dollar is heading for its weakest monthly performance for a year, with a loss so far of 2.7%. The prospect of a rapid flip to rate cuts by the Federal Reserve next year has driven investors into beaten-down Treasuries , pushing yields down by the most in a month in four years and boosting stocks (.SPX), at the expense of the dollar. The timing of this combination looks tricky for the greenback. Seasonally, December is the worst month for dollar performance. Since 1973, the dollar has lost an average of 0.9% in December. But it does tend to recover those losses in January, with an average gain of 0.98%. The stats don't favour a three-, or even a two-month, drop. There have been 16 years in which the dollar has fallen in November and December, but only four when it's fallen in November, December and the January of the following year. 2\CHINA'S DRIVE FOR FIVE Despite the massive economic headwinds from a teetering property market and tepid domestic demand, compounded by record youth unemployment, China's top economic adviser plans to recommend a 5% growth target for a second year, Reuters exclusively reported on Nov 22. To get there though, they say more fiscal stimulus is needed, as next year's number won't be flattered by the low base effect of 2021's stringent COVID-19 lockdowns. Markets clearly expect the same, with mainland equities drifting lower as investors bide their time. So far, support measures have largely fallen short, meaning meeting this year's growth target will also be tight. On Thursday, China releases official manufacturing PMI data, which last month showed an unexpected contraction, killing momentum for an economic recovery. 3\EVEN COOLER THAN BEFORE On the heels of an encouraging report on consumer prices, markets are hoping that another relatively tame U.S. inflation report can support the end of the Federal Reserve's interest rate hiking campaign. The personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index, due on Nov 30, is expected to show no change in October from the prior month, according to a Reuters poll. The PCE index rose 0.4% in September, matching the rise in August. Another key inflation gauge, the consumer price index (CPI), was unchanged in October, lifting equity prices, as it bolstered the view that the Fed was probably done raising interest rates. As investors assess how much the economy may be cooling, other key economic reports due in the coming days include a consumer confidence index on Nov 28. The October reading showed a third-straight monthly decline. 4\GOOD COP, BAD COP? COP28 gets underway in Dubai and securing an agreement on how to tackle global warming and, crucially, how to pay for it looks as difficult as ever for the near 200 countries and institutions attending. The main goals set out by COP President - and UAE oil boss - Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber are to speed up the move away from fossil fuels; supercharge climate finance; preserve biodiversity and a fabled "loss and damage" fund to ensure the poorest and most vulnerable countries are not left to fend for themselves. With no consensus likely and pessimism around the key 1.5 degree warming target, the best that can be hoped for might be more money and focus from the big multilateral institutions like the World Bank, as well as deals on uncontroversial areas like tripling global renewable energy capacity. 5\THE ECB'S BALANCING ACT Euro zone inflation data on Nov. 30 may well confirm a trend of price rises moderating. But if traders react by bringing forward bets on when the European Central Bank might cut interest rates, expect monetary policymakers to push back. After the ostensibly good news that consumer price rises slowed to 2.9% in October, ECB president Christine Lagarde warned borrowing costs would need to stay restrictive for many months ahead. On Nov. 21, ECB officials were talking down market expectations that the central bank would lower its main deposit rate from a record 4% as soon as April 2024. Policymakers remain wary of any hopes for rate cuts spilling over into increased bank lending and household spending, renewing inflationary pressures. Euro zone bond yields, stuck in a narrow range, are predicting that this tug of war between market optimism and central bank caution will continue for quite some time. https://www.reuters.com/business/take-five/global-markets-themes-graphic-2023-11-24/

2023-11-24 23:02

Scholz: 2024 budget decisions to be taken this year Germany set to suspend debt brake Finance minister wants significant "consolidation" in budget Majority of Germans oppose suspending debt brake - poll BERLIN, Nov 24 (Reuters) - German Chancellor Olaf Scholz promised on Friday to finalise the 2024 budget by the end of this year, in a video message that sought to reassure spooked citizens and investors in Europe's largest economy after a court ruling tore up its spending plans. Scholz's government was forced to freeze most of its new spending commitments after the constitutional court last week declared unconstitutional its plans to re-allocate pandemic funds to green projects and industry subsidies, wiping billions from the federal budget. "We will carefully revise next year's budget in light of the judgement - swiftly, but with the necessary care," Scholz said in a video posted on social media platform X. Scholz said his government would ask parliament to lift Germany's debt brake, which limits its structural budget deficit to the equivalent of 0.35% of gross domestic product, in order to secure aid planned for this year. The chancellor plans to give a statement to parliament on the issue next Tuesday. His finance minister, Christian Lindner, sounded less confident about whether the 2024 budget could still be adopted this year, saying it remained to be seen given the government had a "very ambitious roadmap". A government source said it would likely become easier to reach a deal on the budget in mid-December after the Greens and Social Democrats, ruling in a three-way coalition with the Free Democrats (FDP), have held party conferences. The court ruling has called into question Germany's traditionally strict fiscal policy and sparked warnings that German companies could be starved of support to keep them globally competitive. Germany has by far the lowest debt in the G7 grouping of major economies, but memories of how frugality paved the way for postwar reconstruction and how costly it was to re-integrate indebted ex-communist East Germany have shaped a uniquely debt-averse political culture. In order to keep backing industry, Lindner, leader of the fiscally hawkish FDP, has ruled out tax rises and said savings would have to be found elsewhere, backed up by reforming the welfare state. He plans to lift self-imposed limits on borrowing and present a supplementary 2023 budget next week. In an interview with the Handelsblatt newspaper, Lindner said consolidation needs were in the double-digit billions. Germany's electricity and gas price caps for example will expire at the end of 2023 and not be extended until March 2024, radio station Deutschlandfunk (DLF) cited him as saying in an interview to be aired on Sunday. The debt brake, introduced after the global financial crisis of 2008/09, was first suspended in 2020 to help the government support firms and health systems during the COVID-19 pandemic. Lindner had been reluctant to suspend the mechanism as his party strongly advocates fiscal discipline but relented as the budget turmoil put more strain on Scholz's fractious three-way coalition. HANDS TIED The crisis has sparked calls for reforming the debt brake. Economy Minister Robert Habeck from the pro-spending Greens has criticised it as inflexible and as blocking vital support for industry to stop jobs and value creation from moving abroad. To a standing ovation at a Greens party conference, Habeck questioned whether the debt brake was applicable in changed times from "when climate protection was not taken seriously, wars were a thing of the past, China was our cheap workbench". "With the debt brake as it is, we have voluntarily tied our hands behind our backs and are going into a boxing match," he said. However, government spokesperson Steffen Hebestreit said on Friday that reform, which would need a parliamentary supermajority, was not on the immediate agenda. A poll by broadcaster ZDF suggested only a minority of Germans supported suspending the debt brake. Some 57% wanted the budget shortfall from the court ruling to be covered by spending cuts, 11% favoured tax increases and 23% wanted the state to take on additional debt. https://www.reuters.com/markets/europe/germany-signals-belt-tightening-no-tax-rises-budget-compromise-2023-11-24/

2023-11-24 23:00

NEW YORK, Nov 24 (Reuters) - The battleground for  retailers this U.S. holiday season is over merchandise priced at $35 and less, setting the stage for the cheapest shopping period in years for TVs, toys, dresses, and sporting goods, according to retail executives, federal pricing data and exclusive analysis of early Black Friday discounts. Toys, games and hobby gear are on track to be less expensive this holiday season for the first time since 2020, while sporting goods prices are down this holiday for the first time since 2018, data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS)showed. The price of a TV is three-fourths of what it was in 2019, while men's suits, outerwear, sports coats, women's dresses and audio equipment are 8% to 14% cheaper compared with pre-pandemic levels, BLS data for October shows. "The deals are really good on TVs," said Theresa Forsberg, who picked up a 55-inch for $188 at Walmart in New Milford, Connecticut, on Black Friday. Jill Lizzo, in New York's Harlem, found bargains on toothpaste and Christmas decorations at Target this year, a relief because her rent is more expensive. To be sure, prices overall are higher in 2023 despite slowed price growth, with October's consumer price index climbing to 3.2% year-over-year. The figure remained flat on a month-over-month basis, signaling some holiday item prices may be slow to come down. Despite a dip in sporting goods prices, they continue to pace above 2019 levels. Girls' apparel has also remained above pandemic-era levels, while the average price of furniture has steadily risen since September. Certain prices are falling after pandemic-induced kinks in the supply chain and a huge shift in demand toward goods over services over the past two years pushed up prices for nearly every consumer good, from eggs and butter to Barbie dolls and tennis rackets. Walmart WMT.N said prices of general merchandise - clothing, electronics, furniture - had declined by low to mid-single-digit percentages versus last year, enabling the retailer to cut prices this holiday season. Target (TGT.N) executives said they have seen inflation moderate, but that it's still a very "rational environment." "If there's one thing that we've seen is in an environment where people are making choices and they might have some constraints with their budget, the motivation to buy is, really, is this going to add value to my life?” Target chief growth officer Christina Hennington said on a call last week. Black Friday discounts are 30% to 50% at major retailers and could go deeper later in the season. Many shoppers may wait until the weekend before Christmas Monday to buy their gifts.  Retailers could deepen discounts by 10%, analyst Jessica Ramirez at Jane Hali & Associates said in an interview. "We are definitely seeing signs that the consumer is starting to pull back ... and businesses know that," Jeffrey Roach, chief economist at LPL Financial, said in an interview. "So they're putting their best foot forward by trying to put fairly aggressive discounts." In the weeks leading up to Black Friday, retailers, including Macy's (M.N), Dick's Sporting Goods (DKS.N) and Lowe's (LOW.N), have extended price promotions to a broader range of categories than last year, according to Jane Hali & Associates. Macy's advertised half off on coats and dinnerware and up to 50% off on handbags, small appliances and men’s shoes. An analysis of inventory data by Reuters found that Macy's and many other major chains, including dollar stores, are struggling with slower inventory drawdowns. Major e-commerce platforms Temu and Shein have also jumped on the deals bandwagon, engaging in a “value for money” frenzy, triggering a race to the bottom. Kevin Simpson, chief investment officer at Capital Wealth Planning, said Walmart, Target and Home Depot (HD.N) are showing signs of caution when it comes to consumer health and may see weaker margins once the season ends. For two years, "retailers have been in a Goldilocks world" of increasing sales despite price hikes, he said. "But you can only do that for so long." He expects retailers to dangle bigger discounts this year. "You're going to see margin compression and potentially lower sales," said Simpson, whose firm holds shares in Walmart and Home Depot. Toys, including Barbie dolls, were below where they sold in 2019. A Barbie doll Clinic Play Set was $32.49 on Target's website on Wednesday. It sold for $45 on Dec. 3, 2019, and Nov. 18, 2021, according to a Reuters analysis of the Wayback Machine internet archive. At Walmart, a Lego classic box was $22.49. It sold for $27.99 the day before Thanksgiving in 2019. https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/us-shoppers-set-cheapest-holiday-gift-season-years-2023-11-24/