Morgans AM

US equity markets rallied ahead of Christmas, with the S&P500 sweeping to a fresh record closing high as investors digested some relatively benign US economic and some favourable studies around the relatively muted health impact of the Omicron variant - Dow up +197-points or +0.55% . The broader S&P500 gained +0.62% to 4,725.79, booking its 68th record closing high of 2021 and sitting within 0.4% of its all-time record intra-day peak. Consumer Discretionary (up +1.24%), Industrials (+1.16%) and Materials (+1.01%) all gained over >1% to lead nine of the eleven primary sectors higher. Real Estate (down -0.36%) and Utilities (-0.03%) were the only primary sectors to close in the red. The Nasdaq +0.85%. Microsoft Corp rose +0.45% and Nvidia Corp +0.82%. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 +0.89%. JD.com tumbled -6.92% after Tencent Holdings Ltd said it will substantially reduce its stake in the Chinese internet company.

US equity markets - Dow up +261-points or +0.74%, taking the indice’s two-day rebound to over >800-points or ~2.3%. Caterpillar Inc rose 1.94% after Bernstein upgraded the stock, saying the machinery maker will be a key beneficiary of a rebound in global growth. The broader S&P500 rose +1.02%, with Consumer Discretionary (up +1.73%), Information Technology (+1.33%) and Health Care (+1.17%) all gaining over >1% to lead all eleven primary sectors higher. Tesla Inc jumped +7.49%, with Elon Musk saying in a podcast that he had reached his goal of selling 10% of his shares in the electric vehicle maker to fund enormous tax obligations. A regulatory filing late on Tuesday (21 December) showed that Mr Musk sold a further 583,611 Tesla shares, bringing the total number of shares he has offloaded to 13.5M. Separately, Syrah Resources (SYR.ASX) it has signed an offtake agreement with Tesla for natural graphite from its production plant in Louisiana. The Nasdaq +1.18%. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 added +0.86%. Alibaba Group Holding Ltd’s American Depository Receipts (ADRs) fell -4.20% following reports that China’s IT regulator disciplined the company for failing to report an open-source security vulnerability to the government.

US equity markets rebounded sharply, snapping a three session losing streak and erasing Monday’s (20 December) sell-off - Dow gained +561-points or +1.60% . Nike Inc rallied +6.15% after recording better-than-expected second quarter earnings per share (US$0.83c versus consensus analysts forecasts of US$0.63c) and revenue (US$11.36B versus consensus US$11.25B) after the closing bell of the previous session. The broader S&P500 gained +1.78%, having logged its worst three day stretch (down -3.04%) since September. Energy (up +2.89%), Information Technology (+2.60%), Consumer Discretionary (+2.50%) and Financials (+2.01%) all gained over >2% to lead nine of the eleven primary sectors higher. Utilities (down -0.17%) and Consumer Staples (-0.11%) were the only primary sectors to decline (having been the only sectors to advance a day earlier). Micron Technology Inc jumped +10.54% after the memory-chip maker’s fiscal first quarter adjusted earnings per share, revenue and outlook released after the close of Monday’s (20 December) session topped Wall Street estimates. Advanced Micro Devices Inc rose +6.22%. The Nasdaq +2.40%. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 rallied +2.92%, logging its best single session performance since 20 July.

US equity markets booked a third straight decline as major global cities grappled with surging COVID-19 infections tied to the omicron variant - Dow down -433-points or -1.23%, with Boeing Co (down -2.15%), Goldman Sachs Group Inc (-2.67%) and American Express (-2.57%) among the key drags on the index. The broader S&P500 -1.14%, with Financials (down -1.90%), Materials (-1.82%), Industrials (1.65%) and Consumer Discretionary (-1.65%) all down over >1.5% to lead nine of eleven primary sectors lower. Utilities (up +0.05%) and Consumer Staples (+0.04%) were the only primary sectors to edge higher. Th technology-centric Nasdaq shed -1.24%. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 -1.40%. In merger and acquisition (M&A) news, enterprise software giant Oracle Corp (down -5.15%) announced that it will buy electronic medical records company Cerner Corp (+0.80%) in an all-cash deal for US$95 per share, or ~US$28.3B in equity value.

US equity markets declined to cap a week in which several major central banks acknowledged the threat posed by high inflation, while the Omicron coronavirus variant continued to weigh on sentiment - Dow down -532-points or -1.48% to 35,365.44, touching an intra-session low of about 35,284. It marked the index’s worst single session decline since 30 November. The S&P500 fell -1.03% to 4,620.64, touching an intra-session low of ~4,600 and the broader index’s steepest daily decline since 1 December. Financials (down -2.27%) and Energy (-2.24%) both fell over >25 to lead all eleven primary sectors lower. The Nasdaq dipped -0.07% to settle at 15,169.68, recovering from a session low of ~14,960 (down ~1.5%). Microsoft Corp dipped -0.3%, extending its weekly decline to nearly 5.5%. Google parent Alphabet Inc (down -1.41%) and Apple Inc (-0.65%) both fell more than >4% last week. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 gained +1.0%. Friday’s (17 December) session was ‘quadruple witching’, the simultaneous expiration of single-stock options, single-stock futures, and stock-index options and stock-futures, and end of quarter fund rebalancing. US equity and bond markets are closed on Friday night AEST (24 December) in observance of Christmas.

US equity markets weaker as investors digested the latest monetary policy pronouncements from a number of major global central banks – Dow slipped -30-points or -0.08%, unwinding an earlier rally of over >200-points. Banks helped the Dow outperform on a relative basis, with Goldman Sachs Group Inc rising +1.91% and JPMorgan Chase & Co +1.56%. The broader S&P500 fell -0.87% after briefly trading above its 10 December record closing high (4,687.64) in early trading. Financials (up +1.21%) and Materials (+1.04%) rose over >1% to lead eight of the eleven primary sectors higher. Information Technology (down -2.86%) was the big underperformer. Delta Air Lines Inc declined -2.21% after the carrier set its financial goals for the coming years ahead of its scheduled Capital Markets Day. The Nasdaq tumbled -2.47%, the technology-centric indice’s the biggest one-day point and percentage loss since 28 September. Apple Inc fell -3.93%, Amazon.com Inc -2.56% and Microsoft Corp -2.91%. Major semiconductor stocks Advanced Micro Devices Inc and Nvidia Corp dropping -5.37% and -6.80%, respectively. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 shed -1.95.

US equity markets recovered from earlier session losses to settle with solid gains following the Federal Reserve’s latest monetary policy pronouncements - Dow up +383-points or +1.08% at 35,927.43. The broader S&P500 gained +1.63% to 4,709.85, the second highest close of 2021 after briefly climbing above its 10 December record closing high (4,712.02), with Information Technology (up +2.75%) and Health Care (+2.11%) rising over >2% to lead ten of the eleven primary sectors higher. Energy (down -0.53%) was the only primary sector to close in the red. Visa Inc rose ~0.9% in extended trading after a late filing confirmed the company’s board has authorized a new US$12B share repurchase program. The Nasdaq rallied +2.15%, erasing an earlier ~0.7% decline. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 climbed +1.54%.

US equity markets declined following the release of data recording that US wholesale prices rose at a record pace in November and ahead of the Federal Reserve’s latest monetary policy decision - Dow down -107-points or -0.30%, booking its first back-to-back loss for December. The broader S&P500 fell -0.75%, with Information Technology (down -1.64%) and Real Estate (-1.27%) logging declines of over >1% to lead ten of the eleven primary sectors lower. Financials (up +0.62%) was the only primary sector to advance. Tesla Inc fell -0.82% after a regulatory filing revealed that Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Elon Musk had sold a further US$906M worth of his holding in the electric vehicle maker (taking the total amount of shares he as sold thus far to 11.9M). The main reason Mr Musk is selling is to pay the taxes on the exercise of options that expire next summer. Ford Motor Co declined -1.9% following news that by 2030 Toyota would be investing US$35B into battery-powered electronic vehicles, a space where Ford has sought to establish itself as a leader. The Nasdaq -1.14%. Microsoft Corp (down -3.26%) was a major drag on the benchmark indices. Adobe Inc shed -6.60% after JPMorgan published its 2022 outlook report on software technology and issued a series of downgrades, citing high valuations. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 lost -1.06%.

US equity markets retreated amid some profit taking as investors brace for a busy week of central bank meetings - Dow fell -320-points or -0.89%, with Boeing Co (down -3.74%) a notable drag on the index. The broader S&P500 lost -0.91% a day after logging its 67th record closing high of 2021 (4,712.02) and settling ~0.7% from its all time intra-day high. Energy (down -2.77%) and Consumer Discretionary (-2.44%) both fell over >2% to lead seven of the eleven primary sectors lower. More defensive sectors outperformed, with Real Estate (up +1.32%), Utilities (+1.21%) and Consumer Staples (+1.20%) all advancing over >1%. Re-opening plays like airlines (American Airlines Group Inc fell -4.94%, and Delta Air Lines Inc -3.43% and United Airlines Holdings Inc -5.24%) and cruise lines (Carnival Corp down -4.88%) were among the biggest losers overnight. Tesla Inc fell -4.98% to US$966.41, taking the electric vehicle maker’s decline in December to over >14% and putting the stock in official bear market territory, down -21.4% from its 4 November high of US$1,229.91. The Nasdaq shed -1.39%. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 declined -1.27%. Harley-Davidson Inc (up +4.70%) announced that it is spinning off its electric bikes division, LiveWire, and listing it on the stock market through a merger with a blank-cheque company (AEA Bridges Impact Corp, a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) run by executives of private equity firm AEA Investors and investment group Bridges Fund Management). The deal gives LiveWire an enterprise value of US$1.8B.

US equity markets advanced to cap their strongest week since February - Dow up +216-points or +0.60% . The broader S&P500 gained +0.95% to log its 67th record closing high of 2021 at 4,712.02 and settle ~0.7% from its all time intra-day high. Information Technology (up +2.07%) and Consumer Staples (+2.00%) led all eleven primary sectors higher. Oracle Corp jumped +15.61% to record highs following impressive November quarter earnings after the close of the previous session that showed signs of progress in the company’s transition into a cloud-based software provider. However, Southwest Airlines Co fell 3.76% after Goldman Sachs downgraded the carrier, writing that medium-term inflation pressure is expected to “drive a slower-than-industry return to profitability.” The Nasdaq +0.73%. Apple Inc and Microsoft Corp gained +2.8% and +2.83%, respectively, to provide the biggest boost to the major indexes. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 eased -0.38%.