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A mixed start to March for US equity markets - Dow inched +5-points higher. 3M Co gained +2.29%, rebounding from a five month low after the maker of consumer, industrial and healthcare products said the U.S. Department of Defence’s records show that the “vast majority” of the 175,000 claimants in litigation over the company’s Combat Arms earplugs have “no hearing impairment” under American Medical Association standards. Some analysts had estimated potential liabilities from the litigation at ~US$14B. Caterpillar Inc rallied +3.81% after the construction- and mining-equipment maker said it reached a six-year “tentative labour agreement” with the United Autoworkers (UAW) union. The broader S&P500 eased -0.47%, with Utilities (down -1.72%), Real Estate (-1.49%), and Consumer Discretionary (-1.28%) all down over >1% and leading eight of the eleven primary sectors lower. Energy (up +1.94%) sat atop the primary sector leaderboard. Tesla Inc fell over >2.5% in extended trading (extending a -1.43% decline in the regular session) as the electric vehicle manufacturer’s Investor Day got underway. The Nasdaq lost -0.66%. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 eked out a +0.07% gain.

Why the Saudis and the Emirates control the oil price from the second half of 2023. Check out more from Morgans: Visit the Morgans website: www.morgans.com.au Check out our blog: www.morgans.com.au/Blog On Facebook: www.facebook.com/MorgansAU On Instagram: www.instagram.com/Morgans.Australia On Twitter: twitter.com/MorgansAU

Morgans AM: Wednesday, 1 March 2023 by Morgans Financial

US equity markets settled with modest gains after the benchmark indices recorded their worst weekly performance of 2023 last week - Dow added +72-points or +0.22%, The broader S&P500 gained +0.31%, with Consumer Discretionary (up +1.18%) and Industrials (+0.83%) leading seven of the eleven primary sectors higher overnight. More defensive sectors underperformed, with Utilities (down -0.77%), Health Care (0.31%) and Consumer Staples (-0.18%). Railroad operator Union Pacific Corp rallied +10.09% after the company announced that Chief Executive Officer (CEO) would step down in 2023, prompting an upgrade from Bank of America. Tesla Inc rose +5.46% following a Reuters report that the company’s Brandenburg plant in Germany hit a production rate of 4,000 vehicles per week ahead of schedule, quadrupling from May. The electric vehicle manufacturer hosts an Investor Day on Wednesday night AEST (1 March) Albemarle Corp rose +3.01% after Wells Fargo named the specialty chemicals company a signature pick, noting: “ALB remains our preferred growth name in chemicals, given its position as one of the world’s largest low-cost lithium suppliers.” The Nasdaq rose +0.63%. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 settled +0.31% higher.

US equity markets fell on Friday (24 February) to wrap up their worst weekly performance of 2023 as the latest economic data was seen cementing expectations the Federal Reserve will continue lifting its key interest rate above >5% in its effort to bring down inflation - Dow down -337-points or -1.02%, dropping over >500-points at its session lows on Friday (24 February). Boeing Co fell -4.8% following confirmation after the close of the previous session that the airplane maker had temporarily halted deliveries of the 787 Dreamliner to conduct additional analysis on a fuselage component. Home Depot Inc (down -0.89%) and Microsoft Corp (-2.18%) were other notable index drags. The broader S&P500 fell -1.05%, with Real Estate (down -1.82%), Information Technology (-1.77%) and Consumer Discretionary (-1.56%) all down over >1.5% to lead nine of the eleven primary sectors lower. Materials (up +0.65%) and Financials (+0.10%) were the only primary sectors to advance. Adobe Inc fell -7.63% after a Bloomberg report, citing people familiar with the matter, said the U.S. Justice Department is preparing a lawsuit to block the company’s $20B acquisition of start-up Figma. The Nasdaq shed -1.69%. Nvidia Corp lost -1.60% Goldman Sachs upgraded the chipmaker on the back of its fourth-quarter results. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 lost -0.92%.

Morgans AM: Friday, 24 February 2023 by Morgans Financial

Morgans Co-head of Research Alex Mees updates us following the results of DMP and LOV this February reporting season. DMP disappointed the market with 1H23 EBIT that fell 5% short of our forecast and 7% short of consensus. LOV reported NPAT 1% higher than our forecast. Sales growth was 45%, driven by store rollout and +12.5% LFL sales growth. Check out more from Morgans: Visit the Morgans website: www.morgans.com.au Check out our blog: www.morgans.com.au/Blog On Facebook: www.facebook.com/MorgansAU On Instagram: www.instagram.com/Morgans.Australia On Twitter: twitter.com/MorgansAU

Morgans Analyst Max Vickerson gives us an update following Origin's 1H result, which was well below expectations as a result of the very tight wholesale electricity market, increase in APLNG operating costs, and higher tax burden on cash distributions. Check out more from Morgans: Visit the Morgans website: www.morgans.com.au Check out our blog: www.morgans.com.au/Blog On Facebook: www.facebook.com/MorgansAU On Instagram: www.instagram.com/Morgans.Australia On Twitter: twitter.com/MorgansAU

US equity markets modesty weaker as investors digested the minutes of the Federal Reserve’s most recent monetary policy meeting - Dow eased -85-points or -0.26%, The broader S&P500 slipped -0.16% to extend losses into a fourth straight session, with Real Estate (down -1.02%) and Energy (-0.77%) leading nine of the eleven primary sectors lower. Materials (up +0.68%) and Consumer Discretionary (+0.52%) were the only primary sectors to advance. The Nasdaq added +0.13%. Intel Corp fell -2.26% after the struggling chipmaker cut its dividend by more than >60% to US$0.125c per share. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 gained +0.34%.

We think that a shallow US recession has already begun and will continue through the first two quarters of 2023. Check out more from Morgans: Visit the Morgans website: www.morgans.com.au Check out our blog: www.morgans.com.au/Blog On Facebook: www.facebook.com/MorgansAU On Instagram: www.instagram.com/Morgans.Australia On Twitter: twitter.com/MorgansAU