Before the bell: Ho Ho Higher

On Christmas Eve, Wall Street indulged in a feast of chips. This morning in Tokyo, a surprising gainer has caught attention.

Despite the shortened trading day, Wall Street managed to close with a solid gain yesterday. The S&P 500 rose by 1.1%, while the Nasdaq climbed 1.4%. Despite relatively low consumer confidence, investors believe that Americans are still spending heavily during Christmas. This sentiment boosted shares of Amazon (+1.8%) and Walmart (+2.6%). Ahold Delhaize, which generates most of its revenue and profit in the U.S., should also benefit from this trend. However, the Belgian-Dutch retailer only gained 0.3%, still outperforming the modest 0.1% average gain on European markets. The Bel20 outshone its peers, rising 0.5%, driven by Argenx (+1.6%) and D’Ieteren (+2.4%). Outside the index, CMB.Tech impressed with a +9.9% gain.

In China and Japan, markets are open today but haven’t capitalized on Wall Street’s momentum. On the Chinese mainland, average gains are a modest 0.1%, while Japan’s Topix index fell 0.4%. Following Honda’s strong performance yesterday, Nissan (+8.7%) is now showcasing that the automotive sector still offers investment opportunities. Credit rating agency Moody’s stated yesterday that the proposed merger between Honda and Nissan would positively impact the creditworthiness of the combined entity.

A Good Day to Bury Bad News

Tony Blair’s government mastered this tactic in 2001. Advisers to the British prime minister recommended releasing bad news when people are least likely to notice, such as on Christmas Eve. British contractor Vistry seems to have taken this advice. The company issued a profit warning, sending its stock plummeting 16.3%. This marks the third profit warning in less than three months for the construction firm. In early October, management announced that miscalculated costs would result in a 115 million pound hit. Initially forecasting 350 million pounds in gross profit for the year, two warnings later, that figure has been revised down to 250 million pounds. Vistry’s stock has lost 57% since October 7.

Chips on the Menu

On Christmas Eve, turkey and croquettes might be traditional favorites, but on Wall Street, chips were in high demand. Artificial intelligence (AI) was the investment theme of 2024, and it seems poised to continue in 2025. Broadcom gained 3.2%, Arm Holdings climbed 3.9%, and Super Micro Computer saw a daily increase of 6%. Tesla (+7.4%) isn’t a chipmaker but remains deeply tied to the AI trend through its robots and self-driving vehicles. Over the past two months, Tesla’s stock has surged 72%, and so far, its shareholders appear to be unfazed by these lofty heights.

Did You Know…

we’re here for you today, monitoring the financial markets. Spaarvarkens.be wishes you and your family a Merry Christmas. If anything noteworthy happens in the markets, you’ll find it in tomorrow’s edition of this newsletter.

This article was translated from Dutch and was originally published on Spaarvarkens.be.