Before the Bell: First U.S. rate cut of the year

Investors are counting down to the first U.S. interest rate cut of the year. Baidu is soaring, while Prosus stands to benefit from a successful IPO of one of its holdings.

Will the Federal Reserve cut rates by 25 or 50 basis points? That’s the big question ahead of tonight’s decision. A cut is almost certain, though a 25 basis point move seems most likely. U.S. markets closed flat yesterday in anticipation. Popular telehealth stock Hims & Hers Health fell 5.7% after the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) accused the company of false and misleading marketing. Warner Bros. Discovery slid 6.2%. A TD Cowen analyst said Paramount Skydance would likely make a takeover bid of more than 20 dollar, but that the risk-reward was not compelling enough to keep a buy rating.

In China, investors hit the buy button this morning. The Hang Seng Index rose 1.4%, with Baidu surging 16% in Hong Kong trading. The last analyst with a sell rating on the stock reversed course, citing optimism about Baidu’s artificial intelligence opportunities. The euro climbed in Asian trading to its highest level in four years. Ilham Kadri will step down as CEO of Syensqo at the end of the year. Belgian Paul Bulcke is also stepping down as chairman of Nestlé. Today, results are due from General Mills, Manchester United, and Cracker Barrel, while investment holding Exor and Cenergy Holdings also report.

Successful IPO in India

Amsterdam-based Prosus has shown a good nose for business. Known primarily for its stake in Chinese gaming giant Tencent, Prosus also holds a range of other investments. One of them is Urban Company, an online platform for booking household services such as plumbing, massages, repairs, and cleaning. Recently, Prosus more than doubled its stake to 7.35%. The timing looks spot on: today, Urban Company went public on the Mumbai Stock Exchange. The stock soared 58% at the open, immediately boosting the value of Prosus’ investment.

A proud piggy

Spaarvarken Jan Reyns has been in good spirits lately. On September 6, during a Spamalot session, Jan advised buying Baidu shares. While the stock traded around 100 dollar on September 5, it is expected to open today near 133 dollar on the U.S. market. The reason: a deal with China Merchants Group, one of China’s largest state-owned enterprises. Together they will focus on AI agents, large language models, and digital workers to develop what they call “industrial intelligence.” Baidu is already very active in AI with its language models and its chatbot, Ernie. Want to learn more about Baidu? You can find the webinar where Jan recently issued his buy recommendation here. Baidu (+62% in 2025) was also one of Stefan Willems’ three top stock picks for 2025, alongside Alibaba (+92%) and PDD Holdings (+36.7%). You can read the three 2025 picks here.

Did you know…

that the name Baidu literally means “hundreds of times,” inspired by a Song Dynasty poem? It symbolizes the persistent pursuit of an ideal—quite fitting for a search engine designed to help users find what they’re looking for.

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