Before the Bell: Tech CEOs to meet at the White House

Markets recover, and Hong Kong prepares for a major new IPO.

On Wall Street, stocks rebounded yesterday. The S&P 500 gained 0.5% while the Nasdaq climbed 1%. The technology index’s rally was largely thanks to Alphabet (+9.1%) and Apple (+3.8%), both boosted by the positive court ruling in Google’s antitrust case. Elsewhere, gains were more modest, though Walmart (+1.6%) also stood out. Oil companies Chevron (-2.3%) and Occidental Petroleum (-3.6%) moved in line with crude prices. After briefly hitting 66 dollar a barrel on Tuesday, oil fell back to 63.5 dollar yesterday. European markets gained 0.6% on average. Amsterdam’s AMG (+9.2%) surged despite no immediate news, while Zalando (+4%), Delivery Hero (+5.6%), and Adidas (+4.5%) also performed strongly. In Brussels, the Bel20 rose slightly (+0.3%). UCB (+2.2%) shone, while AB InBev (-2.2%) and Melexis (-2.8%) lagged.

In Tokyo, equities were also in demand, with the Topix rising 1%. Hong Kong (-1.2%) and Shenzhen (-2.5%) sold off sharply after Beijing declared that the recent rally in Chinese stocks was speculative, spooking investors. Today, Belgian companies Atenor, EnergyVision, and Onward Medical publish results before the bell, followed by Compagnie du Bois Sauvage, Exmar, and Sofina after hours. In the U.S., Broadcom will report, but the spotlight will be on the White House, where the American president is hosting leading technology CEOs in the Rose Garden for a conference on artificial intelligence, followed by dinner. Guests include Mark Zuckerberg (Meta), Tim Cook (Apple), Bill Gates (Microsoft), and Sam Altman (OpenAI). Elon Musk (Tesla) is unlikely to attend.

One man’s loss…

Gold is shining, while black gold is losing its luster. The weak oil price is also the reason Shell (-1.4%) announced yesterday it will not restart construction of its biofuels plant in Rotterdam. The company has already written down 780 million dollar on the project, which may never be completed. The cancellation is good news for Finnish biodiesel producer Neste Oyj (+1.9%). On the one hand, it shows declining confidence in alternative fuels, but on the other, it means one less competitor in this niche. Neste has been performing surprisingly well on the Helsinki exchange in recent months. Gone, however, is the euphoria of late 2020, when shares traded above 60 euro. Yesterday, the stock closed at 16.19 euro—still more than double the April low of 7.05 euro. Recent earnings beat expectations, and the technical chart looks solid.

Belgians love bargain hunting

In After the Bell yesterday, we discussed the opportunities that arise from sharp sell-offs. Big drops are often followed by strong rebounds. Data from Saxo now confirm that Belgian investors like to hunt for bargains. The most popular stocks in August were Novo Nordisk and UnitedHealth, down 61% and 49% year-on-year, respectively. ASML (-20%) and Xior (-9.5%) were also picked up, as was brewer AB InBev (-7.7%). I didn’t buy into those five, but as you know, I also enjoy stepping in after a steep drop. Such opportunities will always be around—and that’s fantastic news for investors.

Did you know…

a major new IPO is on the way? Chinese gold producer Zijin Mining is planning to raise more than 3 billion dollar with a listing in Hong Kong. That would make it the second-largest IPO of the year, after the 4.6 billion dollar debut of Chinese battery maker CATL—also in Hong Kong. Zijin Mining is clearly looking to capitalize on the soaring gold price.

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