Before the bell: The New Bel 20 Has Arrived

American CEOs are in China, and as of today, the Bel20 includes more bricks and fewer biotech stocks.

The U.S. stock markets will need a strong final push if they want to end the first quarter in the green. The S&P 500 is still down 3.6% since the start of the year, and the Nasdaq is down even more at -6%. That’s quite a contrast with the Euro Stoxx 50 (+10.8%), Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index (+18.1%), or even our own Bel20 (+5.1%). Wall Street did manage to post a weekly gain for the first time in five weeks. It looks (for now) like the U.S. markets will open positively today. Wait and see. Friday was already a good day for Tesla, which rose 5.3%, and Palantir Technologies, which gained 4.1%.

Both Japan and Hong Kong are seeing average losses of 0.3% this morning. In Brussels, real estate company Montea is making its debut in the Bel20 today. Biotech player Galapagos has dropped out of the index. Meanwhile, a short-selling ban goes into effect today on the Istanbul stock exchange. Later today, we’ll see business confidence figures from both the eurozone and the U.S., and Chinese automaker BYD is reporting its annual results.

+100%, and Still -50%

Berkshire Hathaway is known for releasing important information on Saturdays. Is Belgian holding company Tubize taking a page out of their book? This past Saturday, the family group behind UCB informed shareholders and other interested parties about its 2024 results. It was a fantastic year for Tubize, thanks to UCB’s strong performance. The share price of Tubize doubled in 2024, yet it still doesn’t appear expensive. The stock is currently priced at 141.6 euro, while its net asset value has risen to 282.3 euro. In Saturday’s edition of Spamalot, Stefan Willems explained why he sold half of his Tubize position in his buy & sell portfolio.

Made in China

We already knew that the Chinese government is working to build strong ties with major domestic tech companies and their leadership. But now it appears that Beijing is also actively courting American companies to continue investing in China. Yesterday, Vice Premier He Lifeng met with top executives from Apple, Cargill, Corning, Eli Lilly, Mastercard, Medtronic, and Pfizer, according to a statement from the Ministry of Commerce. Impressive, right? China is likely trying to use foreign investment to boost domestic consumption and offset the impact of Trump’s tariffs on Chinese exports. Every disadvantage comes with an advantage—as this situation proves once again.

Did you know…

that many CEOs of major U.S. multinationals are attending a conference in Beijing today? Rumor has it that some of them may meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping later this week.

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