Good Evening,

Welcome to Equity Espresso’s Daily Recap. 

Markets continued where they left off before the Christmas hiatus, starting the last week of the trading year on a positive note, with the ASX200 index closing the day 59.6 pts or 0.79% higher to 7,561.20. The index is now up by almost 7.0% in December and 7.7% for the calendar year.

All 11 sectors finished the day in the green, led by Real Estate (+1.51%), Technology (+1.30%) and Materials (+1.14%). Iron Ore prices hit 18-month highs of $US140/t, marking a 20% gain on higher demand for industrial metals in the year. BHP Group (+1.07%), Rio Tinto (+0.54%) and Fortescue Metals (+0.71%) all finished higher.

Insurance companies were some of the detractors today, with Suncorp Group (-0.51%) and QBE Insurance (-0.27%) dropping as extreme weather hit the country's east coast over Christmas, resulting in storm damages.

The price of gold climbed above $2,060/oz, extending gains from last week, benefitting from a weaker U.S. dollar and lower bond yields.

Wall Street

The U.S. market finished higher on Tuesday, kicking off the last week of the year positively, with expectations remaining high that the Federal Reserve will begin cutting interest rates by March 2024. According to data from a Mastercard report, U.S. retail sales rose 3.1% between November 1 and December 24. The rise was lower than the 3.7% rise in September and last year’s increase of 7.6%.

Manchester United shares rose by more than 3.4% after British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe finalised a deal to buy 25% of the club at $33 per share.

Economic Data

• The U.S. Chicago Fed National Activity Index rose to +0.03 in November, up from the 0.66 decline in October, indicating economic activity growth during the month.

• Japan’s unemployment rate remained at 2.5% in November, unmoved from October, which aligned with forecasts.

• Singapore’s annual inflation rate fell to 3.6% in November after a 4.7% read in October, marking the lowest reading since October 2021.

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Quick Singles

🪃 Local News

• French renewables company Neoen will build a 440-megawatt solar farm near Albury-Wodonga. The battery farm is expected to generate enough electricity to power 160,000 homes.

🌎️ Around The Globe

• According to Bloomberg, Tesla plans to roll out a revamped version of its Model Y vehicle from its Shanghai factory. Mass production is reportedly set to start as soon as mid-2024.

• Samsung Electronics has delayed mass production plans at its new chip plant in Texas to 2025. Samsung said the factory would start production in the second half of 2024 when it announced the investment in 2021.

• Adani Green Energy has successfully found buyers for all the 8 gigawatts of green power projects it had won in a tender over three years ago. The renewable energy unit of Gautam Adani's coal-to-airports conglomerate has signed a 25-year agreement with Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) for the remaining 1.8 gigawatts.

• The Israeli government has agreed to give Intel a $3.2 billion grant for a new $25 billion chip plant it plans to build in southern Israel.

• Maersk is preparing to resume shipping operations in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden after pausing sending vessels through the strait earlier in the month due to attacks against its ships. The deployment of a U.S.-led military operation will ensure the safety of commerce in the area.

• SoftBank Group shares rose over 7% after getting $7.6 billion worth of T-Mobile stock as part of an agreement struck when the carrier merged with Sprint Corp. back in 2020.

Markets

ASX Company Movers

Commodity Prices

Bond Prices

ETF Watch

ASX News

🗞️ Company Announcements

• Brainchip (BRN) has been granted a new U.S. patent, making it the 19th in the company’s portfolio.

• Collins Foods Group (CKF) has been hit with another class action from KFC employees who claim they did not receive paid 10-minute rest breaks.

• Electro Optic Systems (EOS) announced it has secured an additional contract to supply Remote Weapon Systems to the Western European government, valued at approximately $25 million.

• Opthea (OPT) will receive the remaining US$35 million in committed funds under the Development Funding Agreement (DFA) with Carlyle and Abingworth. It has also entered into a binding agreement with a new co-investor to secure an additional US$50 million in funds.

• Strike Energy (STX) has completed the acquisition of Talon Energy, whereby Strike has acquired 100% of the issued capital in Talon.

• Vitura Health (VIT) has been notified today that Code4 Cannabis will not extend its Services Agreement, for which Vitura exclusively licenses its CanView platform. The current agreement is set to expire on August 10, 2024.

• Whispir (WSP) has received an increased takeover offer of $0.55 from Sydney-based Tech company Soprano Design. Whispir shares closed 1.8% higher to $0.55.

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A Little Extra

📉 Going Down?

Top-10 shorted stocks on the ASX - as of December 19

📊 Broker Ratings

What do the brokers have to say?

1. JB Hi-Fi (JBH) - Downgrade to Sell from Lighten (Ord Minnett)

2. Super Retail Group (SUL) - Downgrade to Sell from Lighten (Ord Minnett)

👨‍💼 Director Transactions

What are the insiders doing? (On-market trade only)

DISCLAIMER: None of the information provided in this newsletter should be constituted as financial advice. This newsletter is strictly for educational purposes only. It should not be taken as investment advice or a solicitation to buy or sell assets or make financial decisions. Please do your research.