Gold Glimmers in a Sea of Red

Good Evening,

Welcome to Equity Espresso’s Market Recap.

A savage sell-off on the Aussie market saw the ASX have its worst day in over 18 months. The ASX 200 index lost 171.5 pts. or 2.11%, ending the day at 7,943.20. It was the worst one-day performance since March 2023, when the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank in the United States sparked a global sell-off in equities.

Consumer Discretionary (-3.00%) stocks were the worst-performing of the 11 sectors, all of which ended the day lower. Wesfarmers (-2.88%), JB Hi-Fi (-3.04%) and Aristocrat Leisure (-3.81%) were some of the hardest-hit companies in the sector. Real Estate (-2.89%) and Technology (-2.76%) were the next worst-performing sectors. Goodman Group (-5.10%) saw a sharp fall, as did Wisetech Global (-4.14%) and Xero (-3.31%).

Gold stocks were the shining light of the day, with the ASX Gold sub-index Ca(+0.18%) actually trading slightly higher. Northern Star Resources (+0.14%), Capricorn Metals (+1.47%) and Gold Road Resources (+1.45%).

Uranium companies were savaged today after the world’s largest uranium miner, Kazatomprom, lifted its full-year production guidance. The increase in production could potentially negatively impact prices. Deep Yellow (-19.3%), Bannerman Energy (-17.7%), Boss Energy (-12.9%) and Nexgen Energy (-12.7%) all saw double-digit declines.

In company news:

• Block (+5.10%) shares rose after the company upgraded its full-year guidance and announced a new $US3 billion share buyback.

• Iress (-1.42%) fell after it completed the sale of its U.K. Mortgage sales business to Bain for $167 million.

• ResMed (-1.82%) ended the day lower despite reporting higher revenue and dividends for the June quarter.

Wall Street

A massive sell-down on Wall Street triggered by a round of economic data raised concerns the economy may be slowing down faster than expected. The NASDAQ (-2.3%) saw the most significant falls, followed by the S&P 500 (-1.37%) and Dow Jones (-1.21%).

Meta Platforms (+4.82%) shares rose after beating revenue and earnings estimates. Revenue for the quarter grew by 22% from a year earlier, while net income rose by 73%.

• Earnings - $5.16 p/s vs. $4.73 estimated.

• Revenue - $39.07 billion vs. $38.31 billion estimated

Meta’s strong results were driven by continued strength in the digital advertising market, mainly from Facebook and Instagram. Meta provided revenue guidance for the third quarter of $38.5 billion to $41 billion.

S&P500 Sector Performance

Economic Data

• Australia’s Producer Price index rose by 1.0% quarter-over-quarter during Q2 of 2024, after a 0.9% rise in the previous quarter. This marked the 16th straight period of producer inflation.

• U.S. Unemployment Benefits rose by 14,000 to 249,000 during the period ending July 27, hitting an almost one-year high, above expectations of 236,000.

• The U.S. ISM Manufacturing PMI fell to 46.6 in July 2024 from 48.5 in the previous month, below market expectations of 48.8. This reflects the sharpest contraction in US factory activity since November 2023.

Sponsor

Take a demo, get a Blackstone Griddle

• Automate expense reports so you can focus on strategy

• Uncapped virtual corporate cards

• Access scalable credit lines from $500 to $15M

Request a demo

Quick Singles

🌎️ Around The Globe

• CrowdStrike is being sued by its shareholders. They claim the cybersecurity company lied about its software testing, which led to a global outage on July 19 that affected over 8 million computers.

• Etsy will start testing its first loyalty program in September to increase sales and attract more shoppers. Select buyers will be invited to join the program, which will include free U.S. shipping and special discounts.

• Prosecutors have filed a new lawsuit against StubHub, an online events platform. They accuse it of using unfair sales tactics to deceive customers into paying more for tickets.

• According to anonymous sources, TikTok has been spending $20 million monthly to purchase OpenAI models through Microsoft.

• Uber and BYD announced a multi-year partnership to bring 100,000 new electric vehicles to the ride-hailing platform globally.

• Yum Brands has announced plans to roll out AI-powered drive-thru ordering at hundreds of restaurants in the U.S. by the end of 2024.

Markets

ASX Company Movers

Commodity Prices

Bonds

Forex

Global Health Check

ETF Prices

🔍️ ETF Watch

Want to see how one of your ETFs compares to the rest?

Reply to this e-mail and tell us an ETF or two you want to be included in the tables below.

Australian Index

Australian Sectors

Global Indices & Sectors

Global Strategy

Property & Infrastructure

Fixed Income

Mixed Assets

*1-year, 3-year and 5-year returns are calculated as of 30 June 2024.

The Last Word

How are we doing?

We always love hearing from our readers and are constantly seeking feedback.

• How are we doing with Equity Espresso?

• Is there anything you’d like to see more of or less of?

• Which aspects of the newsletter do you enjoy the most?

Hit reply and say hello - or leave us feedback in the poll below:

If you enjoyed this newsletter, forward this e-mail to a friend.

If you’re that friend, subscribe here.

DISCLAIMER: Please note that the information provided in this newsletter is for educational purposes only and should not be considered financial advice. It is not intended to encourage you to buy/sell assets or make economic decisions. We strongly recommend conducting your research before making any investment.