Good Evening,

Welcome to Equity Espresso’s Daily Recap. 

Although it seemed to be a quiet day with a modest pullback and low trading volume within a tight range, there is still some activity in the ASX as it winds down for 2023. There has been some M&A activity with a buyout offer for Adbri (ASX: ABC) and a bid by Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group for Link Group (ASX: LNK). The lithium rally has extended into its second week, but has become increasingly patchy. Meanwhile, uranium stocks have prospered due to a medium-term price forecast upgrade for the commodity by major broker Macquarie.

The S&P/ASX 200 (XJO) closed at 7,426.4, down 16.3 points, nearly at the mid-point of the day's range. The S&P/ASX 300 (XKO) saw 160 decliners and 111 advancers.

Today, the Consumer Discretionary (XDJ) and the Health Care (XHJ) sectors performed the best, both gaining 0.2% and finishing in the black. On the other hand, the Real Estate Investment Trusts (XPJ), Consumer Staples (XSJ), and Utilities (XUJ) sectors struggled, with each losing 1.4%, 0.8%, and 0.8% respectively. These three sectors are considered defensive.

During a strong rally, the day had a typical pullback with low volume and a small trading range of just 36 points. The close was roughly in the middle of the session.

Brent crude futures rose above $77 per barrel on Monday, extending gains from last week as decreased exports from Russia and recent attacks on ships traveling through the Red Sea raised supply concerns. Russia said over the weekend that it would deepen oil export cuts in December by at least 50,000 barrels per day as it aims to bolster oil prices

Economic Data

• The Westpac McDermott Miller Consumer Confidence index for New Zealand increased to 88.9 in the last quarter of 2023, the highest since the first quarter of 2022, compared to 80.2 in the previous period.

• Japan’s 10-year government bond yield fell below 0.70% as investors geared up for the Bank of Japan’s monetary policy decision this week, where markets will focus on signs the central bank could finally unwind its ultra-loose monetary settings.

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Quick Singles

🌏 Around The Globe

• Tesla recalls more than 2 million vehicles sold in the US between 2012 and 2023 due to safety concerns over Autopilot software

• Etsy announces it will lay off 225 people, or 11% of its workforce, to reduce costs amid weakening demand for handcrafted goods.

• A former Meta employee who led DEI programs pleaded guilty to stealing more than $4 million from the company.

• Uniqlo plans to expand across North America with 20+ new stores in 2024, aiming for 200 stores by 2027. Currently, it has 72 stores.

• Netflix unveiled its most-watched show of the first half of 2023, "The Night Agent: Season 1," in its inaugural engagement report, which it plans to release biannually from now on.

• According to sources familiar with the matter, Credit Suisse has dismissed all its wealth management team in China. The bank has abandoned its plan to become one of the largest foreign money managers in the country, as its rival UBS Group AG has decided not to take on the dismissed staff.

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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.