Torsten Asmus
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No shutdown: Congress passes stopgap spending bill (0:30), diabetes drugs expect price hikes (1:15), Nasdaq 100 hits record high on optimism for tech markets Recorded (3:25).
This is a summary transcript of the podcast.
U.S. Congress passed a temporary spending bill to fund the government through early March, averting a partial shutdown ahead of an expected snowstorm and giving lawmakers time to craft a funding bill for the fiscal year starting in October. I bought time.
The Senate voted 77-18 in favor of the continuing resolution, and the House voted 314-108 in favor. The interim bill would fund some government activities until March 1st, but the deadline for the remaining funds was pushed back to March 8th. Under current law, the funds were supposed to run out on January 19th and February 2nd.
The latest continuing resolution is the third extension since Oct. 1 for fiscal year 2024. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Biden would sign the resolution.
Eli Lilly (NYSE:LLY) and Novo Nordisk (NVO)'s two popular diabetes drugs, Mounjaro (tirzepatide) and Ozempic (semaglutide), saw their list prices increase in the first half of January.
Munjaro's price rose 4.5% to about $1,070 for a one-month supply, according to an analysis conducted for the Wall Street Journal. Ozempic's price rose 3.5% over the month to about $970. The paper noted that prices for hundreds of other medicines increased by a median of 4.5% this month. For some medicines he saw price increases of more than 10%.
Novo Nordisk (NVO) said the price changes were due to market conditions and inflation, the magazine reported, adding that it had not increased prices by more than 10% since 2016. Lilly (LLY) added that prices are based on the drug's value, effectiveness, and safety.
U.S. video game sales rose 4% year-on-year in December, the all-important holiday season, and the strong increase ensured growth on a full-year basis.
Overall sales rose to $7.9 billion from $7.63 billion in December 2022, according to research group Circana. The survey period was from November 26th to December 26th. The 30 days cover the industry's biggest sales months, from after Thanksgiving until Christmas.
Circana analyst Matt Piscatella noted that Xbox Series (NASDAQ:MSFT) growth helped offset Nintendo Switch's (OTCPK:NTDOY) double-digit decline. (The Switch is the platform most likely to get a facelift first.) Sony's (NYSE:SONY) PlayStation 5 was the top platform in both units sold and value-based, beating the Switch in each case – – And Sony's (SONY) hardware sales took a hit as the company set a new monthly sales record.
No wonder Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III (MSFT) held the title of December's best-selling game, followed by November. Warner's (WBD)'s Hogwarts Legacy was the overall best-selling game of the year, ending his 14-year streak in which either Call of Duty (Activision/MSFT) or Grand Theft Auto Maker's game was the best-selling game of the year. I broke it. Rockstar (TTWO).
The double-digit growth in accessories was driven by a 21% increase in gamepad sales, while headset/headphone spending rose 5% in December.
Other notable articles on Seeking Alpha:
Mark Zuckerberg: Meta is investing in Nvidia chips to build AI
Biden administration to forgive another $5 billion in student loans
Reddit considering IPO in March – Report
Only three weeks into the new year, the market continues to support the sector and the technology industry is showing its staying power. There are concerns that the Fed will cut interest rates later this year, but optimism in semiconductors and headlines on AI are supporting sentiment. In fact, the Nasdaq 100 (NDX) closed at an all-time high of 16,982 on Thursday. Meanwhile, the best performing S&P 500 sector year-to-date has been Information Technology (SP500-45TR), up 2.6%.
Artificial intelligence is all the rage these days, and those who are ahead of the competition will benefit. While some buying may occur ahead of next week's tech earnings, trillions of dollars parked in money market funds and other cash-like investments are seen as yields becoming less attractive. There is a possibility that the
A soft landing also appears to be on the cards, which could mean less macro uncertainty and allow companies to talk more positively about upside and bullish product development.
Gold prices (XAUUSD:CUR) followed weakness in the U.S. dollar index (DXY) early Friday after recent jobs data suggested less need for the Federal Reserve (Fed). Gold prices were headed for a weekly decline, despite rising for a second consecutive day of trading. To lower interest rates.
Ahead of the FOMC's blackout period starting this weekend, Fed speakers are not leaning in favor of early interest rate cuts. Similar themes emerged from a recent gathering of the world's political and business elites in Davos, Switzerland.
Turning to energy markets, oil prices also rose, with both indexes heading for weekly gains as economic concerns in China, the biggest oil importer, were offset by tensions in the Middle East and disrupted oil production due to cold snaps. . US. According to a report from Bloomberg, the cold snap has caused a loss of 15% of oil refining capacity on the U.S. Gulf Coast.
Among other agricultural products, soybeans, wheat, and cocoa rose. Signs of food inflation are emerging, from coffee to chocolate, which has been hit hard by the Red Sea trade disruption. Production has slowed to corona-era levels as cocoa shortages push futures prices to 40 years. Bloomberg reported that the price is high.
Now let's take a look at the market price as of 6am. Ahead of today's opening bell, stock index futures suggested the broader market would widen and trade higher on Friday given the shortened week thanks to growth stocks.
Nasdaq 100 futures (NDX:IND) rose +0.8%, S&P futures (SPX) rose +0.4%, and Dow futures (INDU) rose +0.2%.
Rates were stable. The 10-year US Treasury yield (US10Y) is flat at around 4.14%. Crude oil rose 0.9% to $73.11. Gold is up +0.4% at $2,014.50. Bitcoin -0.7% to $42,384.
Here are the companies that made the biggest moves in the day's premarket:
Super Micro Computer (NASDAQ:SMCI) stock rose more than 13% after the company raised its guidance for second-quarter 2024 sales and profits. The company attributes the increase in guidance to a robust market and strong demand from end customers for rack-scale, AI, and total IT solutions.
iRobot (NASDAQ:IRBT) shares rose 14% on Thursday after reports that European antitrust regulators are likely to object to its planned $1.7 billion sale to Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) The decline followed a 35% drop early Friday.
Esperion Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ESPR) stock announced the pricing of its previously disclosed underwritten public offering, consisting of 56.7 million shares of common stock at $1.50 per share and targeting total proceeds of approximately $85.1 million. The stock plunged more than 24% following the announcement. Additionally, ESPR has granted the underwriters a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 8.5 million shares. This recruitment is scheduled to end on January 23, 2024.
Today's economic calendar:
Find existing home sales at 10 a.m. Economists expect little change at the 3.82 million rate. Also, although not much is expected about monetary policy, Fed Vice Chairman Michael Barr is scheduled to speak at 1 p.m.
Editor's Note: This article discusses one or more securities that do not trade on a major U.S. exchange. Please be aware of the risks associated with these stocks.
