In today’s briefing:
- Ohayo Japan | Expect Weak Open
- Iran-Israel Conflict, Stay on the Sideline First and Wait for a BUYING Opportunity
- US Banks – Faltering Net Interest Income Growth Is Well in Place, But This Should Worsen
- Understanding Drug Imbursement Price Cuts in China
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Ohayo Japan | Expect Weak Open
- Global markets are likely to react cautiously following Israel’s interception of over 200 Iranian drones and missile. Bitcoin saw sharp 5%+ decline
- Japan’s greenhouse gas emissions hit a record low in fiscal 2022 at 1.14 billion tons of CO2 equivalent, down 2.5% from fiscal 2021
- US Steel shareholders have greenlit Nippon Steel’s proposed acquisition, which offers a 40% premium on the trading price at the time of announcement
Iran-Israel Conflict, Stay on the Sideline First and Wait for a BUYING Opportunity
- Iran led a direct attack on Israel, prompting fears of a wider war in the Middle East and jittering the global markets
- We think the futures market will start rough, but eventually chill towards the end of the day. Iran has stated its objectives are met and is not keen to continue
- Western countries are taking the diplomatic route with Antony Blinken saying that the U.S. did “not seek escalation”. This is a positive sign
US Banks – Faltering Net Interest Income Growth Is Well in Place, But This Should Worsen
- Wells Fargo has seen its net interest income growth move to -8.3% YoY in 1Q24 from +8.3% YoY in 1Q23
- The rate of net interest income growth at JPMorgan has nearly halved in the most recent quarter, to +11.4% YoY
- Banks’ high-frequency data on balance sheets suggest that there will remain worsening growth rates of net interest income for US banks
Understanding Drug Imbursement Price Cuts in China
- China’s pricing process is becoming more predictable. There have been several positive changes that favour innovation.
- As a comparison, the already complex European system is becoming more complex, and is implementing further price cuts.
- Several other countries including the US are currently implementing or looking to implement price controls.