New Zealand business activity swings to contraction in October
New Zealand’s services sector swung into contraction territory in October amid a slowdown in sales and new orders, according to a survey.
The Bank of New Zealand-BusinessNZ Performance of Services Index was 48.9 last month, down 1.7 points from September and well below the long-term average of 53.5.
A reading above 50 indicates expansion.
“Overall, negative comments continued to be strongly dominated by the recent General Election, as well as a general slowdown in the economy,” said BusinessNZ chief executive Kirk Hope.
The survey arrives after New Zealand’s manufacturing sector contracted by the most in two years in October.
— Shreyashi Sanyal
Xiaomi shares climb more than 2% after reporting more than $3 billion in Singles Day sales
Chinese smartphone and consumer electronics company Xiaomi claimed record sales across platforms during the Singles Day shopping festival.
From Oct. 23 to the end of day on Nov. 11, Xiaomi said it sold more than 22.4 billion yuan ($3.11 billion) worth of products on platforms such as Alibaba’s Tmall and Taobao, JD.com, Pinduoduo and Douyin.
Xiaomi shares traded more than 2% higher Monday morning in Hong Kong.
Alibaba and JD.com declined for a second-straight year to share total figures for the Singles Day shopping festival.
CNBC Pro: The global EV market is set to hit a milestone in 2024. These battery stocks will stand out, HSBC says
The electric vehicle market is expected to hit a milestone next year, according to HSBC.
Its global penetration rate could hit the “important 20% threshold” next year — “heralding entry to the mass market” for the first time, it said.
“This has major implications for battery makers,” the bank wrote in a Nov. 1 note.
It named buy-rated battery stocks.
CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.
— Weizhen Tan
Japan wholesale inflation in October slows sharply
Japan’s wholesale inflation slowed sharply last month, in a sign that cost pressures were gradually cooling, according to data released by the Bank of Japan.
The central bank’s corporate goods price index rose 0.8% in October from a year earlier, a tad lower than a Reuters poll for a 0.9% increase.
The reading was below 1% for the first time since February 2021, and marked the 10th straight month of cooling wholesale inflation.
— Shreyashi Sanyal
CNBC Pro: ‘We are bullish on India’: As Diwali begins, these 3 stocks are set to outperform, analysts say
A strong economy, growing population and booming stock market have put India on the map for many investors this year.
Now, as the Diwali festive season gets underway in the South Asian country, several sectors — and stocks — are expected to do well, according to Indian equity brokerage Kotak Securities.
“As the broader market valuations are rich, opportunities arising from [a] market correction can be used to add quality stocks (with attractive valuations) from a long-term investment perspective,” analysts from the brokerage firm wrote in a recent note.
CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.
— Amala Balakrishner
CNBC Pro: This EV battery stock has potential double-digit gains ahead
Electric car batteries determine how affordable the vehicles are, and how far they can drive on a single charge.
One Chinese company has captured a significant share of that critical market.
It’s the biggest stock by market capitalization in the index of largest stocks traded on the Shenzhen exchange — bigger than even BYD’s local listing.
UBS analysts think the stock could more than double in price in the months ahead.
CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.
Markets will remain unsteady as growth headwinds persist, Barclays says
Markets will likely remain unsteady as worry over economic growth persists, according to Barclays.
“Rates relief but angst about the strength of growth contribute to yet more rotation within the market,” analyst Venu Krishna wrote in a Friday note.
Krishna added that the firm remains positively rated on value equities due to their “favorable exposure to higher-for-longer yields.”
— Brian Evans
Oil settles higher but is still down 4% for the week
Oil settled slightly higher on Friday but is still down 4% for the week after a sell-off on concerns that the global economy is on the verge of a slowdown that will hit demand.
Brent crude contracts for January rose $1.42, or 1.77%, to settle at $81.43 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate gained $1.43, or 1.89%, to settle at $77.71 a barrel.
Oil sold off earlier in the week as traders grew confident that the Israel-Hamas war would not spread in the near term to disrupt supply. Instead, markets began to worry that troubling economic data out of Europe and China signaled a global slowdown is on the horizon.
But the very real risk of a broader Middle East war was emphasized Thursday when Iran’s foreign minister said the it was all but inevitable that the conflict would spread. OPEC+ could also decide to cut supply to support prices at the group’s next meeting scheduled for Nov. 26.
— Spencer Kimball
Market is seeing ‘déjà vu,’ Wolfe Research says
The end of winning streaks for the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite amid hawkish Federal Reserve commentary and a bond auction has been a focus if investors this week. But Wolfe Research’s Rob Ginsberg said oil shouldn’t be overlooked.
“The truth is, the action beneath the surface has been deteriorating over the past few days, with the action in oil of particular concern,” he told clients on Thursday. “A fresh 1-month high would be a welcomed development, as each of the past two oversold rallies since the July peak have failed to signal this momentum confirmation and improvement of trend.”
It’s “starting to feel like déjà vu all over again,” Ginsberg added.
— Alex Harring
