Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) has its big annual product launch today - online - but likely without the star of the show - the new 5G iPhone.
TikTok has agreed a partnership with US tech giant Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) but we may hear as soon as today whether its enough for President Trump
MARKETS
The Dow rallied by 1.18% on Monday, led by Tech stocks as deal-making activity and positive vaccine news prompted bullish bets on equities. The Nasdaq snapped its two-day losing streak as investors' sentiment on the Technology sector improved.
Oracle jumped 4% as the company appears to be at the front of the queue to partner with TikTok business in the U.S. In chip stocks, Nvidia rallied 6% after it announced a multi-billion acquisition of chip licensing company ARM Holdings (LON:ARM).
Investor sentiment was also supported by positive vaccine news after AstraZeneca Plc (LON:AZN) resumed its Covid-19 vaccine trial in the U.K. In Europe, the Stoxx 600 index was unable to pierce above its 200 day moving average.
In Switzerland, the UBS Chairman confirmed after the close that he brought in management consultants to examine a potential merger deal with Credit Suisse (SIX:CSGN).
In commodities, Gold bounced off the $1950 again as Silver outperformed, pushing back above $27. WTI Crude oil fluctuated between $37 and $38, ending the day marginally lower. Bitcoin was strong with a 4% gain.
Overnight, Asian stocks extended gains and the dollar slipped, with investor sentiment supported by Chinese data and optimism about Covid-19 vaccines.
DAY AHEAD
In this day ahead: Apple’s product launch (likely not involving the new iPhone), China economic data and whether Trump agrees to the Oracle TikTok deal.
China industrial production picked up to show a 5.6% year-over-year rise, while retail sales returned to growth on a year-over-year basis 6 months after the pandemic hit the country.
There is of course a war of words going on between the US and China - with the latest in the saga involving the app TikTok, which has agreed a partnership with US technology group Oracle at the expense of other bidders like Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT). As it relates to the improving Chinese economy, the key is that corporate interventions don’t spill over into new sanctions.
Specifically on the deal - on first glance its hard to see what Oracle gets out of it given that the two businesses seem so out of sync. But as database and cloud-computing specialists it gets a little clearer when you dig into the so-called ‘deal’ - Oracle will just manage the US garnered user data for TikTok-owner ByteDance. Funnily enough the title of ‘trusted tech partner’ is actually pretty similar to what China has been asking US firms to do for decades.
A new Apple Watch, iPad Air and possibly new over-ear headphones and bundled Apple services like Apple Music and Apple TV are things to look out for at Apple’s event titled ‘Time Flies’ today in the absence of its new 5G iPhone that has suffered production delays. Though a surprise iPhone announcement is still not out of the question, which could give apple stock a pop after its recent drop.
There is also UK unemployment data for the 3 months through June but the Brexit fallout is the bigger driver of Sterling right now.