The Overnight News Roundup

Dec 03, 2024

PiQ and Zack Eiseman provide you with a consolidated roundup of the overnight news that matters most to markets.

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MACRO:

Japan's Nikkei index outperformed on Tuesday, in part playing catch up to Wall Street on Monday, with the tech sector leading the charge higher. Meanwhile, Yen pairs pulled back slightly from their peaks on Monday.
Analysts say BoJ Governor Ueda has plenty of data to support the case for raising the benchmark rate in December, with Saturday's media interview seeing some bring forward their hike forecasts forward from January. (BBG)
Japanese retail investors as well as leveraged funds and asset managers outside the country are estimated to have boosted bearish wagers on the yen to $13.5 billion in November from $9.74 billion in October. (BBG)
Chinese and Hong Kong stocks are finding strength amid the announcement China is to hold its Central Economic Working Conference from Dec. 11th-12th, with the focus on 2025 economic growth targets and stimulus plans. (MktNews)
China Securities Times front page highlights the need to implement more proactive fiscal policy and more supportive monetary policy in 2025 to achieve the goal of high-quality development. (Securities Times)
Traders spent about $55 million on bullish call options at the start of the week in a levered exchange-traded fund tracking China’s benchmark stock index, adding to unusual buying seen on Friday. (BBG)
China's yuan weakened past a key threshold to the lowest level in more than a year against the dollar on Tuesday (before reversing), pressured by the widening yield gap between the world's two largest economies and U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's renewed tariff threats. (RTRS)
China needs to boost investment in a new generation of clean energy technology including storage, hydrogen and sustainable aviation fuel, according to executives speaking at the BloombergNEF Summit. (BBG)
Fed's Williams said the central bank is likely to lower its interest rate target further "over time" as inflation pressures continue to cool. Williams offered no firm guidance about the timing of rate cuts and whether he believes the Fed will cut at its next meeting. (RTRS)
Trump will nominate billionaire investment banker Warren Stephens to be his ambassador to the UK, elevating a campaign donor from Arkansas to one of the most sought-after positions in the US diplomatic service. (FT)
Several multibillion-dollar hedge funds gained in November, numbers seen by Reuters show, riding the volatility of the U.S. presidential election despite tight polling that made positioning more difficult for portfolio managers. (RTRS)
Australia's government ramped up spending on infrastructure and defence in the third quarter, data showed, making a vital contribution to economic growth as consumers struggled beneath high borrowing costs. (RTRS)
New Zealand export volumes fell for a second straight quarter, adding to signs of a mid-year recession. (BBG)
Hedge funds have swung to a bearish position on the New Zealand dollar for the first time in a year amid growing expectations the central bank will keep rapidly cutting interest rates, according to CFTC data. (BBG)
Swiss inflation accelerated slightly after retreating for three months, sustaining the case for a Swiss National Bank interest-rate cut next week. (BBG)
A wave of industrial job cuts is setting a grim tone in the early stages of Germany’s election campaign, with politicians describing the economic conditions as the most challenging they have ever faced for a federal vote.
South Korea’s headline inflation was softer than expected in November and remained below the central bank’s 2% annual target, likely supporting its easy monetary policy. (WSJ)
Turkey’s consumer prices increased at a higher pace than anticipated last month, trimming expectations that the central bank might begin cutting interest rates as early as December. (BBG)
OPEC+ is likely at its meeting on Thursday to extend its latest round of oil output cuts until the end of the first quarter, four OPEC+ sources told Reuters. (RTRS)
Brazil's Petrobras new chief says the Co. needs to be “as big as possible” to guarantee its long-term future, as the company boosts investments in activities ranging from offshore drilling to biofuels and fertilisers. (FT)
Many Chinese metal importers have stopped buying US copper scrap in anticipation of tariffs when Donald Trump assumes the presidency, according to Beijing Antaike Information Development Co. (BBG)
Nearly $2 billion worth of forfeited bitcoin linked to the Silk Road website were moved to crypto exchange Coinbase Prime on Monday. The transfer likely indicates that the government is preparing to sell or has already sold the assets. (CoinDesk)

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GEOPOLITICS:

Taiwan's defence ministry said it is watching the movements of a Chinese aircraft carrier and assessing China's military activities as security sources said Beijing could launch new war games as soon as this weekend. (RTRS)
Trump on Monday warned there would be “all hell to pay in the Middle East” if Hamas had not released the remaining Israeli hostages in Gaza before he takes office in January. (FT)
China has now lifted all restrictions on exports from Australian meat works, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said, marking a new milestone in warming relations between the two governments. (BBG)
Canada said a major Trans-Pacific trade pact remains open to other aspirant members including Taiwan to join, coming after Taipei complained a working group to consider its entry had not been established. (RTRS)
Nato leaders should focus all their efforts on sending more weapons to Ukraine so it can enter possible peace talks from a position of strength, and not spend the time “pondering” other initiatives, secretary-general Mark Rutte has said. (FT)

EQUITIES:

A US judge has shot down Tesla’s second attempt to award Elon Musk a record pay package despite shareholder approval. Tesla vowed to appeal against the decision. “Absolute corruption,” Musk wrote on X. (FT)
SpaceX is in discussions to sell insider shares that could boost the value of Elon Musk’s rocket and satellite company to around $350 billion. (BBG)
Trump said he will "block" a planned takeover of US Steel by Japanese company Nippon Steel, a deal worth $14.9 billion including debts. (AFP)
The “Magnificent Seven” stocks are a buy during corrections as most of them will keep generating money, according to Aswath Damodaran, a New York University professor known for his expertise on valuations. (BBG)
General Motors plans to sell its stake in a $2.6 billion EV battery cell plant in Lansing, Michigan, to its joint venture partner LG Energy Solution. (CNBC)
Microchip Technologies slashed its guidance for the quarter ahead whilst announcing job cuts and plant shutdowns due to high inventory levels. (RTRS)
Societe Generale SA has hired four senior salesmen in Japan as it seeks to capitalize on the country’s invigorated bond market along with local banks’ appetite for higher-yielding investments. (BBG)
Novo Nordisk's team in India has been pushing the Danish drugmaker's global leadership for an earlier launch of its popular weight-loss drug Wegovy over fears of falling behind rival Eli Lilly in the potentially huge market. (RTRS)
TSMC has hired US compliance experts to conduct a thorough review of its 7nm-and-below contracts to ensure they meet US regulations. (CTEE)
SK Hynix and rival Samsung have made a very rare cooperation to expedite the standardization of a low power memory chip called LPDDR6-Processing In Memory (PIM) to help the shift to on-device AI. (Business Korea)
China’s Huawei is “willing” to revive ties with South Korean chipmakers as US sanctions bite. (Korea Times)
Australia’s flailing energy stocks may reverse course next year as several stalled projects start production, according to analysts. (BBG)