Market Insights: Apr 23rd, 2024

Stock Market Trends:

• The three major A-share indexes showed a diverging trend today. The Shanghai Index experienced fluctuations and adjustments after opening, while the ChiNext Index slightly surged.
• In terms of sector performance, stocks in education, underground networks, pan-AI, and military informatization led the gains, while gold, shipbuilding, coal, and non-ferrous metals sectors saw significant declines.
• In the Hong Kong stock market, both the Hang Seng Index and the Hang Seng Technology Index opened higher.
• The A-share market as a whole showed fluctuations and adjustments, with cyclical sectors such as oil and gas collectively falling, while the Hong Kong stocks rose by more than 1%.
• Chinese concept stocks listed in the US performed well, with gains exceeding 2%.

Gold Market:

• The gold market experienced severe fluctuations on Monday. Gold prices opened lower and at one point fell 2.8% to a low of $2,324.96 per ounce, marking the biggest intraday drop since June 2022.
• COMEX June gold futures closed down 2.79% at $2,346.4 per ounce, reaching the lowest close since April 5.

Tesla and U.S. Stocks:

• Tesla's stock price fell 3.4% in Monday's trading, hitting a new low since January 2023. This marks the seventh consecutive trading day of declines for Tesla.
• Tesla announced a recall of 3,878 electric Cybertruck vehicles in the United States due to the risk of the accelerator pedal getting stuck and potentially causing safety issues.

Bond and Currency Markets:

• The yield on the two-year U.S. Treasury note broke above 5.0% during trading, reaching a five-month high, but subsequently fell.
• The US Dollar Index fell continuously during trading, and the Japanese yen reached a new low against the US dollar since 1990.
• Bitcoin experienced a surge in trading after the "halving," approaching $67,000 for the first time in a week.

Corporate Dynamics:

• Credit Suisse expects to cut its workforce by between 50% and 60%, mainly affecting its investment banking and wealth management divisions. Considering market efficiency, the layoffs in Asia are relatively significant.
• UBS Group may significantly adjust the 19 private equity funds of stocks and bonds it launched in China, possibly closing up to 17 and planning to return funds to investors.
• The EU has launched a second investigation into TikTok, alleging that the TikTok Lite launched in France and Spain may violate the law. The EU has requested TikTok to submit a risk assessment report by April 23, or it will face fines.

Zimbabwe's Stock Market and Currency Situation:

• Zimbabwe's stock market plunged by 99.95% due to the introduction of the new currency ZiG.
• Before the introduction of ZiG, the Zimbabwean dollar depreciated by 80%.
• With an inflation rate of 55.3%, Zimbabwe's stock market has become a haven for investors.

Commodities Market:

• The base metals continued to rise. The main contract of Shanghai Copper reached a new high since 2006, standing at 80,170 yuan per ton.
• The international price of copper is getting closer to the $10,000 mark, with LME copper prices touching $9,988, continuing to hit a near two-year high.