Pre-market US stocks | XPENG, JD lead the decline of Chinese concept stocks! Harpoon soars 140%

Top News in US Stocks

1. During the regular press conference of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on January 8th, a reporter asked about the tightening of US export control measures on Chinese chips and the increased pressure on Chinese semiconductor companies. Spokesperson Mao Ning commented on this.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning stated that the US, under the pretext of "national security," continues to escalate export control measures on Chinese chips and unjustifiably suppress Chinese semiconductor companies. This is a clear act of economic bullying. The US implementation of export control measures on Chinese semiconductors constitutes discriminatory practices against China and violates the most-favored-nation treatment principle stipulated in the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade.

The US has blacklisted certain Chinese telecommunications equipment companies, prohibiting the entry of Chinese-made telecommunications equipment into the US market under the pretext of "threatening cyber information security." This violates the principle of universal elimination of quantitative restrictions stipulated in Article 11 of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade. The US ban also violates the relevant provisions of the Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade. The US often pays lip service to international rules but actually ignores and undermines them.

1. According to informed sources, Merck & Co. is in advanced discussions to acquire cancer drug manufacturer Harpoon Therapeutics Inc. for approximately $700 million. If the negotiations do not break down, an agreement may be announced within a few days. Merck is discussing acquiring Harpoon at a price of approximately $23 per share. Harpoon is developing drugs that utilize the human immune system to fight cancer.

2. Analysts Edison Lee and others from Jefferies stated that the sales of Apple's iPhone in China are intensively declining and may further decrease this year. According to industry data, the sales of Apple's new generation iPhone series in China started poorly last year, with a recent year-on-year decline of up to 30%. Jefferies predicts a similar decline in 2024. Last week, major online sales platforms increased discounts on Apple smartphones, but the price reduction did not stimulate sales growth.

3. The Wall Street Journal reported that Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, "frequently uses drugs," raising concerns about the operation of his companies. Musk quickly responded to this.

On Sunday, Musk posted on the X platform that, after taking a puff with comedian Joe Rogan, he agreed to undergo a three-year random drug test at the request of NASA and no trace of drugs or alcohol was found. Musk also stated that the Wall Street Journal is not even worthy of being used as toilet paper and attached a poop emoji.

1. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) of the United States announced on January 7th that the grounded 171 Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft will remain grounded until the agency confirms their safety.

An Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft experienced an incident shortly after takeoff from Portland on January 5th and promptly returned. On January 6th, the FAA ordered the temporary grounding of Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft operated by US airlines or operating within the US for safety inspections.

Pre-market Movement

In pre-market trading, the futures of the three major stock indices in the US fell, and the panic index rose.

Popular Chinese concept stocks fell sharply before the market opened, with Xiaopeng down more than 4%, JD.com down more than 3%, NetEase, Bilibili, and Baidu down more than 2%, Alibaba, Pinduoduo, NIO, and Li Auto down more than 1%.

As for individual stocks, Boeing's US stocks fell more than 10% at one point, and multiple global airlines grounded Boeing 737 Max 9 for inspection.

Harpoon soared 140% at one point, mainly due to Merck discussing a 118% premium acquisition of the company.

Strategy Review

Understanding the Market | Can the US stock market break through the historical high of 2022?

Why is investing in US stocks not as straightforward as last year? There are no more "cheap stocks" in the market. The biggest challenge of investing in US stocks this year is the disruption of the economic cycle. Looking at the next decade, high valuations often mean poor long-term returns.

Investment Tips | How to achieve a five-year return rate double that of the S&P 500?

Bill Ackman, a well-known hedge fund manager on Wall Street, achieved an astonishing annualized return rate of 28% over the past five years! What is the core investment secret? Which stocks, with a market capitalization of over 10 billion US dollars, support such optimistic returns?

Morgan Stanley: Suggesting investors to look for thematic investment opportunities such as autonomous driving, with a preference for Li Auto-W, etc.

Morgan Stanley believes that the new car business in the US East Coast will be restrained, and Great Wall Motors lacks competitive new electric vehicle models. The bank stated that although industry sales growth may be weak, the Chinese automotive and shared travel market still has deep value and investment themes.

Company Analysis | Apple evaporated $177 billion at the beginning of the year! Will it be better this year?

Why is 2024 an important year for Apple? It will launch exciting new products, but at the same time, it faces the pressure of the AI wave, declining sales, and uncertainty in the Chinese market. Wall Street has significant concerns about iPhone sales, but Apple hinted in its earnings report not to expect explosive performance.

Company Analysis | The "historic moment" of toppling the seven giants of the US stock market and the Nasdaq has arrived?

Google is entangled in two antitrust cases, and Meta's monopolistic acquisitions will also be brought to court. If they lose the lawsuits, the moats of Google and Meta will be significantly weakened, and the long-standing mobile internet ecosystem may be disrupted.

Investment Tips | How to bet on a reversal market?

Avoid reverse thinking just for the sake of reverse thinking! In the short term, after forming a consensus expectation, there is only one opportunity to implement a counter-strategy; in the medium and long term, implementing a reversal strategy based on consensus expectations will greatly increase the success rate. The three consensus expectations of the market in 2024 are: small-cap growth continues to rise, high dividend stocks have an advantage, and reasonable global allocation. Understanding the Market | Can the US stock market rebound this week?

This week, the US stock market will face earnings reports and US December inflation data! Wall Street expects that the earnings of US companies this quarter will be even stronger, but can it really boost the market?

Understanding the Market | The 12 major events that will determine the market trend in 2024 are all in this timetable

The twelve major events that may affect market profits and interest rates this year are here: January is a big month for Asia, February is expected to see improvements in geopolitical situations, and March will see the "interest rate cut" by the Federal Reserve as the main event... December has historically been the best-performing month for the US stock market.