Breakfast | BlackRock warns US stocks are too expensive, Apple launches visionOS App Store

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Today, at 10:00 Singapore time, China will release the fourth-quarter GDP, the GDP growth rate for the full year of 2023, the total retail sales of consumer goods in December, and the value-added of industrial enterprises above designated size in December.

Market: Overnight and this morning

Rate cut expectations dampened, Boeing fell nearly 8% weighing down the Dow, Chinese concept stocks underperformed the broader market

During Tuesday's trading session, Federal Reserve Board member Waller stated that there should be no rush to cut interest rates until it is clear that inflation will continue to decline, and actions should be taken cautiously and methodically. The three major U.S. stock indexes all closed lower, with the Dow falling for two consecutive trading days, down 0.62%. The S&P 500 fell 0.37%, and the Nasdaq fell 0.19%.

Boeing fell by about 7.9%, far exceeding other constituent stocks. Nike fell more than 3%. Leading technology stocks had mixed performances. Tesla fell more than 2%, with Musk stating that he hopes to obtain 25% voting control of Tesla before achieving the goal of artificial intelligence. Apple fell 1.2%, and Meta fell nearly 1.9%.

Large chip stocks outperformed the broader market, with AMD surging 8% and Nvidia rising 3%, hitting new historical highs again. Morgan Stanley fell more than 4% after releasing its earnings.

Popular Chinese concept stocks continued to decline overall. The Nasdaq Golden Dragon China Index (HXC) fell 3.8%, closing lower for two consecutive trading days. XPeng fell 9.8%, NIO Inc. USD OV fell 8.7%, and Li Auto fell 4.3%. Bilibili fell nearly 6%, BIDU-SW, JD.com, iQiyi fell more than 4%, Alibaba, Tencent Music, Pinduoduo, Gaotu Education fell more than 3%, New Oriental EDU & Tech fell more than 2%, and NetEase fell more than 1%.

Spirit Airlines in the U.S. stock market experienced multiple circuit breakers due to a sharp decline, and the acquisition of the company by JetBlue Airways was rejected by a judge on the grounds of anti-monopoly. JetBlue Airways planned to acquire Spirit Airlines for $3.8 billion, which would create the fifth-largest airline in the United States.

What happened to blue-chip stocks and hot stocks

Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI: Fusion breakthrough is the key to future AI

General artificial intelligence is coming in the near future. Regardless of the outcome of the 2024 U.S. presidential election, AI development will not be a problem. The future of artificial intelligence depends on breakthroughs in energy sources such as fusion. He also mentioned that OpenAI may develop a powerful copyright recognition tool.

Microsoft CEO satisfied with OpenAI's non-profit nature

Microsoft CEO Nadella stated during the Davos Forum annual meeting that he has no objections to the governance structure of partner OpenAI. Altman, CEO of OpenAI, stated at an event during the Davos Forum that significant progress is expected to be made in the coming months regarding the composition of the board of directors. After that, the new board will examine the company's governance structure from various perspectives.

Apple launches visionOS App Store and has started accepting applications from developers for head-mounted display apps

Apple: Starting from Friday, February 2nd, a series of entertainment experiences will be available on the Apple Vision Pro. Guo Mingchi: Apple may release Vision Pro in markets outside the US before WWDC 2024

Guo Mingchi, an analyst at TF International Securities, stated that the reasons why Apple currently does not sell Vision Pro in markets outside the US include: 1) limited initial supply of Vision Pro, and 2) verifying the sales process in the US market first. If these issues can be resolved earlier, Vision Pro will be launched in more countries sooner.

Media: US Supreme Court rejects Apple's request to review EPIC App Store case

Apple surpasses Samsung for the first time to become the global best-selling smartphone brand

According to IDC's 2023 global smartphone shipment rankings, Apple, Samsung, and Xiaomi are the top three brands. Apple shipped 234.6 million units, with a market share of over 20%; Samsung shipped 226.6 million units, with a market share of 19.4%; Xiaomi accounted for 12.5% of the market.

Uber announces collaboration with Tesla to promote the adoption of electric vehicles by its drivers

The collaboration between Uber and Tesla aims to achieve the goal of zero emissions in US and Canadian cities by 2030. In addition, Uber has shut down Drizly, the alcohol delivery business it acquired three years ago for $1.1 billion.

Kroger (KR.N) and Albertsons (ACI.N) say they need more time to complete their $24.6 billion merger

Vodafone invests $1.5 billion in AI for strategic cooperation with Microsoft over the next 10 years

The two companies will collaborate on developing cloud and customer-centric AI services. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella responded to the statement that "Microsoft's market value exceeds Apple" by saying it is a "lagging indicator" and that one should not focus too much on stock prices, as the tech industry is unpredictable.

Talos Energy acquires QuarterNorth Energy for $1.29 billion

Stellantis, the US automaker, will lay off approximately 2,250 workers at its Mirafiori plant in Turin, Italy

Media: Google lays off hundreds of employees in its advertising sales team

Mazda: Electric vehicles launched in the North American market from 2025 will adopt the Tesla NACS charging standard.

BYD's smart strategy: Investing 10 billion yuan in the field of intelligence in the future

Wang Chuanfu, Chairman of BYD, stated that the company will research the technological roadmap for intelligent vehicles and lead the development of new energy vehicles. BYD will equip high-end intelligent driving systems as standard in models priced at 300,000 yuan and above, and offer them as optional features in models priced at 200,000 yuan and above.

Toyota plans to produce approximately 10.3 million vehicles globally in 2024, breaking its annual production record for the second consecutive year.

Lehua Entertainment responds to the sharp decline in its stock price

The company's operations are normal. The directors who hold shares have not directly or indirectly, voluntarily or involuntarily, sold or disposed of their respective equity interests in the company in any other way.

Due to slippery ground and improper operation of the towing vehicle, a collision occurred between a Korean Air and Cathay Pacific aircraft at New Chitose Airport in Hokkaido, Japan.

Macro: Taking You Around the World

Federal Reserve Board Member Waller: Interest Rate Cuts Should Be Cautious and Orderly

There is no reason to cut interest rates as quickly as in the past, but it will be done if necessary; more confident in sustainably lowering inflation to 2%; the Red Sea crisis will not have an impact on underlying inflation; it is reasonable to slow down the balance sheet reduction this year, but only for US Treasury bonds.

Goldman Sachs: Waller's comments increase the risk of the Fed delaying its first interest rate cut

Goldman Sachs still expects the Fed to cut interest rates three times in March, May, and June, and then slow down to one cut per quarter. However, Waller's comments increase the risk of delaying the first rate cut, or the FOMC may prefer to cut rates once per quarter from the beginning.

BlackRock: Inflation may "roller coaster" rebound, be cautious of US stock prices being too expensive

Trump wins the first Republican primary in the Iowa Caucus for the US presidential election

The US carried out a new round of strikes against Houthi militants in Yemen on Tuesday

The European Union preliminarily supports the advancement of the Red Sea escort operation and is expected to approve it as early as next week; the Associated Press: the US is expected to re-designate Houthi militants as a terrorist organization. Due to the Red Sea crisis, Shell has indefinitely suspended oil transportation in the Red Sea. Japan's major domestic shipping companies, such as Nippon Yusen, Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, and Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha, have decided to halt all ship crossings in the Red Sea. Insurance companies are seeking to exclude British and American vessels from their coverage.

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang attended the World Economic Forum's 2024 Annual Meeting and delivered a special speech, stating that China's economy is expected to grow by 5.2% in 2023.

Industry expects China's LPR to remain unchanged this month

Since it was lowered from 2.65% to 2.5% in August last year, China's MLF operating rate has remained unchanged. Analysts generally believe that the new LPR to be launched this month will continue to stay the same.

Japanese stock market-related ETFs are "hot" and severely overpriced, prompting fund companies to issue frequent risk warnings. On Tuesday, Huaxia Nomura Nikkei 225 ETF fell by 4.27%, narrowing the premium rate to around 9%. The fund has issued four consecutive risk warning notices, advising investors not to blindly invest.

Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam said that the Hong Kong government is actively discussing with mainland units to implement measures such as 24-hour clearance or extended working hours at border checkpoints during the Lunar New Year or on days with a large number of visitors. Progress is currently smooth.

Due to winter storms, over 2,000 flights have been canceled nationwide in the United States, with over 7,000 flights experiencing delays.

Starting from the early morning of the 17th local time, nearly half of the southern to central Germany will experience heavy snowfall, with snowfall of up to 30 centimeters in some areas within 24 hours. Heavy snowfall will cause widespread disruptions to road, rail, and air traffic.