Source: Sharecast
STOCKS TO WATCH
HSBC on Tuesday reported a fall in third-quarter profits as a $1.1bn legal charge weighed on the bottom line. Pre-tax profit for the three months to September fell 14% to $7.3bn. Net interest income for the quarter rose 15% year on year to $8.8bn, driven by a 30% jump in income from its wealth division to $2.68bn. Operating expenses rose 24%, as it set aside provisions including $1.1bn after losing an appeal in a long-running lawsuit in Luxembourg related to Bernard Madoff's multibillion-dollar Ponzi scheme.
Drugmaker AstraZeneca said on Tuesday that its Koselugo asset has been approved for usage in the European Union for the rare, progressive, genetic condition, plexiform neurofibromas, in adults with neurofibromatosis type 1. AstraZeneca stated the European Commission's approval follows the positive opinion of the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use and was based on results from KOMET, the largest and only placebo-controlled global Phase III trial in this patient population.
NEWSPAPER ROUND-UP
Amazon is preparing to lay off tens of thousands of corporate workers, reversing its pandemic hiring spree. The cuts come months after the retail giant’s CEO warned white-collar employees their jobs could be taken by artificial intelligence. The Seattle-based technology firm is planning to cut as many as 30,000 corporate jobs beginning Tuesday, media outlets including Reuters and the Wall Street Journal reported, citing unnamed sources familiar with the matter, as it tries to cut costs and undo the vast recruitment drive it embarked on at the height of the coronavirus pandemic, which unleashed an extraordinary – but fleeting – surge in demand for online shopping. – Guardian
Wind power has cut at least £104bn from energy costs in the UK since 2010, a study has found. Users of gas have been among the biggest beneficiaries, the research suggested. Research by University College London found that from 2010 to 2023, energy from windfarms resulted in electricity bills being lower by about £14.2bn than they would have been if gas had been needed to generate the same amount of power. However, the reduction in the cost of gas that could be attributed to wind generation – owing to the cut in demand and not needing to build new infrastructure – was much greater, at about £133.3bn. – Guardian
A City trader wrongly jailed for rate rigging is suing UBS for more than $400m (£300m) over claims the bank tried to frame him. Tom Hayes has launched a lawsuit against his former employer after the Supreme Court quashed his conviction earlier this year. In court documents filed in the US, Mr Hayes has accused the bank of creating a "scheme to maliciously frame" him in an effort to protect itself from scrutiny. – Telegraph
Janus Henderson, one of the City of London's biggest asset management groups, has received a provisional takeover offer from Nelson Peltz, the veteran American activist investor. Peltz, who already owns 20.4% of Janus Henderson, is offering to buy the other 79.6% at $46 a share, valuing the business at $7.2bn. – The Times
Elon Musk may step down from Tesla if shareholders “"ail to foster an environment that motivates" him by handing over a pay package worth up to $1trn, the carmaker's chairwoman has warned. Robyn Denholm issued the warning in a letter to shareholders before a vote on the pay deal, which would be the largest pay package in corporate history. – The Times
US CLOSE
Wall Street stocks finished at new highs on Monday on hopes that the US and China were making progress on trade talks, laying the groundwork for a potential deal between Donald Trump and Xi Jinping later this week.
At the close, the Dow Jones was up 0.71% at 47,544.59, while the S&P 500 advanced 1.23% to 6,875.16 and the Nasdaq Composite saw out the session 1.86% firmer at 23,637.46.
Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com