Latest news with #EuropeanStoxx600
Irish Examiner
22-07-2025
- Business
- Irish Examiner
Davy to focus more investment on European markets amid volatility in US
Despite the fallout from US president Donald Trump's trade war being 'much milder' than expected, Irish wealth management firm Davy still plans to 'bias away' from US markets as high valuations make it 'more vulnerable to correction if the economic picture changes'. In the firm's latest Wealth View report for the third quarter of the year, it noted that US equity markets have rebounded from the turbulence caused by Mr Trump's tariff announcement on April 2 and that Europe has shown strength with markets across the bloc ahead of where they were last year. It attributed the rebound in the US markets to investor confidence that the administration would retreat from policies that disrupt the market, and by optimism surrounding the stimulative effects of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act passed recently by the US Congress. The report said that the economic fallout from the trade war has been 'much milder' than expected 'as tariffs have been paused or have yet to make an impact'. 'Unfortunately, the better-than-expected news is mostly factored into equity valuations already, which have recovered rapidly to multi-year highs, led by the US and the tech sector,' the report said. We note that high valuations are not enough to move markets on their own, but they do make a market more vulnerable to correction if the economic picture changes. "For this reason, we maintain our bias away from the US and towards Europe and emerging markets.' Davy said that the eurozone and China are currently doing better than forecasted but the UK remains in a tight spot. The rising value of the euro against the dollar has also been a significant development for investors this year, according to Davy. However, it cautioned that too strong a euro could cause issues for the European Central Bank (ECB). 'A weaker dollar will push up prices in the US just when tariffs may be doing the same. Also, foreign central banks may push back if the exchange rate interferes with their mandates. For example, the ECB has identified €1.20 as a threshold for concern for the euro-dollar exchange rate,' the report said. The report said that while the S&P 500 hit new highs in June, it has delivered negative returns, after accounting for the depreciation of the dollar. In the first half of the year, the European Stoxx 600 index beat the S&P 500 by the biggest margin this century. Chief investment officer at Davy, Donough Kilmurray, said the last six months show the importance of diversification across investment portfolios. 'We are investing through a period of unusually high uncertainty, and all sorts of assets have played a role already this year, from less-favoured equities to alternative strategies to gold, both by adding to returns and by cushioning declines,' he said. 'Given the incumbent in the White House, we intend to stay diversified.' In a bid to protect against this volatility, Davy has made changes to its Strategic Asset Allocation (SSA) which shifts how it manages long-term portfolios. These include reducing equity exposure in cautious and moderate portfolios, increasing allocation to bonds to help protect against market volatility and macroeconomic risks, as well as increasing the use of alternative investments, including hedge fund-style strategies and gold. Read More Irish economy to grow by more than 4% through 2027 despite heightened geopolitical tensions
Saba Yemen
30-06-2025
- Business
- Saba Yemen
European stocks decline at close of trading after last week's gains
Brussels - Saba: Most European stock indices closed lower during trading on Monday, following strong gains recorded last week. According to the economic network CNBC, the worst-performing stock was Denmark's Vestas Wind, a wind turbine manufacturer, whose shares dropped by nearly 8%. Shares of Germany's Bayer also declined, becoming the third-biggest loser. In terms of trading, the European Stoxx 600 index fell by 0.42%, losing two points to close at 541 points. France's CAC 40 declined by 0.33%, shedding 52 points to reach 7,665 points. Germany's DAX dropped by 0.51%, losing 123 points to settle at 23,909 points, while Italy's FTSE MIB managed gains of 0.13%, adding 50 points to reach 39,792 points. Spain's IBEX 35 rose by 0.16%, gaining 22 points to close at 13,991 points. Meanwhile, Britain's FTSE 100 ended the day in negative territory, falling by 0.43% and losing 37 points to finish at 8,760 points. Whatsapp Telegram Email Print
Jordan News
27-05-2025
- Automotive
- Jordan News
European Stocks Rise After U.S. Tariff Delay - Jordan News
European Stocks Rise After U.S. Tariff Delay European stocks rose on Monday, moving to recover losses from the previous session, thanks to relief after U.S. President Donald Trump delayed the imposition of 50% tariffs on the European Union. اضافة اعلان According to Bloomberg News, the European Stoxx 600 index climbed 1% as of 07:10 GMT. The automotive and auto parts index, which is sensitive to tariff-related pressures, rose by 1.4%. Shares of Mercedes gained 2.1%, BMW rose 2%, and Volkswagen climbed 1.9%. Luxury goods companies, which are heavily exposed to the U.S. market, also saw gains. Shares of Kering and Richemont rose between 1.5% and 2.4%. Bank stocks, which are sensitive to economic conditions, increased by 1.5%, while the technology sector led gains with a 1.9% rise. The index had fallen by 0.9% on Friday after Trump unexpectedly recommended imposing high tariffs on goods imported from the European Union. He stated that negotiations with the 'bloc (European Union) are not progressing fast enough.'
CNBC
19-05-2025
- Business
- CNBC
JPMorgan upgrades emerging markets. How to play the improved outlook
Emerging market stocks couldn't catch a break the past four years. Now their fortunes may be turning. JPMorgan upgraded emerging markets to overweight from neutral on Monday. Strategist Mislav Matejka cited several reasons for the change, including easing trade tensions and attractive valuations. "De-escalation on U.S.-China trade front reduces one significant headwind for EM equities," Matejka wrote. "Big picture, the [year-to-date] increase in tariffs is still extremely large in a long term context. … We remain concerned about the impact of tariffs on medium term growth in U.S. and elsewhere; however, last week's news is clearly positive, especially for China." China and the U.S. agreed last week to temporarily lower tariffs as part of an attempt to negotiate a broader trade agreement. The news sent the iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF (EEM) higher by 3% last week — its fifth weekly advance in six. The strategist also noted that emerging markets are trading at 12 times forward earnings "and at a bigger than typical discount to" developed markets. The EEM exchange-trade fund is up 10.6% so far in 2025, outperforming the S & P 500's meager 1.3% advance. That's also better than the European Stoxx 600's 7.6% gain. EEM's 2025 advance puts it on pace for its best year since 2020, when it rose 15.2%. This performance also marks a stark contrast from the previous four years, when the EEM lagged both the U.S. and Europe. Check out how the fund — along with the S & P 500 and Stoxx 600 — did between 2021 and 2024: Declines during that time for emerging markets were led in part by China, as the country's economy struggled to recover following strict Covid-related lockdowns. EEM also suffered after President Donald Trump last month announced steep tariffs on dozens of countries. The fund has since recovered, however. Matejka highlighted India and Brazil as potentially notable EM winners. The iShares MSCI India ETF (INDA) is up nearly 4% year to date. EWZ , its Brazilian counterpart, has soared 24%.
CNBC
13-05-2025
- Business
- CNBC
German reinsurers took a $1.9 billion profit hit from LA wildfires in first quarter
Germany's biggest reinsurers took a $1.9 billion profit hit in the first quarter from claims related to the recent Los Angeles wildfires. Munich Re, the world's largest reinsurance company, said Tuesday that it anticipated all claims attributable to the wildfires will total around 1.1 billion euros. Meanwhile, Hannover Re, the world's third largest reinsurer, said its largest net individual loss amounted to 631.4 million euros on the back of the wildfires. Combined, the two companies' wildfire costs amounted to around 1.73 billion euros, or $1.9 billion. Reinsurance firms offer policies to primary insurance providers, who typically deal directly with customers on the ground. Reinsurance policies usually only kick in after about 400 million euros ($444.4 million) worth of losses are absorbed by the primary insurance provider. Around 80% of Munich Re's claims arose in the company's property-casualty segment, while around 20% hit the firm's Global Specialty Insurance division. In both divisions of the business, the LA wildfires were the largest single claims event in the three months to March. The influx of wildfire claims saw overall claims expenditure in Munich Re's property-casualty segment more than double, pulling quarterly net profit in the division 72% lower year-on-year to 343 million euros. In the company's Global Specialty Insurance division, net profit nosedived 95% to 8 million euros. Despite the hit, the group reported an overall net profit of 1.1 billion euros, down 48% from the previous year. CFO Christoph Jurecka acknowledged that Munich Re "did not emerge unscathed from the devastating wildfires in Los Angeles," but argued that the group's earnings demonstrated resilience and "prudent management" of the firm's business portfolio. "We're sticking with our profit guidance of €6bn for the 2025 financial year – thanks in no small part to ongoing favourable market conditions and the high quality of our portfolio," he said in a statement alongside the company's first-quarter report. Frankfurt-listed shares of Munich Re and Hannover Re's stock were both trading around 4% lower Tuesday afternoon, making them the worst performing companies on the European Stoxx 600 index. Hannover Re also posted a drop in net profit for the quarter, with the metric falling 14% to 480.5 million years compared to the previous year. "Payments for large losses reached EUR 764.7 million in the first quarter — driven above all by the California wildfires — and thus came in significantly higher than the envisaged large loss budget of EUR 435 million," Hannover said in its quarterly statement. In a Tuesday morning note, analysts at RBC Europe said their sentiment on Munich Re was negative, although they noted that the company's total losses arising from the wildfires was "lower than the €1.2bn previously indicated due to currency effects and a positive effect from retrocession." Giving the company's target price of 559 euros — little changed from current prices — RBC's analysts said Munich Re had posted mixed first quarter results, with its net income coming in 2% below market consensus. Analysts at J.P. Morgan, meanwhile, said they had a neutral stance on Munich Re, with a price target of 530 euros. "Despite the small miss to expectations, we only see limited potential for downgrades given the limited scale of the miss to consensus," they said. On Hannover Re, Deutsche Bank analysts said the company's strong investment performance had helped it notch a quarterly net income that was 7% above consensus. The lender has a buy rating on Hannover Re stock, with a price target of 279 euros — a premium of around 4% on current prices.
