Good morning. I'm Angus Berwick, here to get you ready for Thursday's market action.
Shares of Nvidia, Advanced Micro Devices and Micron Technology are in focus, changing hands in heavy premarket volumes after a big selloff in the previous session. Investors are digesting the latest results from Taiwanese industry heavyweight TSMC.
Semiconductor companies were the backbone of the stock market's rally over the last few months, but recently have retreated. Nvidia, for example, has fallen more than 11% from its March high, while AMD has lost 27%.
Stocks fell more broadly Wednesday, deepening an April decline, after investors largely abandoned their expectations of imminent interest-rate cuts.
Follow our live coverage throughout the day for the latest news affecting markets.
Meanwhile, our Heather Gillers and Charley Grant delve into why some pension funds are pulling money from stocks, just after record highs.
Live Markets Snapshot Data refreshes every time you open this email. MEMBER MESSAGE: Deloitte The Cryptocurrency Transformation
With many countries setting regulatory frameworks to permit the use of digital assets within their financial system, and consumers already having the option to use them for a variety of retail purchases outside of tapping a traditional bank account, credit card or cash, the velocity of blockchain, cryptocurrency and digital assets is speeding up.
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Stocks to Watch
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSMC) : TSMC reported its first profit rise in a year , underscoring how the AI boom has fueled demand for advanced chips. The chip maker's American depositary receipts were volatile in premarket trading.
Advanced Micro Devices $(AMD)$ , Nvidia $(NVDA)$ and Micron Technology $(MU)$ : Other chip stocks rose premarket, putting them on course to reverse some of Wednesday's declines, following TSMC's report.
23andMe $(ME)$ : Chief Executive Anne Wojcicki is looking to take her struggling DNA-testing company private , a filing showed late Wednesday. Shares were little changed premarket.
Equifax $(EFX)$ : The credit-reporting company's results and outlook for the current quarter both missed analysts' estimates. Equifax stock fell in offhours trading.
Blackstone $(BX)$ will report earnings before markets open. Results for Netflix $(NFLX)$ will come after the closing bell. (Here's what to expect ).
Hipgnosis Songs Fund (UK:SONG) : The London-listed song catalog fund agreed to a $1.4 billion takeover by Apollo-backed music company Concord Chorus. The fund's shares rocketed around 30%.
CSX $(CSX)$ : The railroad company's quarterly earnings and revenue declined as fuel surcharges and coal prices fell, although freight volumes rose . CSX stock gained offhours.
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Pension Funds Are Pulling $325 Billion From Stocks
By Heather Gillers and Charley Grant
Stock portfolios at large pension funds had a blockbuster run. Now, managers are cashing out.
Corporate pension funds are shifting money into bonds. State and local government funds are swapping stocks for alternative investments. The nation's largest public pension, the California Public Employees' Retirement System, is planning to move close to $25 billion out of equities and into private equity and private debt.
Like investors of all kinds, the funds are slowly adapting to a world of yield, where they can get sizable returns on risk-free assets.
That is rippling throughout markets, as investors assess how much risk they want to take on. Moving out of stocks could mean surrendering some potential gains. Hold too much, for too long, and prices might fall.
Keep reading .
The Wall Street Journal's Evan Gershkovich is being wrongfully detained in Russia after he was arrested while on a reporting trip and accused of spying-a charge the Journal and the U.S. government vehemently deny. Follow the latest coverage , sign up for an email alert , and learn how you can use social media to support Evan.
Charting the Markets
New data will likely show that home sales fell in March, reversing course after a positive start to the year. The average rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage has ticked back up toward 7%, according to Freddie Mac, reducing affordability for potential buyers.
A key measure known as the equity risk premium might show why equities are losing favor. Over the past week, this gauge-measured by the difference between the S&P 500's earnings yield and the yield on 10-year Treasurys- touched the lowest level in more than 20 years .
A widely cited barometer of the remodeling market is pointing to the first annual decline in home-improvement spending since the housing bust of the late 2000s.
Must Reads
Amazon staff went undercover on Walmart, eBay and other marketplaces as a third-party seller called "Big River." The mission: to scoop up information on pricing, logistics and other business practices .
Grayscale's once-mighty fund is bleeding bitcoin. The asset manager has resisted a significant fee cut, insisting that rising bitcoin prices will continue to buoy its fortunes .
Companies that unlock new bitcoins are also revamping their businesses to depend less on the cryptocurrency. Bitcoin miners are turning to artificial intelligence ahead of a supply contraction that will cut profits in half.
More:
Tesla Tries to Revive Elon Musk's Big Payday After Court Rejected It TikTok Ban Measure Attached to House Foreign Aid Bill, Boosting Odds of Passage Dealmaking Is Looking Up as Companies Stop Waiting Out the Fed This Day in Markets On this day in 1906, the Great Quake levelled San Francisco, wreaking $500 million in damage. One banker, A.P. Giannini, hastily drove a horse-drawn wagon to the ruined headquarters of his company, Bank of Italy, where he rummaged through the rubble, retrieving $2 million in gold, coins and securities. Beyond the Newsroom
Buy Side from WSJ: When Can I Collect Social Security? Retirement's Biggest Gamble
About Us
We want to be the first place you go to get ready for the opening bell every day. This newsletter was written by Angus Berwick ( [angus.berwick@wsj.com]) in London.
This article is a text version of a Wall Street Journal newsletter published earlier today.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
April 18, 2024 06:36 ET (10:36 GMT)
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