The latest Market Talks covering Equities. Published exclusively on Dow Jones Newswires throughout the day.
2047 ET - Malaysia's automotive industry appears to be facing intensifying price competition that could weigh on margins, with any gains in market share likely to come at the expense of profitability, TA Securities analyst Angeline Chin says in a note. While auto sales rose modestly in 2025, growth was driven mainly by foreign brands, particularly Chinese and smaller marques, heightening competition and margin pressure for local companies. Rising electric-vehicle adoption is also reshaping pricing and competitive dynamics in the traditional passenger-vehicle market. Chin expects 2026 auto sales to drop 8.6% to 750,000 units, reflecting a cautious sector outlook. TA Securities maintains an underweight rating on Malaysia's auto sector and keeps Bermaz Auto, MBM Resources and Sime Darby at sell. (yingxian.wong@wsj.com)
2040 ET - Macquarie disagrees with investors who think data-center owner NextDC could soon be seeking to raise equity again. "We think NextDC can debt-fund for two years without more contract wins," Macquarie says. It contends that alternative growth funding is more attractive. Macquarie notes that third-party capital is now taking direct stakes in individual developments, pointing to Canada Pension Plan Investment Board investing in a Canadian asset alongside Northleaf. "Alternative funding is not just a source of capital, but can drive return on equity and provide NextDC with growth optionality," says Macquarie, which retains an outperform call on the stock. NextDC is up less than 0.1% at A$12.945.(david.winning@wsj.com; @dwinningWSJ)
2010 ET - SD Guthrie's key catalysts appear to be largely priced in, despite the planter's operational resilience, diversification and long-term strategy, TA Securities analyst Angeline Chin says in a note. Production is expected to grow steadily, driven by replanting, estate optimisation and mechanisation, while SD Guthrie is unlocking strategic land value by utilising about 5,550 acres for industrial and renewable projects, including 46 biogas plants and a 1GW solar capacity target, she notes. She is encouraged by these developments but sees limited upside pending the emergence of fresh earnings growth drivers. TA Securities maintains a sell rating on SD Guthrie, while keeping its target price at MYR5.63. Shares are 0.5% higher at MYR5.65. (yingxian.wong@wsj.com)
1942 ET - Fortescue's Iron Bridge mine has "once again" underperformed versus expectations, says RBC Capital Markets analyst Kaan Peker. At 2.2 million metric tons, shipments from the operation miss RBC's forecast by 13% and consensus estimates by 17%, Peker says. The 1H annualized shipping run-rate implies just 8.6 million tons from the operation in FY 2026, 14% below the low end of guidance, he says. Fortescue's 2Q hematite production costs also disappointed. C1 costs of $19.10/wet ton are 6% above consensus, says Peker. "While FMG has called out higher diesel prices and the change in the AUD/USD for the increase, we believe it's a function of opportunistic mining given the higher Fe [iron] price, which has resulted in FMG favouring higher cost tons away from infrastructure." (rhiannon.hoyle@wsj.com; @RhiannonHoyle)
1928 ET - South32's Cannington mine delivered the biggest positive surprise in 2Q, with higher mining grades leading to a sharp rise in silver output, says Citi analyst Ephrem Ravi. On the whole, South32's production results are broadly in line with Citi's expectations, he says. "We see favorable unit-cost implication from higher silver production, while higher prices are likely to drive the unit costs below its guidance going into 1H'26 results," Ravi writes in a client note. He sees potential for low-single-digit upgrades to FY 2026 consensus estimates. South32 is up 4.1% at A$4.35. (rhiannon.hoyle@wsj.com; @RhiannonHoyle)
1915 ET - Japanese stocks are higher as tensions between the U.S. and Europe over Greenland ease. Chip and bank stocks are leading gains. Tokyo Electron Ltd. is up 2.9% and Mizuho Financial Group is 2.6% higher. USD/JPY is at 158.43, compared with 158.15 as of Wednesday's Tokyo stock market close. Investors are closely watching comments by business and government leaders at the World Economic Forum in Davos. Domestic political developments are also in focus ahead of the general election in early February. The Nikkei Stock Average is up 1.1% at 53350.93. (kosaku.narioka@wsj.com; @kosakunarioka)
1848 ET - Japanese stocks may rise as tensions between the U.S. and Europe over Greenland ease. Nikkei futures are up 1.3% at 53475 on the SGX. USD/JPY is at 158.37, compared with 158.15 as of Wednesday's Tokyo stock market close. Investors are focusing on comments by business and government leaders from Davos as well as domestic political developments ahead of the general election in early February. The Nikkei Stock Average fell 0.4% to 52774.64 on Wednesday. (kosaku.narioka@wsj.com)
1713 ET - Australian shares are set for gains on Thursday, after President Trump said there was a framework of a deal for Greenland and dropped his threat of new tariffs on Europe. Australian futures were up some 0.5% ahead of the open, and U.S. stocks rose overnight, with all three major indexes posting a 1.2% gain. A gain for Australia's benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index would snap a three-day losing streak. In Australian corporate news, various miners continued releasing their quarterly reports, including South32, Sandfire, Northern Star, Fortescue and Regis. Australia is scheduled to release unemployment figures later Thursday. (mike.cherney@wsj.com)
1604 ET - U.S. stocks recover some of Tuesday's decline as President Trump says he wouldn't impose tariffs on several European nations after he reached the "framework of a future deal" on Greenland. Supreme Court justices express skepticism of the arguments in the Trump administration's case to remove Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook. Netflix shares slip 2.2% despite the streaming company posting strong earnings yesterday, and J&J was little changed as higher sales of drugs for cancer and autoimmune conditions more than offset the sales hit from a key drug patent loss. DJIA gains 588 points, to 1.2%, to 49077, the S&P 500 rises 1.2% to 6875 and the Nasdaq adds 1.2% to 23224. (patrick.sullivan@wsj.com)
1559 ET - Birkenstock dodged risks of further pressure on its margins after President Trump said he would not impose tariffs on several European countries following a meeting with the NATO Secretary General over Greenland. Birkenstock generates roughly half of its revenue in the Americas, predominantly in the U.S., with products produced in Germany, Baird analysts say in a note published before Trump's latest announcement. The footwear brand has not been willing to raise prices enough to fully offset headwinds from tariff-related cost increases, meaning any added tariffs in Europe could hurt its margins, the analysts say. "Trump's tariff threats are part of a negotiation process, and ultimately we view volatility stemming from elevated uncertainty as a buying opportunity," they say. Birkenstock climbs 6%. (kelly.cloonan@wsj.com)
1522 ET - It could take upward of 10 to 15 years for corporations to fully implement artificial-intelligence, Orlando Bravo, the managing partner of private equity firm Thoma Bravo, says in a CNBC interview at Davos. "This is going to be a multi-decade growth opportunity. It will not happen overnight. It'll be evolutionary. But it'll be an incredible boon to enterprise software," Bravo says, adding that his firm is looking for both public and private software acquisition targets. "The corporate world, once again, is evolutionary, not revolutionary, and it works slowly over time in terms of its adoption of new technologies. (elias.schisgall@wsj.com)
1428 ET - International Business Machines CEO Arvind Krishna says the company doesn't import many goods from Europe, so he's not too worried about the possibility of additional tariffs. "We absorbed the tariffs that came from East Asia…as opposed to passing them on to our clients," he says in an interview at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. He feels confident in the company's ability to absorb tariffs again, should it come to that. (connor.hart@wsj.com)
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
January 21, 2026 20:47 ET (01:47 GMT)
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