In December, visitation rates at 350 office buildings in Manhattan rose to 67% of pre-pandemic levels, according to the Real Estate Board of New York. The month prior, rates were at 65% of what they were in 2019, and it would be even higher if you factor in the holidays. Whether return-to-office mandates lead to increased productivity is debatable, but they will lead to more gridlock, packed subway cars, and long lines at Just Salad.
SEMICONDUCTORS
AI Sparked a Chip Rally, But Only For a Select Few
Artificial intelligence systems may not need humans one day, but they'll always need semiconductors. So you'd think the enormous success achieved by chipmakers Nvidia and Advanced Micro Devices amid an AI boom would extend to the companies that produce chips for cars, medical equipment, or smartphones.
By May 2023, Nvidia hit $1 trillion in market cap, and in this early year alone, its stock has already jumped about 23%. Shares of AMD have had a similar trajectory to Nvidia's, while chip suppliers like Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co and Supermicro also benefited from the AI-driven chip rally late last year.
But they're the exception to the rule, with the broader Philadelphia Semiconductor Index up only about 7% this year:
Texas Instruments delivered a troublesome forecast, citing slumping demand for industrial and automotive electronic components. Analysts at market researcher Simply Wall St estimated TI's 2024 revenue will be $16 billion, an 11% decline in its sales over the past 12 months.
Because of uncertain demand for its chips in traditional servers and personal computers as well as plenty of canceled orders over the past few quarters, Intel forecasted revenue for the first quarter could miss Wall Street's estimates by more than $2 billion. The bad news caused selloffs across the chip market last week, with even Nvidia's stock dropping slightly.
A Slight Setback: During its quarterly conference call, Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger said he expects challenges in the current quarter to be an anomaly and that business momentum "will grow stronger as the year progresses." Earnings reports this week from Qualcomm and AMD are expected to give a better look at the state of the industry, so we'll see where the chips are falling.
What Infinity Fuel has developed is not just any hydrogen fuel cell – it's the closest thing to an "infinite" fuel source that we know, and you can invest in the company as they take their tech to new heights.
It works by turning hydrogen and oxygen into electricity and water, then breaking the water back down into hydrogen and oxygen.
Infinity has been perfecting their tech for years with NASA, the US Navy, and the Air Force for a total of $50M+ in grants so far. Plus, they just launched aboard Blue Origin's latest rocket.
Henry Ford's great-grandson even said fuel cells could "end the 100-year reign" of gas power. Don't miss this opportunity.
China Curbs Short Selling in Latest Attempt to Buoy Stocks
Don't sell China short. Under penalty of law.
Amid a broad market selloff, Beijing introduced new rules over the weekend that will effectively stamp out investors' ability to sell shares short. If you can't bet on yourself, we suppose not betting against yourself works, too.
Short End of the Stick
The S&P 500 closed at a record high earlier this month, after completing a 24% rally in 2023. But in China, the story is much different. The CSI 300 dropped 11% last year, marking the third straight year in decline, and is hovering near half-decade lows. Regulators have been struggling to slow the tide of selloffs since October. Last week, in a bid to stem capital outflows, restrictions were placed on access to funds that invest in offshore securities, while Premier Li Qiang — China's second-highest-ranking public official behind President Xi Jinping — called for "more forceful" market intervention from the government.
The China Securities Regulatory Commission delivered, with new anti-short-selling rules aiming to stabilize the market going into effect on Monday:
Per the new rules, investors who buy new shares will be barred from lending them out within an agreed "lock up" period, effectively closing off the mechanism used to bet against a stock.
The move is similar to one China implemented during a similar period of market turmoil back in 2015, when activity from short-selling day traders was deemed as causing "abnormal fluctuations" in the market — a decision that ultimately failed to stem market losses in the following months.
Wait and See: Whether the new restrictions will have any impact is another matter. "While the short-selling ban is a government signal, it is only a band-aid with limited impact," Gary Ng, senior economist at Natixis, told the Financial Times. "Whether China's equity market can stabilize will still depend on confidence." Either way, investors should buckle up for more new rules. In addition to the de facto short-selling ban, the China Securities Regulatory Commission promised more new regulations will come in March.
Written by Brian Boyle
CONSUMER
Green Fuel Boom May Bring Down Chicken Prices
Why did the chicken cross the road? To get access to cheaper chicken feed, of course.
After a sharp spike in prices the past couple of years, chicken is finally experiencing some deflation. Poultry lovers have the green fuel industry to thank, according to a new Bloomberg report.
Supply Chain Reaction
Inflation may be cooling, but chicken prices have been among the stickiest in the grocery store. The average price of a skinless chicken breast in the US is a few cents over $4, according to Federal Reserve Economic Data — down from a high of about $4.70 per pound late last summer, but still way above the $3-per-pound average of pre-pandemic times.
While most of the cost of chicken comes from the labor, transportation, packaging, and other factors that occur after a chicken leaves the farm, Iowa State University economics professor Chad Hart told Bloomberg, roughly 60% of on-farm costs stem from feed. But chickens love soy feed — and soy feed is a co-product of soy-based fuel. Which means the ascendency of alternative green fuels may just create a chicken-wing trickle-down effect:
According to an analysis from S&P Global, US demand for renewable diesel fuel is projected to increase to 4 billion gallons in 2030 from 2.7 billion gallons last year.
As a result, by 2026, soy meal production capacity will be 30% higher in 2026 compared to 2022 levels, Stephens Inc. analyst Ben Bienvenu told Bloomberg.
Can't Stop, Wing Stop: The falling chicken prices are likely welcome news for everyone (except, well, chickens). The impact of the great fried chicken sandwich wars and chicken wing craze is still being felt. Chicken dishes on restaurant menus have increased over 6% in the past half-decade, according to market research firm Technomic, versus just over 4% for burgers and other beef dishes. Meanwhile, McDonald's says its McCrispy Chicken sandwich, launched in 2021, now generates about $1 billion in global sales. By 2025, it wants the sandwich available in all territories, and it plans to bring back the crispy chicken-stuffed "Snack Wraps," too. Fingers crossed that the discontinued Spicy McNuggets are next.
Written by Brian Boyle
Extra Upside
Sooner skyscraper: America could get its next tallest building, and it won't be in New York, Chicago, or LA.
Simplify Your Investment Strategy with ProPicks This premium service by Investing.com offers six stock strategies that use AI models to identify top performing stocks. Their flagship "Beat the S&P 500" truly has crushed the S&P 500 by +744.9% since 2013. Access ProPicks monthly stock updates.**
*This is a paid advertisement for Infinity Fuel Cell and Hydrogen, Inc. Reg CF offering. Please read the offering circular at https://invest.infinityfuel.com/
A Slight Setback: During its quarterly conference call, Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger said he expects challenges in the current quarter to be an anomaly and that business momentum "will grow stronger as the year progresses." Earnings reports this week from Qualcomm and AMD are expected to give a better look at the state of the industry, so we'll see where the chips are falling. 
Comments
Post a Comment