Market Update & Important Indicators
The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.7%. The S&P 500 declined 0.7%, and the Nasdaq Composite added 0.1%. Stocks have also come under pressure as investors debate whether profits might be peaking early in the year. IPhone maker Apple announced the largest stock buyback program in corporate history following a strong quarter. Shares added 4.9%. Mastercard was one of the S&P 500's best performers, rising 3.1%. The credit-card firm posted higher-than-expected sales and profits as the company continued to benefit from increased spending driven by higher consumer confidence. Snap shares tumbled 22% after the social-media firm said quarterly revenue rose less than expected as efforts to wrest a larger share of advertisers' budgets were impeded by Facebook and Alphabet's Google. A recent bout of turbulence for the consumer-staples sector, which is down 14% this year, continued. The S&P 500 grouping dropped 1.8%, with Molson Coors and Estée Lauder among the biggest laggards following earnings. The U.S. gold price gained 0.1% overnight to record 1304.60 US$/Oz.
The Stoxx Europe 600 index closed up 0.6% at 387.44, its highest close in three months, while Germany's DAX closed up 1.5% and France's CAC 40 was up 0.2%. "The market made up for lost time due to the public holiday yesterday," said David Madden at CMC Markets. "The mood in Europe is positive, as President Trump won't be imposing tariffs on EU steel and aluminium, at least for now," he said. Inmarsat was a top gainer, up 8.1% after announcing a jump in 1Q net profit. Apple suppliers STMicroelectronics, Infineon and AMS were up 4.3%, 4% and 6.6%, respectively. The FTSE 100 was up 0.3%, having reached a three-month high intraday. Spain's Ibex 35 and Italy's FTSE MIB both closed up 1.1%.
Asian stocks climbed Wednesday, with investors displaying caution as they awaited signals from the Federal Reserve's policy statement and trade talks between the U.S. and China. Smartphone-lens makers Sunny Optical and Largan Precision climbed 4.5% and 6.3% in Hong Kong and Taiwan, respectively. Apple shares climbed 3.7% in after-hours trading. Asian equities indexes moved slightly lower, with both the Shanghai and Shenzhen composite indexes down 0.1% after unofficial purchasing managers index data signalled torpid growth in the country's manufacturing sector in April. Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell 0.4% on weakness in real-estate firms and banks. Shares in Hang Seng-listed United Co. Rusal–the worlds number two aluminium company, recently battered by the prospect of U.S. sanctions–had last jumped 8.3%.
Australian stocks continued their push higher, with the S&P/ASX 200 rising for the 11th day in 13 during a session that most in the region saw declines. The index rose 0.6% to 6050.2, a fresh 2-month high. Despite fresh gains Tuesday for US Treasury yields, equities yield plays did well in Australia, with REITs and utilities both up nearly 1%. Meanwhile, materials rose but 0.1% after some overnight softness in commodity prices as the greenback hit 2018 highs.
The London Metal Exchange’s 3-month copper contract gained 1.2% to 6,785/t. The other base metals were mixed overnight. Lead prices fell by 1.1% to 2,269/t, whilst zinc prices also decreased 0.4% to 3,032/t. Aluminium finished 2.9% higher at 2,326/t. The Nickle price increased 2.5% to 13,936/t. Tin Prices fell 0.6% to record 21,205/t.
In this issue
Myanmar Metals (MYL) | Government Approves Option Exercise | SPEC BUY
Market Cap $39.8m | Current Price $0.06 | Target Price $0.25
Myanmar Metals (MYL) has received advice from Myanmar Government authorities allowing the Company to proceed with its planned exercise of the Bawdwin Option. This is a significant de-risking event as MYL is now in a position to finalise agreements with local partners Win Myint Mo Industries Co. Ltd (WMM) and East Asia Power (Mining) Company Ltd (EAP). Bawdwin is a Tier 1 polymetallic asset with a primary resource of 41.4Mt at 5.7oz/t silver, 11% zinc & lead and 0.33% copper.
Otto Energy (OEL) | A New Producer on the ASX | SPEC BUY
Market Cap $90m | Current Price $0.06
OEL is the 50% owner of the South Marsh Island (SM71) oil and gas field in the Gulf of Mexico. Three wells have been successfully drilled and placed onto production which has transformed OEL into a producer with a current net production rate of 1,890 barrels of oil and 1,300 mcf of gas per day. The new production from these wells has had a positive impact on OEL’s cash flow profile, and as a result, OEL is expected to earn north of US$3m in operational cash flow per month at current oil prices.
Recent Contacts & Presentations
Great Boulder Resources (GBR), Orthocell (OCC), Northern Minerals (NTU), ABM Resources Ltd (ABU), Vital Metals Ltd (VML), Todd River Resources Ltd (TRT), Pacific Energy Ltd (PEA), Carnarvon Petroleum Ltd (CVN), Australian Mines Ltd (AUZ), Australian Finance Group (AFG), Paladin Energy Ltd (PDN), Cooper Energy Ltd (COE), Medibio Ltd (MEB), Botanix Pharmaceuticals Ltd (BOT), Salt Lake Potash Ltd (SO4), Golden Mile Resources Ltd (G88), NTM Gold Ltd (NTM), Ausmex Mining Group Ltd (AMG), Matrix C&E Ltd (MCE), Austal Ltd (ASB), Decmil Group Ltd (DCG), Ventnor Resources Ltd, Ausdrill Ltd (ASL), Alice Queen Ltd (AQX), PNX Metals Ltd (PNX), Alliance Resources Ltd (AGS), Myanmar Metals Ltd (MYL), Primary Gold Ltd (PGO), Sino Gas & Energy Holdings Ltd (SEH)
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