European stocks posted the first weekly advance in four as the European Central Bank (ECB) delayed its withdrawal of emergency liquidity measures and bought government bonds in Portugal, Ireland and Greece.
Bank of Ireland PLC surged 22 percent as euro-region governments agreed to hand the nation an 85 billion euro (US$114 billion) aid package. Porsche SE gained 12 percent after the approval of a 5 billion euro stock sale to reduce debt. Fresnillo PLC and ArcelorMittal led basic-resources stocks higher, rising more than 7 percent.
The STOXX Europe 600 Index rose 1.6 percent to 270.94 this past week, bringing the gauge to within 1 percent of this year’s highest level.
The measure has rallied 17 percent since its low for this year in May, amid better-than-estimated company earnings and speculation policymakers in the US and elsewhere will implement more stimulus measures to prop up the recovery.
National benchmark indexes rose in 16 out of 18 western European markets. Germany’s DAX and the UK’s FTSE 100 Index each gained 1.4 percent, while France’s CAC 40 Index advanced 0.6 percent.
Ireland’s ISEQ ended the week 2.8 percent higher after the government accepted an EU-led bailout.
Spain’s IBEX 35 rallied 4.9 percent for the biggest weekly gain since July as Banco Santander SA soared 11 percent.
TECH PARTNERSHIP: The deal with Arizona-based Amkor would provide TSMC with advanced packing and test capacities, a requirement to serve US customers Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) is collaborating with Amkor Technology Inc to provide local advanced packaging and test capacities in Arizona to address customer requirements for geographical flexibility in chip manufacturing. As part of the agreement, TSMC, the world’s biggest contract chipmaker, would contract turnkey advanced packaging and test services from Amkor at their planned facility in Peoria, Arizona, a joint statement released yesterday said. TSMC would leverage these services to support its customers, particularly those using TSMC’s advanced wafer fabrication facilities in Phoenix, Arizona, it said. The companies would jointly define the specific packaging technologies, such as TSMC’s Integrated
China’s economic planning agency yesterday outlined details of measures aimed at boosting the economy, but refrained from major spending initiatives. The piecemeal nature of the plans announced yesterday appeared to disappoint investors who were hoping for bolder moves, and the Shanghai Composite Index gave up a 10 percent initial gain as markets reopened after a weeklong holiday to end 4.59 percent higher, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index dived 9.41 percent. Chinese National Development and Reform Commission Chairman Zheng Shanjie (鄭珊潔) said the government would frontload 100 billion yuan (US$14.2 billion) in spending from the government’s budget for next year in addition
Sales RecORD: Hon Hai’s consolidated sales rose by about 20 percent last quarter, while Largan, another Apple supplier, saw quarterly sales increase by 17 percent IPhone assembler Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密) on Saturday reported its highest-ever quarterly sales for the third quarter on the back of solid global demand for artificial intelligence (AI) servers. Hon Hai, also known as Foxconn Technology Group (富士康科技集團) globally, said it posted NT$1.85 trillion (US$57.93 billion) in consolidated sales in the July-to-September quarter, up 19.46 percent from the previous quarter and up 20.15 percent from a year earlier. The figure beat the previous third-quarter high of NT$1.74 trillion recorded in 2022, company data showed. Due to rising demand for AI, Hon Hai said its cloud and networking division enjoyed strong sales
Protectionism: US trade chief Katherine Tai said the hikes would help to counter unfair trade practices from China, while boosting domestic clean energy investments US Trade Representative Katherine Tai (戴琪) defended stiff tariff hikes against countries such as China, saying that paired with investment, they were a “legitimate and constructive” tool for reinvigorating domestic industries. Tai’s comments come a week after sharp tariff increases on Chinese electric vehicles (EVs), EV batteries and solar cells took effect — with levies down the line on other products also recently finalized. The latest moves targeting US$18 billion in Chinese goods come weeks before next month’s US presidential election, with Democrats and Republicans pushing a hard line on China as competition between Washington and Beijing intensifies. In an interview on Thursday
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