EU BASIC INDUSTRIES: Akzo Nobel: Cevian Stake (AKZANA; Baa2neg/BBBneg/WD)
A bit late on this one but...
• Cevian announced that they now own 5.02% of Akzo.
• Had previously owned 3%.
• Cevian is an activist investor who have previously been involved in ABB, ThyssenKrupp, Aviva, Vodafone, Ericsson, Danske Bank, CRH, Smith & Nephew
• AKZANA has been on Neg Outlook since Feb '25 with Moody's and since Nov '24 with S&P.
• Shares are down 43% since July 2021 peak. SX4P Chems index is down 18% since Jan 22 (pre-Ukraine) peak.
• Akzo recently agreed to sell its stake in the Indian venture and to retain its Powder Coatings and International Research Centre assets.
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EQUITIES: Fresh All-Time Highs For S&P E-Minis
Fresh all-time highs for S&P 500 e-minis after U.S. President Trump points to a desire for a move to semi-annual reporting for corporates, as opposed to the current quarterly reporting, with a focus on the Chinese model that looks towards longer-term planning.
- This would reduce regulatory costs for firms and points to an ongoing preference for lighter touch regulation (for many domestic firms) within the Trump administration.
- Trump also notes that the Sino-U.S. trade meeting has gone “very well”, while alluding to a deal re: TikTok.
- The positives in those two posts have outweighed any negatives for U.S. social media companies (stemming from the TikTok deal hope) at an index level.
- Projected resistance in S&P 500 e-minis comes in at 6,685.25.
EQUITIES: ROLL PACE (updated)
- ESA: 28%.
- NQA: 14% (below pace).
- DOW: 21% (below pace).
- VGA: 21% (below pace).
- EU Banks: 14% (below pace).
- Stoxx600: 25%.
- Dax: 20% (below pace).
- FTSE: 27%.
MNI: CANADA JUL WHOLESALE SALES +1.3%; EX-AUTOS +0.3%
- MNI: CANADA JUL WHOLESALE SALES +1.3%; EX-AUTOS +0.3%
- JUL WHOLESALE INVENTORIES +1.0%: STATISTICS CANADA
- CANADA JUL WHOLESALES EX-PETROLEUM/OILSEED/GRAIN +1.2%
