Americas

Market Update 03-24-10

Last week, India became the latest Asian country to raise interest rates as recovery continued to take hold. The Indian central bank raised rates for the first time in two years—raising both its benchmark repurchase and reverse repurchase rates by 25 basis points—as inflation starts to gather steam in the fast growing Asian nation. India’s industrial production grew 16.7 percent in January on a year-on-year basis after a 17.6 percent increase the month before. Wholesale prices also rose, at the rate of nearly 10 percent in February compared to the year-earlier period.
 
Foreign investment in India has greatly increased in recent months as overseas investors take note of the rising yields of Indian assets as the Indian economic engine churns along. Foreign ownership of Indian debt and equity both rose to record highs earlier this month. With strong economic growth and further upward price pressures in India expected later this year, more interest rate hikes are in the cards, likely giving the Indian rupee an extra boost. Much like in China, the proactive monetary tightening for India reduces the risk of runaway inflation and is actually a good sign for the long-term stability of the economy.
 
Brazilian stocks in the last couple of days received a nice jolt from commodity producers.
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WHAT THEY’RE BUYING

Fidelity Pacific Basin, which joins our Fund Portfolio this issue, has an outstanding record. So when its managers really like a stock, it pays to listen. And they really like Toyota Motors (TM ADR)—in fact, the automaker is the fund’s single largest position. Moreover, Fidelity Management & Research, the company to which Fidelity Pacific Basin belongs, more than doubled its stake in the stock last quarter, making it the largest U.S. holder of Toyota shares.
 
What’s to like about Toyota? Actually, there’s nothing not to like. The No. 1 automaker in Japan and No. 3 in the world, it’s a truly global company that sells its vehicles in more than 160 countries. This year, for the first time, Toyota captured more than 10 percent of the U.S. market, and almost 40 percent of its revenues come from North American operations.
 
One reason for its success is its commitment to high-quality products. Another is its leadership position in developing new technologies, including those used in creating environmentally friendlier autos.
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Mid-Week Update 07-15-09

Finally, some positive news. The world’s largest semiconductor company, Intel (INTC), which we profiled here just two weeks ago, reported blow-out earnings last night – and the stock reacted very positively today. During the second quarter, the company collected just over $8 billion in revenue, better than the $7.3 billion analysts were expecting. And they did this as they drew down their own inventories by $420 million.

Further, the company’s gross margins expanded from 46 percent last quarter to 51 percent in the one just completed. The company reported a net loss for the quarter of $398, or 7 cents a share due to a $1.45 billion antitrust fine levied by the European Union. Excluding this one-time item, which may even reverse itself if Intel wins its appeal, the company earned 18 cents a share – more than double expectations of 8 cents.Read more...

Not Surprisingly, The Answer Is China. 07-15-09

Finally, some positive news. The world’s largest semiconductor company, Intel (INTC), which we profiled here just two weeks ago, reported blow-out earnings last night – and the stock reacted very positively today. During the second quarter, the company collected just over $8 billion in revenue, better than the $7.3 billion analysts were expecting. And they did this as they drew down their own inventories by $420 million.

Further, the company’s gross margins expanded from 46 percent last quarter to 51 percent in the one just completed. The company reported a net loss for the quarter of $398, or 7 cents a share due to a $1.45 billion antitrust fine levied by the European Union. Excluding this one-time item, which may even reverse itself if Intel wins its appeal, the company earned 18 cents a share – more than double expectations of 8 cents.Read more...

Mid-Week Update 07-01-09

An impressive quarter is now in the books. The second quarter of 2009 saw the S&P 500 rally almost 16 percent, its best quarterly return since 1998. Of course, this is on the heels of the sharpest market downturn in 80 years. Despite the rally, which took stocks deserving and undeserving alike from cheap valuations, there are still some bargains to be had.
 
Case in point is one of the most dominant companies on the planet – Intel (INTC). Intel is the leading semiconductor chip maker, with a global market share of approximately 80 percent. The company manufactures microprocessors, chipsets, flash memory and motherboards for computing and communications products under two business segments: the Digital Enterprise Group and the Mobility Group.
 
In Fiscal 2008, the Digital Enterprise Group accounted for 56 percent of the company’s $37.6 billion in total sales. With chips for desktop computers, servers, and enterprise applications, the group boasts high margins, and account for nearly three quarters of Intel’s annual profit of $5.2 billion. Meanwhile, the Mobility Group, with products for notebook computers and netbooks accounted for most of the remainder.
 
The Mobility Group is also an area in which Intel is concentrating on growth – centered on its new Atom processor.
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