Thai banks face a sluggish second quarter for loan growth, according to CGS International analyst Weerapat Wonk-Urai. In a report, he cited the Bank of Thailand’s recent outlook survey showing muted loan demand for investment purposes, and said housing and auto loan demand in the second quarter will also be softer on quarter. CGS International maintains a neutral rating on Thailand’s banking sector, naming Kasikornbank and Siam Commercial Bank as its top picks based on their high proportion of wealth management fees.
The British payments company Wise is well-positioned to gain further market share, Berenberg analysts wrote in a note. Wise transferred its primary listing from the London Stock Exchange to the Nasdaq on May 11, while retaining a secondary listing in London, to reach a broader range of investors and expand its U.S. operations. “Greater brand awareness, new platform partner wins and, potentially, a direct connection to the U.S. payment system would meaningfully improve Wise’s business,” the analysts said. They added that Wise’s high-quality infrastructure, price-cutting strategy and relative scale advantage should help it reduce costs and prices to a level competitors will struggle to match.
KKR, in its mid-year outlook report, said it expects Asia to outperform across private and public markets. The firm pointed to corporate reform, particularly in Japan and Korea; artificial intelligence, especially hardware and enabling infrastructure; and consumption upgrades as the region’s three mega themes. “Asia continues to stand out as one of the more compelling long-term opportunities, driven by corporate reform, intra-Asia trade, AI infrastructure, and consumption upgrades,” KKR said. The firm added that productivity related to AI is likely emerging this year and is seen to become a powerful tailwind later in the productivity cycle, potentially boosting profits for companies, particularly in the services sector.
Singapore Exchange’s strong trading momentum is likely supported by inflows into the city-state, which is increasingly seen as a haven amid the Middle East conflict, according to DBS Group Research analyst Rui Wen Lim. The exchange operator’s securities daily average value in May rose 79% from a year earlier to 2.41 billion Singapore dollars, the highest level since October 2007. DBS has a buy rating on the stock and a target price of S$22.50.
A A$6.66 billion takeover offer for Australia’s Steadfast from Amwins Group and Dragoneer Investment comes as no surprise to UBS analysts, given elevated M&A activity in insurance broking globally. The offer of 6.00 Australian dollars a share, representing a 52% premium to the stock’s prior close, is in line with UBS’s existing target price. Jarden analysts said in a separate note that while the offer is pitched at a lower EPS multiple than the last two proposals for rival Australian broker AUB, Amwins’ positioning as a strategic trade buyer and Dragoneer’s long-term investment history give this proposal a higher chance of success. Jarden raised its stock target price by 4.4% to A$5.90 and kept an overweight rating.
Anticipation for the SpaceX IPO, expected Friday, has added some volatility in the tech sector, Wedbush analysts Dan Ives and others said in a research note. The analysts said traders and investors expect a ripple impact from the historic debut. “SpaceX would be such a mammoth that it could take some oxygen away from the overall tech and semiconductor trade as investors rotate into SpaceX, but that should be a short-term bump in the road as the market adjusts,” they said. The analysts anticipate that SpaceX and Tesla will eventually merge into one company in 2027, noting that groundwork already exists for the two operations to become one. The Nasdaq Composite Index traded at 25,169.5 on the day, reflecting tech-market sentiment, according to FRED data.
The Bank of Canada’s decision to hold its overnight rate at 2.25% offers little change for a housing market showing modest signs of regaining momentum, said Leah Zlatkin, a mortgage broker and spokesperson for LowestRates.ca. Zlatkin said there is still homebuyer interest but many Canadians remain hesitant to move forward while mortgage rates remain high and economic uncertainty makes taking on new debt harder. Leaving interest rates unchanged for more than seven months gives buyers a better sense of what they are working with but does not suddenly make homes more affordable, she said.
Digital assets fell as investors reduced risk ahead of U.S. inflation data and amid ongoing Middle East tensions, Saxo Bank analysts said in a note. U.S. spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds continue to experience net outflows, although redemption volumes have slowed considerably from last week’s extreme levels, they said. “For now, crypto continues to behave like a [risk sensitive] extension of the broader equity market, leaving today’s inflation report as the most important near-term catalyst,” the analysts wrote. The U.S. launched strikes against Iran Tuesday after an American helicopter was downed. Bitcoin fell 1.2% to $61,324, according to LSEG data, after reaching a 20-month low of $59,125 Friday. Ether dropped 2.0% to $1,626 after hitting a near 14-month low of $1,506 Saturday.