Weekly Market Update - 15 April 2024
$100 Barrel?
When oil jumped above $90 a barrel just days ago, military tensions between Israel and Iran were the immediate trigger. But the rally’s foundations went deeper. Mexico has slashed crude exports, US sanctions have stranded Russian cargoes at sea and Houthi rebel attacks on tankers in the Red Sea have delayed crude shipments. Despite the turmoil, OPEC and its allies are sticking with production cuts. The crunch is threatening to push Brent crude to $100 for the first time in almost two years.
Source: Bloomberg
Microsoft in Japan
Microsoft will invest $2.9 billion over the next two years to boost its hyperscale cloud computing and artificial intelligence infrastructure in Japan, marking its biggest investment in the country. The announcement was made on Tuesday in Washington after Microsoft President Brad Smith met with Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who is in the US for the first official visit by a Japanese leader in nine years. Kishida also urged American business leaders to boost investments in Asia’s second-largest economy tied to key technologies. “We very much welcome US investments to Japan to nurture cooperation,” Kishida said. “Your investments will enable Japan’s economic growth, which will also be capital for more investments from Japan to the US.” Kishida met a group of executives ahead of a summit with US President Joe Biden Wednesday.
Source: Bloomberg
Mac Overhaul
Apple is preparing to overhaul its entire Mac line with a new family of in-house processors designed to highlight artificial intelligence. The company, which released its first Macs with M3 chips five months ago, is already nearing production of the next generation — the M4 processor — according to people familiar with the matter. Apple shares climbed 4.3% Thursday, the biggest single-day gain in 11 months. They had been down 13% this year. The new chip will come in at least three main varieties, and Apple is looking to update every Mac model with it. The new Macs are underway at a critical time. After peaking in 2022, Mac sales fell 27% in the last fiscal year, which ended in September. In the holiday period, revenue from the computer line was flat. Apple also is playing catch-up in AI, where it’s seen as a laggard to Microsoft, Alphabet’s Google and other tech peers.
Source: Bloomberg