LVMH Moet Hennessy (+0.35%) Louis Vuitton SE’s third-quarter sales rose at the same rate seen earlier in the year, driven by Asia and the United States. Sales for the three months to the end of September came to 15.51 billion euros ($17.92 billion), 11% higher than in the same period of pre-pandemic 2019, the French luxury-goods group said Tuesday. The increase is the same booked in the first half of the year. Analysts had expected sales of EUR15.38 billion, according to a FactSet-compiled consensus. The group’s sharpest growth once more came from the fashion & leather-goods division, which houses star brands Dior and Louis Vuitton. The division notched up sales of EUR7.5 billion, 38% higher than in the third quarter of 2019, again the same increase seen in the first half of the year. Sales in the period in Asia and the U.S. continued to see double-digit growth compared with 2019, LVMH said. Looking ahead, the company said it expects to see growth rates continue as the world gradually emerges from the coronavirus pandemic.

The Swiss stock market ended Tuesday's trading slightly lower. The SMI lost 0.1 per cent to 11,757 points. Among the 20 SMI stocks, there were 12 price gainers and 8 price losers. 24.12 (previously: 22.66) million shares were traded. The focus increasingly shifted to the upcoming reporting season. Givaudan increased sales in the third quarter, benefiting from a good performance in all regions and business segments. Analysts at Baader Helvea see the flavours and fragrances maker on track to meet expectations for 2021, but said there is a question mark over the 2022 earnings outlook. Despite decent numbers, the stock was down 2.4 per cent. Lonza shares (+0.5%) performed well. The pharmaceutical supplier set new medium-term goals and defined its strategic priorities for the coming years at its Capital Markets Day. According to the updated outlook, sales are expected to grow at low double-digit rates just above 10 per cent in 2024 at constant exchange rates. The group sees capital expenditure at around 25 per cent of sales in the current year. ABB (+0.9%) was the day's winner. Index heavyweight Nestle, considered defensive, gained 0.4 per cent. However, the other two heavyweights Roche (-1.1%) and Novartis (-0.2%) dropped. Banking stocks also lagged behind. Credit Suisse, for example, fell 0.2 per cent and UBS shares were down 0.3 per cent.

European stocks fell as investors fret about rising energy prices and events in China. Stock indexes have been dragged lower in choppy trading in recent weeks. Investors are contending with an energy crunch that threatens to add to inflationary pressures just as signs emerge that global economic growth is slowing. The Stoxx Europe 600 index lost 0.1% to 457.2 points. In Paris, the CAC 40 and SBF 120 were down 0.3% each. In Frankfurt, the DAX 40 also gave up 0.3%, while the FTSE 100 in London gave up 0.2%. Germany's ZEW survey of economic sentiment weakened for the fifth straight month Tuesday and hit its lowest level since the Covid-19 pandemic first rocked the country in March 2020. The manufacturer of electrolysis equipment for the production of hydrogen McPhy (+16.3%) is going to separate the functions of chairman of the board of directors and chief executive officer and has appointed Jean-Baptiste Lucas to the latter post, effective 18 October. Sodexo gained 1.9%. Bernstein raised its recommendation on the group from "in line with the market" to "outperform" while raising its price target from 79 euros to 94 euros. Societe Generale (-0.2%) announced plans to cut 3,700 retail banking jobs in France as part of the merger between its networks and those of its subsidiary Crédit du Nord. Shares in low-cost carrier EasyJet fell 1.8% in London, after the airline forecast a GBP1.2 billion loss this year.

U.S. stocks inched lower for the third consecutive session on Tuesday driven by losses in communications stocks. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 117.72 points, or 0.3%, to close at 34378.34. The S&P 500 declined 10.54 points, or 0.2%, to close at 4350.65 while the tech-heavy Nasdaq ticked down 20.28 points, or 0.1%, to close at 14465.92. Stock indexes have been dragged lower in choppy trading in recent weeks. Investors are contending with an energy crunch that threatens to add to inflationary pressures just as signs emerge that global economic growth is slowing. Communications stocks led losses among the S&P 500’s 11 sectors, declining more than 1%. Google parent Alphabet Inc. slid $49.30, or 1.8%, to $2,728.98 and Facebook Inc. fell $1.68, or 0.5%, to $323.77. Steeply rising bond yields and regulation issues have dragged down tech shares in recent sessions. Those losses were offset by gains among real estate and consumer discretionary stocks: MGM Resorts International rose $4.27, or 9.6%, to $48.69, its highest close since 2008, after Credit Suisse more than doubled its price target for the company. Other entertainment stocks joined the rally with Caesars Entertainment Inc. and Las Vegas Sands Corp. both adding around 2%. General Motors Co. said it would recover from supplier LG Electronics Inc. nearly all of the $2 billion cost of recalling Chevrolet Bolt electric models for the risk of battery fires. Shares of the Michigan-based company rose 87 cents, or 1.5%, to $58.96. Third-quarter earnings season, which begins this week, will provide clues on how companies are faring with price increases. Some of the U.S.’s biggest financial firms, including JPMorgan Chase and BlackRock, are set to kick off the reporting season Wednesday.

In Asia, stock markets were broadly lower. Trading on the Hong Kong stock exchange was temporarily suspended due to a typhoon warning. The Shanghai composite is down 0.4 per cent. Shares in the mining and energy sectors are under particular pressure. Yanzhou Coal falls 8.7 per cent and Huaneng Power loses 6.3 per cent. The Nikkei-225 in Tokyo drops 0.1 per cent to 28,193 points. The Kospi breaks the trend and rises by 1.0 per cent.

The yield on the benchmark 10-Year U.S. Treasury note was little changed at 1.579%, the largest one-day decline in more than a week. Yields have been on an upward trajectory since the Federal Reserve strongly signaled last month it could start tapering its bond purchases as soon as November.

Jefferies lowers Kering target to EUR 750 (775) - Buy
Berenberg raises Stemmer Imaging to Buy (Hold) - Target EUR 42 (35)
Jefferies increases Tui target to EUR 2.10 (0.90) - Underperform

Produced by MBI Martin Brückner Infosource GmbH & Co. KG on behalf of Swissquote. All news is acquired with journalistic accuracy. No liability is assumed for delays or errors.