Stocks in mainland China soared on Monday, after the government cut a tax on trading and said it will take more steps to revive its sagging capital markets. The move is an attempt to address a slide in Chinese stock prices this year, as investors have dumped shares amid worsening economic news and big rallies elsewhere. China’s benchmark CSI 300 Index was down around 4.2% this year before Mondays open. The CSI 300 and the Shanghai Composite Index both moved 2.3% higher in morning trading, putting them on track for one of their best days this year. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index, which includes the shares of many Chinese companies, was up 1.7%. China’s Ministry of Finance on Sunday said it would halve stamp duty on securities transactions, to 0.05%, starting Monday, in an effort to spur trading and boost confidence. It was China’s first stamp-duty cut since 2008. Meanwhile, the country’s securities regulator said it would take steps to limit new listings, something that could help balance supply and demand, and allow more margin lending. Hong Kong-listed shares of electric-vehicle maker XPeng jumped 14% after the company said it would acquire a smart auto development business from ride-hailing giant Didi Global for $744 million.

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The Swiss stock market ended trading on Friday with slight markdowns. The SMI lost 0.2 per cent to 10,957 points. Among the 20 SMI stocks, there were 13 price losers and 7 price winners. 15.12 (previously: 19.14) million shares were traded. The SMI was supported by the share of the index heavyweight Nestle, deemed to be defensive. The share gained 0.5 per cent. In addition, Kühne & Nagel (+0.7 per cent) also held up well. The share of the pharmaceutical giant Novartis fell 0.2 per cent. The fact that the subsidiary Sandoz received FDA approval in the USA for a multiple sclerosis drug did not affect the share price. It is the first generic drug for this application. The shares of competitor Roche dropped 0.4 per cent. Securities of luxury stock Richemont shed 0.8 per cent and Swatch declined 0.6 per cent in the broader market. The day's losers were UBS, which decreased by 1.5 per cent. After the share had risen by 3.0 per cent the previous day, some investors may have taken profits.

European stock markets closed flat on Friday, as investors limited risk-taking ahead of a speech by European Central Bank (ECB) President Christine Lagarde, scheduled for 9pm (Paris time). The Stoxx Europe 600 index fell by 0.04% to 451.4 points. In Paris, the CAC 40 and SBF 120 gained 0.2% each. The DAX 40 in Frankfurt climbed 0.1%, as did the FTSE 100 in London. Over the week as a whole, the Stoxx Europe 600 index advanced by 0.7%. Deutsche Bank raised its recommendation on JCDecaux shares (up 3.2%) from "hold" to "buy" and maintained its target price at €21. The current share price constitutes a good entry level, according to Deutsche Bank, while the organisation of the Olympic Games next year in France will be a growth driver for the billboard specialist. Dutch brewer Heineken (+0.8% in Amsterdam) announced on Friday that it had sold its Russian operations to Arnest Group, a Russian packaging and cosmetics company, for the symbolic sum of one euro.

On Friday, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell told investors that the central bank would “proceed carefully” on any further rate increases in a much-anticipated speech Friday. The S&P 500 added 0.7%, with all 11 sectors posting gains. Some investors said the choppy trading was likely because of lower summer trading volumes, with many on vacation. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 0.7%, and the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.9%. Meanwhile, shares of Rite Aid plunged by about 50% following reports the drugstore chain is preparing to file for chapter 11 bankruptcy in the coming weeks. Hawaiian Electric shares shed almost a fifth of their value after Maui County sued the utility and S&P Global Ratings cut its credit rating further. Gap jumped 7% despite a fall in sales across all its brands in the second quarter. The ready-to-wear chain also lowered its sales forecast for 2023. From this Friday, the Internet giants will be subject to stricter regulations throughout the European Union in terms of the fight against illegal content and transparency. The Digital Services Act (DSA) applies to 19 blue-chip companies, including Alphabet subsidiaries Google and YouTube (+0.1%), Meta Platforms owners Facebook and Instagram (-0.4%), and Amazon (+1.1%). Warner Bros Discovery (-3.4%) decided to postpone the release dates of three big-budget films - "Dune 2", "The Lord of the Rings: War of the Rohirrim" and "Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire", as a result of strike action by Hollywood writers and actors.

Stocks in mainland China soared on Monday, after the government cut a tax on trading and said it will take more steps to revive its sagging capital markets. The move is an attempt to address a slide in Chinese stock prices this year, as investors have dumped shares amid worsening economic news and big rallies elsewhere. The HSI in Hong Kong gains 1.7 per cent, the Shanghai Composite even 2.3 per cent. Citic Securities rises 7.1 per cent and East Money Information 9.4 per cent. Hong Kong Stock Exchange stocks soar 7.2 per cent. E-car maker Xpeng announced a partnership with DiDi Global, with the stock up 14.1 per cent. After a 17-month hiatus, shares of crisis property group China Evergrande resume trading, the price plunges 87 per cent. The company has at least narrowed its losses, yet investors remain unconvinced. In Japan, the indices likewise proved to be very firm, with the Nikkei-225 gaining 1.7 per cent. The Kospi in South Korea advanced 0.6 per cent.

The Swiss bond market was moving more or less sideways at the end of the week. The yield on two-year Swiss was quoted at 1.115% and that on ten-year at 0.984% intraday. The benchmark Swiss Bond Index SBI eased five bps to 127.32% during trading, while the ten-year spot rate rose slightly to 0.976 from 0.972% the previous trading session.

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