Sandoz will not be part of the main Swiss stock market index, the Swiss Market Index (SMI), following the spin-off from Novartis (+0.2%). The Swiss stock exchange SIX announced the decision in an information letter on Wednesday evening. However, the share will be part of the SLI and SMIM indices, according to the disclosure. None of this, however, will apply until the day after the spin-off. On the spin-off day itself, Sandoz will be listed in the SMI, the SIX letter continues. Thus, for one day, 21 instead of 20 stocks will be included in the SMI. The spin-off is scheduled for 4 October, as already indicated. One condition is that Novartis shareholders give their consent to the project this Friday. Novartis shareholders will receive one Sandoz share for every five Novartis shares held.

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The Swiss stock market barely held its ground at the end of trading on Wednesday. The SMI lost 0.1 per cent to 10,976 points. Among the 20 SMI stocks, there were eleven price gainers and nine price losers. 17.9 (previously: 15.32) million shares were traded. Cyclicals such as ABB (-2.3%) were sold as well as the defensive heavyweight Nestle (-0.8%). Pharmaceutical stocks Novartis (+0.2%) and Roche (+0.8%) bucked the negative trend. UBS shares gained 1.3 per cent. Kühne & Nagel lost 1.2 per cent. The investor Kühne had recently expressed interest in taking over the Port of Hamburg and Logistics (HHLA) with Hapag Lloyd and is considering a counter-bid to the offer of the carrier Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC).

European equity markets closed lower on Wednesday, as investors await the European Central Bank's (ECB) rate decision, scheduled for Thursday. The Stoxx Europe 600 index shed 0.3% to 453.9 points. In Paris, the CAC 40 and SBF 120 were each down 0.4%. The DAX 40 in Frankfurt lost 0.4%, while the FTSE 100 in London finished close to balance. Accor gained 2.3% to 34.84 euros, supported by several analysts' comments. Renault (+2.1%) was placed by JPMorgan on its "Positive Catalyst Watch" list of stocks offering the best risk/return ratio. JPMorgan also raised its target price for video games publisher Ubisoft (+3.7%) from €25 to €26. The oil group BP (-2.8% in London) announced the resignation of its chief executive, Bernard Looney, "with immediate effect" following accusations of hidden "personal relationships" with work colleagues. The Spanish group Inditex, owner of the ready-to-wear chain Zara, edged 0.5% lower in Madrid. The group's second-quarter results confirm organic market share growth, although this was anticipated by investors, as the share price has risen by 40% since the start of the year, according to Jefferies.

Investors largely liked what they saw in Wednesday’s inflation report, solidifying their bets that the Federal Reserve will hold interest rates steady at the end of next week’s policy meeting. Major stock indexes were modestly higher for most of the day before losing some momentum in the final 90 minutes of the session. The S&P 500 added 0.1%, the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.3%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.2%. Treasury yields were little changed, with the yield on the 10-year note falling to 4.248% from 4.263% on Tuesday. The consumer-price index rose 0.6% in August from the prior month, the fastest pace in more than a year. Higher gasoline prices were responsible for more than half of the increase. Core prices—which exclude volatile food and energy categories and are the preferred gauge of the Fed—rose a more modest 0.3%l. Moderna was among the S&P 500’s best performers Wednesday, advancing 3.2%, after the drugmaker said it expects $10 billion to $15 billion in additional annual revenue by 2028 thanks to new products. Citigroup shares advanced by 1.7% after the bank unveiled a management reorganisation. American Airlines (-5.7%) and Spirit Airlines (-6.25%) both declined after cutting their forecasts, sending other airlines lower as well. Both carriers said jet fuel expense will be higher than previously forecast because of rising oil prices. Microprocessor manufacturer Arm Holdings announced after the close of trading on Wednesday that it was setting its IPO price on the New York Stock Exchange at $52. The deal values the British company at $55.5 billion.

In Asia, major indexes broadly closed with gains on Thursday. In Japan, the Nikkei-225 rises by 1.2 per cent. In South Korea, the Kospi climbs by 1.1 per cent. In China, the stock markets are lagging behind with the prevailing economic worries there. The Shanghai Composite stagnated, the HSI in Hong Kong barely held its ground. Among the car manufacturers, BYD lost 3 and SAIC Motor 3.1 per cent. The EU had announced a review of import restrictions on Chinese cars due to state subsidies and referred to the fate of the former European solar industry, which was largely destroyed by cheap Chinese imports.

The policy-sensitive 2-year U.S. Treasury yield finished lower for the first time in four sessions on Wednesday, as traders evaluated the U.S. August consumer price index and leaned toward expecting no further interest rate action by the Federal Reserve this year. The 10-year Treasury note yield gained 2 basis points to 4.306%, while the 2-year Treasury note yield fell by 3 basis points to 4.978%.

Target price Partners Group: UBS downgrades to CHF 1289 (1491) - Buy

Target price Dormakaba: Jefferies raises to CHF 550 (480) - Buy

Target price Sika: JPMorgan upgrades to CHF 230 (228) - Underweight

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