Adobe posted first-quarter adjusted earnings of $5.08 a share on revenue of $5.71 billion. Analysts surveyed by FactSet were expecting the creative software company to report earnings of $4.97 a share on revenue of $5.66 billion. In the same period last year, Adobe posted earnings of $4.48 a share on revenue of $5.18 billion. Despite the earnings beat, shares were down 4% in after-hours trading. Adobe reiterated its full-year outlook for 2025 revenue to be between $23.3 billion and $23.6 billion, with adjusted earnings still expected to be between $20.20 a share to $20.50 a share. The midpoint of those figures are just below Wall Street’s revenue estimate of $23.5 billion and its earnings forecast of $20.39 a share. As of Wednesday’s close, Adobe stock had declined 1.4% this year, and investors have worried about Adobe’s pace in monetising its AI initiatives. Tech stocks broadly have taken a hit recently amid an uncertain economic environment. Software companies could lose business if consumers and enterprise customers decide to pull back their spending.

After the sharp setback on Tuesday, the Zurich stock exchange recovered at least some of its losses on Wednesday - in line with the other European markets: the SMI gained 1.4 per cent to 12,868 points. Among the 20 SMI stocks, there were 16 gainers and 4 losers. A total of 22.71 million shares were traded (Tuesday: 26.53 million). One of the big losers on the previous day, Roche shares now led the SMI with a performance of 3.6 per cent. It was followed by Richemont (+2.4%), Givaudan (+2.1%) and Swiss Re (+2.1%). The fact that the pharmaceutical giant intends to develop a drug against obesity together with Denmark's Zealand Pharma put Roche in a buying mood. A cooperation and licence agreement provides for the joint launch of Petrelintid, developed by Zealand Pharma. This could put Roche in competition with the market-leading products from Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly. UBS gained 1.5 per cent. The bank was authorised to reduce its stake in Credit Suisse Securities (CSS) in China after the Chinese financial regulator approved the move. This step is considered important for the integration of UBS and CS in China.

European stock markets rose on Wednesday, buoyed by talks of a ceasefire in Ukraine, while investors examined the consequences of new US tariffs on steel and aluminium. The Stoxx Europe 600 index gained 0.8% to 541.3 points. In Paris, the CAC 40 and the SBF 120 both picked up 0.6%. The DAX 40 climbed 1.6% in Frankfurt and the FTSE 100 advanced 0.5% in London. BUREAU VERITAS (-1.3%): the investment company Wendel announced on Wednesday that it had sold, under a forward sale agreement, around 6.7% of the capital of the certification and quality control group Bureau Veritas, at a price of 27.25 euros per share. This price represents an instant discount of 5.4% to the closing price of Bureau Veritas shares on Tuesday. AIRBUS (+0.7%): the aerospace and defence group confirmed on Wednesday that it had received an order from Japanese aircraft lessor Jackson Square Aviation (JSA) for 50 single-aisle A320 neo family aircraft. Airbus also unveiled on Tuesday evening a series of orders for its new helicopter model, the H140, involving a maximum of 64 aircraft. RHEINMETALL (+9.6% in Frankfurt): the manufacturer of shells and tanks reported a 36% rise in sales to €9.75 billion in 2024. Its order book soared by 44% last year, to €55 billion. The group has indicated its intention to triple sales from its defence business by 2030.

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq rose on Wednesday after investors weighed the latest trade skirmish with Canada and a solid inflation report. Both indexes have been under pressure in recent days, dragged lower by global trade tensions and investor concerns about U.S. economic growth. Stocks ended the day mostly higher after the CPI report. The Dow industrials fell 0.2% after swinging between gains and losses most of the day. The Nasdaq Composite was up by 1.2%. The S&P 500 rose 0.5%, reversing earlier losses. Wall Street’s fear gauge edged down. The CBOE Volatility Index, or VIX, stood at around 24. Wednesday’s report showed that consumer inflation slowed a little in February, after January’s surprising hot reading. The consumer-price index rose 2.8% in the past 12 months, slightly undershooting forecasts, or 0.2% from a month earlier, also below expectations. The report was the first monthly inflation reading to fall fully under the new Trump administration, though it doesn’t capture the impact of the latest tariffs. Inflation concerns have intensified, as President Trump’s import levies risk fuelling price pressures while also weighing on growth. Resurgent inflation would make it harder for the Federal Reserve to make further cuts to interest rates, even if the economy is slowing. Early Wednesday, the Trump administration’s 25% tariffs on all steel and aluminum imports took effect. Canada retaliated, saying it would impose a levy on an additional $29.8 billion in U.S. imported goods. The European Union announced retaliatory tariffs targeting a range of U.S. products including bourbon whiskey, boats and motorcycles. Some investors are growing apprehensive that prolonged uncertainty over tariffs could hinder growth and tip the U.S. economy into a recession. Steel stocks were bought when the US import tariffs on steel came into force. Nucor gained 0.7 per cent and Steel Dynamics 2.3 per cent. The share prices of aluminium producers Alcoa and Century Aluminum increased by 4.0 and 5.7 per cent respectively. Intel rose by 4.6 per cent. According to a Reuters report, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing has entered into a dialogue with Nvidia, AMD and Broadcom about participating in a joint venture to operate Intel's factories. Nvidia (+6.4 per cent), AMD (+4.2 per cent) and Broadcom (+2.2 per cent), which had been hit hard recently, saw above-average gains on the news. Eli Lilly lost 0.3 per cent after Roche announced plans to develop an anti-obesity drug with Denmark's Zealand Pharma.

Asian stocks were mixed on Thursday. The Chinese markets, especially Hong Kong, are down significantly, yet the Kospi in Seoul has also turned negative following subsequent buying in early trading, losing 0.3 per cent. The Nikkei-225 in Tokyo is still holding up well, and the Sensex in Mumbai is also edging higher. After an initial recovery, the Hang Seng in Hong Kong has now fallen by 1.4 per cent and the leading index in Shanghai by 0.8 per cent. Cathay Pacific is one of the worst performers in Hong Kong. The share price plunged by 6.2 per cent. Anta Sports dropped 3.9 per cent and Kuaishou Technology 2.2 per cent. Software stocks are under pressure in Shanghai, with Security Technology tumbling 3 per cent. Commodity stocks, on the other hand, advanced.

The 10-year U.S. Treasury note yield edged up 3 basis points (0.03 percentage point) to 4.32% on Wednesday. The 2-year Treasury note yield climbed 5 basis points to 4%. Recent turbulence in financial markets is making corporate bonds look cheaper relative to Treasuries, but still not enough to compensate for the increased risk stemming from policy uncertainty tied to Trump.

Vontobel upgrades Sandoz target to CHF 47 (45) - Buy
Baader raises Richemont to Reduce (Sell) - Target 150 CHF
Jefferies starts Kühne & Nagel with Hold and target 240 CHF

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