The acquisition is a
bet on the growing e-cigarette market and an attempt to recoup losses incurred from its investment in Juul, which is still seeking approval for its products and has faced regulatory scrutiny over underage usage and health concerns.
Six of NJOY’s products have already received full approval from the US Food and Drug Administration, making it a more attractive investment.
To fund the deal, Altria will use cash from an agreement with Philip Morris International and will make additional cash payments based on regulatory approvals of NJOY’s other products.
Tesla has reduced the prices of its two most expensive electric vehicles in the US, the Model S and Model X, for the fifth time this year.
The cuts ranged from 4.0 per cent on the performance Model S to 9.0 per cent on the more expensive Model X.
The price cuts followed CEO Elon Musk’s comments that Tesla was focusing on bringing prices down to drive demand and had been successful in sparking orders with global discounts introduced in January.
Tesla’s website showed the price of the basic version of Model S was cut by 5.0 per cent to US$89,990 (NZ$145,500) and the price of the performance Plaid variant was cut by 4 per cent to US$109,990 (NZ$177,800).
The prices of both variants of Model X were cut by US$10,000.
Rest of World
Japanese trade unions are demanding the highest wage hike in over two decades at their spring pay negotiations, with an average 4.49 per cent raise request for this year, according to the Japanese Trade Union Confederation (JTUC).
The move comes as the government and central bank urge firms to raise workers’ wages to support the economy.
Major Japanese companies, including Toyota and Honda, have already promised large pay increases to retain skilled workers amid a labour crunch, with Nintendo and Fast Retailing also announcing base pay increases of 10.0 per cent and up to 40.0 per cent respectively.
The wage hike talks are seen as an important criterion to determine the Bank of Japan’s future monetary policy course.
China has set an economic expansion target of around 5.0 per cent for 2023, its lowest in over three decades, as President Xi Jinping aims to restore pre-pandemic levels of growth and centralize power in his own hands.
Outgoing Premier Li Keqiang announced the target, which is below last year’s goal of 5.5 per cent, at the annual National People’s Congress.
Achieving the target would represent a recovery from the 3.0 per cent growth in 2022, as the country suffered extended lockdowns to prevent the spread of the Omicron coronavirus variant.
Li pledged to create 12 million new urban jobs and maintain the unemployment rate at about 5.5 per cent.
China’s official economic growth targets have been declining over the past decade as policymakers have sought to rein in the country’s growing debt burden and stimulate more domestic consumption.
Commodities
Natural gas prices dropped over 12.0 per cent on Monday due to forecasts of milder weather and lower heating demand, following a rally on Friday to a five-week high.
Freeport LNG’s reopening last month after an eight-month shutdown had boosted exports, with the company set to take in around 1.7 billion cubic feet of gas per day.
However, weather forecasts have taken over fundamentals, with the forecast now for less severe temperatures than anticipated last week.
Additionally, stockpiles of natural gas reported by the Energy Information Administration last Thursday are currently 19.0 higher than their five-year average.
Australia
Sims Limited has announced that it has started the process to sell its 50 per cent shareholding in LMS Energy Pty Ltd, Australia’s leading biogas-to-energy and methane abatement company.
LMS owns and operates 36 biogas-to-energy facilities, 26 biogas flaring facilities, and six solar projects, collectively generating approximately 600,000 MWh of renewable energy and abating 4.6 million tonnes of carbon equivalent annually.
Sims’ CEO Alistair Field said he was pleased with the growth achieved over the last 22 years and was confident in LMS’s continued growth.
The proposed sale is consistent with the company’s business strategy to recycle capital and grow the core metal business.
New Zealand
Statistics New Zealand announced that the value of building work in New Zealand for the year ending December 2022 was $34 billion, a 20.0 per cent increase from the previous year.
This increase was driven by a 20.0 per cent increase in non-residential building work, with offices, administration, and public transport buildings, storage buildings, and factories and industrial buildings contributing the most to this growth.
Additionally, residential construction costs increased by 13.0 per cent and non-residential costs increased by 10.0 per cent in the past 12 months.
Coming up today
There is no scheduled news today for the NZX main board or the ASX main board. Later in the day, there will be an announcement regarding the the Reserve Bank of Australia cash rate target and trade balance.
For more information on the latest market moves, get in touch with Jarden.
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