Return of dollar wrecking ball?

Macro & Overnight

NASDAQ had its best start to the year since 2001. But if you want to stay bullish, don’t look at what it did for the rest of that year. Spoiler alert, the NASDAQ fell 36% between January and August 2001.

So far, the US earnings season has been OK. General Motors, UPS and Spotify were among several companies reporting better-than-expected results and guidance.

The Roberts Half Survey reported that 58% of US companies anticipate hiring for new permanent positions, up from 46% just six months ago. Soft landing, here we come?

Interest rate decisions will dominate the rest of this week. If ECB and BoE both follow Canada and hit the interest rate pause button but the Fed presses on with hiking, watch for a re-emergence of the $ wrecking ball that did so much damage last year.

Company News

The private equity fund Chrysalis Investments said its net asset value at year-end was 128.26 pence. A 13.2% decrease since September. The Valuation Committee said this represents a transition towards a more “market-based approach” away from a “price of recent investment” approach. The investment manager continues to be pleased by the overall trading performance of the portfolio and the major holdings, in particular. The fund has a liquidity position of approximately GBP78 million. It also noted that stock markets, including “tech-heavy” ones such as the NASDAQ 100, are beginning to show some stability.

FDM, the professional services provider focused on IT, updated that its primary regions showed growth and a particularly strong performance in North America. The Board expects full-year financial performance to align with its expectations. It considers itself to be well-positioned to weather these uncertainties in 2023.

Keywords Studios, the technical and creative services provider to the global video games and entertainment industries, has acquired 47 Communications, a US-based PR and communications agency with expertise in the video game, technology, entertainment and digital lifestyle. 47 generated revenues of approximately $11 million. The Company did not reveal detailed financials, but Keyword said that the consideration was in line with its targeted valuation range. 

Restore, the provider of physical and digital information management, announced that it performed in line with expectations for last year. It enters 2023 with positive momentum and continues to see growth potential across its organic and acquisition strategies. It expects net boxes will continue to grow strongly and within the guided range of 1% to 2% for FY23, remaining confident that FY23 will be another year of good progress.

Prognosticator