Stock Market Overview:

Markets:

J.P. Morgan Chase reported record quarterly revenues that surpassed analyst predictions, increasing the stock by 7.5%, while Citigroup and Wells Fargo also exceeded expectations. Additionally, U.S. Treasury yields rose, causing the 10-year and 30-year rates to record their largest weekly gains in two months. For the week, the Dow Jones rose by 1.2%, the S&P 500 by 0.8%, and the Nasdaq Composite by 0.3%.

The first tranche of US$ 20 million offers a coupon of 9.00% p.a. (gross) with a maturity of 3 years. The second US$ 20 million tranche is expected to be issued later this year.
 
SRG Real Estate will now become a publicly listed company on the Georgian Stock Exchange, which is a testament to the company’s continued success in recent years. The bond issue was made possible with the support of TBC Capital, Galt & Taggart and Silk Bank. 
 

Wall Street wrapped up the short but volatile week on a modestly upbeat note ahead of Friday's monthly jobs report. Stocks had been wobbly earlier in the week in response to signs of a slowing economy, including weak data on private payrolls and job openings. That marked a change from previous sentiment when investors cheered weak economic numbers in the hope that the Federal Reserve might ease up on its campaign of interest rate hikes. Now the market seems to be struggling to decide whether recession worries or rate hike worries are more meaningful to stock prices.

Markets: 
Stocks closed out March with all three major market indexes higher than they were at the end of February, as the turmoil caused by the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank was contained, at least for now. The banking turbulence may well weigh on lending conditions in the months ahead, creating a new headwind for the U.S. economy, but the prospect of further Federal Reserve rate increases appears to have diminished. For the week, the Dow Jones jumped 3.2%, the Nasdaq rose 3.4%, and the S&P popped 3.5%.

In such times, it is perhaps necessary to focus on a larger picture rather than individual companies alone. This is because the fate of financial markets as well as the global economy for near and mid-term may be shaped in coming months.

Last week, number of large banks have failed on their short-term liabilities in the US and Western Europe. More specifically, it was Silicon Valley Bank, First Republic Bank, and an almost 2-centruries old Swiss giant – Credit Suisse.

Stocks ended their worst week so far this year with a fourth straight day of losses, and U.S. Treasuries and gold soared in a flight to quality, after federal regulators closed tech-focused lender Silicon Valley Bank on Friday in the biggest U.S. bank failure since 2008. Regional bank stocks plunged, with the top S&P regional banking ETF sinking 16% on the week, its worst showing since March 2020 at the start of the pandemic.

Last week, the fresh US inflation data was reported at a higher-than-expected yearly rate of 4.7% (vs 4.3% average forecast). Importantly, the PCE measure (Personal Consumption Expenditure) tracks inflation in goods and services that are directly related to end consumers’ expenditures (hence the name). Therefore, the US Federal Reserve pays special attention to this specific inflation measure.

Global Finance published a list of the best investment banks in the world in 2023, and named Galt & Taggart as the best investment bank in Georgia.

The selection process is based on a detailed study of the financial institutions' performance and evaluation by industry experts. The winners are determined by the market share of the investment bank, the number and volume of transactions, their reputation in the market, competitiveness, services and innovations.

Airbnb (ABNB)

Airbnb released stunning quarterly financial results last week, leading its share to rally 20.9% w/w. In the latest quarter, the company reported a higher-than-expected revenue of $1.9bn, while earnings-per-share (EPS) came in at impressive $0.48 vs $0.25 forecast. Airbnb’s net income for the quarter was $319mn, which is almost 6 times as much as that of last year’s equivalent quarter.