Markets

The Australian sharemarket sank for a fourth straight week to a six-month low, amid renewed AI jitters and a stronger-than-expected US jobs report that clouded the outlook for rate cuts. ($AFR)
FTSE 100 has outperformed the ASX200 by a 20% lead, reflecting it’s global composition and sector mix. ($AFR)
US stocks rebounded at the end of a week marked by erratic trading, after a top Federal Reserve official lifted Wall Street’s hopes for a December rate cut (40% chance of cute before vs 70% chance now). ($FT, PM)
Eli Lilly becomes first pharma group to join $1tn club ($FT)
Oil prices settle down at lowest in a month as US seeks Russia-Ukraine peace deal (TR)
Global banks invested $8bn in Indian lenders this year, up from $2.3bn last year and $1.4bn in 2023, driven by relaxed regulations. ($FT)
Trading volume in credit default swaps tied to AI sector debt increased to approximately $4.2 billion over a recent six-week period.

Prev-day Stock Movements

Autosports Group fell 2.1 per cent as the company struck a deal to acquire 10 Barry Bourke Motors dealerships in Victoria for about $34 million, securing a major footprint expansion and deepening relationships with luxury and premium brands.
Accent Group tumbled 12.8 per cent as the retail group downgraded its earnings expectations from soft trading and heavy discounting, dragging on sales and margins in the first months of the 2026 fiscal year.
Kogan rose 1.3 per cent as the retailer posted adjusted EBITDA of $10.1 million for the first four months of trading in the 2026 financial year, down 31.3 per cent across the period, with the decline driven by losses at its New Zealand arm.
Reece climbed 1 per cent as the plumbing and bathroom products group suffered an 18 per cent fall in earnings before interest and tax in the September quarter to $129 million.
Webjet rose 1.1 per cent to 90.5¢ as BGH Capital upped its takeover bid to 91¢ per share in cash for the shares it does not own. The offer came after Helloworld made a bid of its own earlier in the week for 90¢.

Japan-China relationship is on shaky grounds after comments about Taiwan were made from newly-elected Japanese Prime Minister, Sanae Takaichi. ($FT, $FT)
Federal Judge Leonie Brinkema expressed worries about ordering a breakup of Google’s advertising business, calling the DOJ’s request a dramatic and hard-to-enforce change. ($FT)

Race car driver and CrowdStrike founder/CEO George Kurtz agreed to acquire a 15% stake in co-owner/CEO Toto Wolff’s 30% stake in Mercedes-AMG F1 Team at a $6B valuation (TR)
Boman Group, in collaboration with JPC Group is launching a new fund to tackle the housing crisis; targeting innovations in construction, specifically modular housing, robotics, advanced building materials and tech-enabled platforms that can reshape the construction industry, improving costs and efficiency. ($AFR)
Bruce Buchanan’s $6b-plus adtech Rokt warms up investors for 2026 deal, hinting at an ASX / NASDAQ dual-listing ($AFR)
Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square Capital is preparing a stock market debut that could come early next year. (TR, $FT)
BHP has approached Anglo American in recent days to create a mining giant, aiming to disrupt the planned $57 billion combination with Teck Resources. ($AFR)

The WDCT softened in the two weeks to 1st November, sitting above it’s 2025 average read of 152.9
Quarterly growth momentum is tracking around 1.9%/qtr
Despite slow-down in card activity, activity is still higher than the monthly average of 2025 suggesting that consumer’s are holding back for the second half of this year.
Discretionary spending still remains the main driver of increases / decreases in card activity. Household items has seen the biggest demand drop.
Spending across the board is increasing, with NSW and WA leading.
Retail card activity has slowed. Retail, basic food and hospitality have stayed flat, but non-food categories have seen less spending from their peak in August.