“The UK bucked a positive trend across European markets by slipping into the red. Spirax-Sarco Engineering took the wooden spoon after topping the FTSE 100’s biggest fallers, down 4% despite the absence of any news,” says AJ Bell Investment Analyst Dan Coatsworth.
“The UK government continues to sell down its stake in NatWest, taking it below 30% ahead of a public offer expected in the summer for a chunk of its remaining holding. How much it shifts in the public offer will depend on the extent of the offer discount. Like a retailer who knows they are sitting on too much stock, the government will need to price its NatWest shares keenly to convince people to part with their money.”
Apple / Alphabet / Meta
“The EU has made it no secret that it believes mega cap US technology companies might have not played fairly in their quest for market dominance. These giants of industry, such as Apple and Alphabet, have had more than a few tricks up their sleeves to wield their power and lawmakers don’t like it.
“Shares in Apple, Amazon and Meta Platforms dipped by less than 1% on the news that the EU has started an investigation into potentially uncompetitive practices. This had been expected for some time and is not a shock to the market, hence the fairly mute share price reaction.
“If any of them are found to have breached the Digital Markets Act, they face fines of up to 10% of annual revenue. That’s a substantial amount of money. However, mega-cap tech firms have historically paid any fines and moved on – they generate so much profit anyway that it’s just seen as a cost of doing business. However, it’s fair to say that any legal battles will be time-consuming and costly, and something that management can do without.
“The matter is getting more serious by the day and at some point, any lawbreakers must realise they have to change their behaviour otherwise they face a backlash from every angle imaginable.”
Boeing
“When something serious happens to a company that threatens its reputation and causes a crisis, it’s only natural for senior management to fall on their sword.
“News that both the CEO and Commercial Airplanes boss will leave the company and the Chairman will not stand for re-election means sweeping changes at the top for Boeing.
“The fact the share price went up on the news tells you everything – the market wants fresh leadership to dig Boeing out of one of its biggest holes in the company’s history. The company is under pressure to explain why quality standards have been slipping, with the implication that it has been rushing production and not paying enough attention to safety.”
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