Daily market update: ASML, SpaceX, British Land

The FTSE 100 moved higher despite a continuing slide in the dollar, as it took its cue from gains on Wall Street overnight.

A weaker US currency is a headwind for the large contingent in the index which derive their revenue from across the Atlantic – although it continues to provide support to dollar-denominated gold which has moved above the $5,200 level.

At this rate, gold bugs will be eyeing the $6,000 mark before the end of the year – with the 15% advance required to hit this level less than the 22.5% advance bullion has already managed in the first month of 2026.

There was some optimism in the air ahead of a crunch week for US earnings, accompanied by a dollop of central bank action as the Federal Reserve makes its latest decision on interest rates.

Most observers expect the Fed to stick at current rates for now as speculation continues to swirl about successors to current chair Jerome Powell.

In a hint of some underlying nervousness, Asian markets were mixed. South Korean stocks recovered the losses associated with the latest tariff threats from the Trump administration after conciliatory comments from the US president.

ASML

ASML’s latest results suggest the AI boom is still in full swing, with strong orders and a bullish outlook. However, job cuts in the business would suggest it is not getting carried away with the strength of current trading.

The tech industry has a habit of going crazy with recruitment when it looks like everything is going well. We saw this happen in the aftermath of the pandemic, particularly with strong hiring in cloud computing, remote working services, and digital services. It wasn’t long before there were big layoffs in the tech sector, with many of the big names cutting back on staff after realising they had taken on too many people.

OpenAI recently said it would ‘dramatically slow down’ its pace of hiring, and Amazon is rumoured to be doing another round of redundancies.

ASML’s restructuring looks like a sharper focus on efficiencies and different ways of working, rather than saying there isn’t enough work for existing staff to do. Nonetheless, it’s a sign that the AI craze might be trying to catch its breath.

SpaceX

In typical maverick fashion it looks like Elon Musk is planning for the IPO of SpaceX to coincide with a rare planetary alignment and his birthday.

However, the alignment of markets is typically the deciding factor in the timing of a new issue, never mind if Jupiter and Venus are set to appear close together. If equities are enduring a bout of volatility there might have to be a rethink.

The amount of paperwork and bureaucracy involved could be another obstacle given the relatively tight turnaround. What does seem clear at this point is SpaceX is moving ever closer to being a public company.

SpaceX is reportedly looking to raise $50 billion at a valuation of $1.5 trillion, streets ahead of the $800 billion implied by talks over a private share sale last December.

While going public will provide Musk with access to capital it will also turn the full glare of global investors on the SpaceX business model, strategy and financial performance. How willing they will be to back a mission to Mars, when it is the Starlink satellite business which looks the real moneymaker, remains to be seen.

British Land

British Land has made a takeover offer for Life Science REIT, albeit not a generous one. Its bid is pitched at a 26% discount to the investment trust’s net asset value, suggesting the property group is trying its luck or that it believes the assets are valued too highly in the REIT’s accounts.

Life Science REIT carried out a strategic review last year and while it did attract bid interest, the offers were deemed too low and so it decided to wind down the business by selling assets. British Land’s bid approach is therefore unexpected, given the REIT said last September that it was no longer in an offer period.

Certain investors might be glad of a bid as selling property assets can be a slow and painful experience, and at least British Land’s offer means they can move on from what’s been a disappointing investment.

What’s interesting is how activist investor Saba holds a stake and was buying more shares as recent as last week. Surprisingly, Saba has backed the bid even though it doesn’t look very generous.