EN 
TH 
TL 
Weekly News Recap 20 – 24 May 2024
News for 20 May 2024
Gold Hits a New High!
At the end of last week, gold prices surged to close at $2,414/oz. This rise was due to the U.S. dollar index rebounding weakly, hitting a high of around 104.80 before softening to close at 104.50, which is close to the opening price. Consequently, the weakening dollar supported gold in reaching a new high in 1 month.
Looking ahead, gold prices are expected to maintain a strong upward trend due to the weakening dollar. However, the increase in Thai gold prices might not be as significant compared to previous periods, as the Thai baht has quickly strengthened over the past week.
Apple Secretly Developing an All-New iPhone – Aims to use advanced chips to support specifications above competitors.
The website The Information reported over the weekend that Apple is developing a new, slimmer iPhone model, expected to be launched alongside the iPhone 17 in September 2025. This new iPhone, reportedly codenamed D23, is anticipated to be priced higher than the iPhone Pro Max and will feature Apple’s latest processor, potentially named the A19.
According to Reuters, this move demonstrates Apple’s efforts to innovate its flagship products in response to fierce competition from other smartphone manufacturers such as HONOR and Huawei in China, and Samsung Electronics in the global market.
Walmart’s Revenue Shows Strong Recovery Year Over Year. Meanwhile, the gross profit margin increased to 24%.
Walmart (WMT) reported 1Q24 revenue equal to 162 billion dollars +6%YoY and operating income increased to 7.1 billion dollars +14%YoY, while consumer product trends (except for oil prices and the transportation service sector) began to slow down compared to the previous year. Reduced costs drove the gross profit margin to increase to 24.1%, while 1Q23 was 23.7%. Revenue from E-Commerce was +21%YoY.
Analysts give a target price of $71 because they assess the outlook for 2Q24 to grow continuously, expecting revenue to increase to 169 billion dollars +4%YoY and earnings per share of $0.65 +7%YoY, while the stock price has increased +21%. YTD.
News for 21 May 2024
Gold Holds Steady at High Levels
On May 20, gold prices surged to close at 2,426$/oz due to the Iranian president having a plane crash. Markets are concerned that the acting vice president’s tenure could lead to an increase in violence. Gold as a safe asset has continued purchasing power.
The price of gold has a strong upward trend continuously.
Look Forward to NVIDIA Announce Budget on May 22. Expect the trend of income and profits to grow.
On May 22, it was reported that 1Q24 revenue is expected to increase to $24,590 million +11%QoQ and earnings per share of $5.60 +9%QoQ due to increased cloud service usage and GPU sales. continuously In addition, gross profit is expected to increase to 76% from 75% in 4Q23, which may push the net profit rate to 56%. We still need to keep an eye on China’s recovery. Sales in China account for 17%. If the Chinese economy begins to recover, the outlook is continuously good. Additionally, the stock price has increased by 96% year-to-date, resulting in a P/E ratio of 78, which is higher than the historical average of 68.
News for 23 May 2024
Gold Weakens, Falls Below $2,400/oz. After Fed members indicated interest rates would remain high.
On May 22, gold prices fell to close at $2,378/oz. This decline was due to comments from Fed members suggesting that the U.S. central bank will not lower interest rates anytime soon, causing the dollar index to rise to 104.91. The stronger dollar put pressure on gold prices.
On May 23, at 8:45 PM, the U.S. manufacturing and services PMI numbers are scheduled to be announced, with forecasts at 50.0 and 51.2, respectively.
It is anticipated that gold prices might further weaken to test the support level around $2,350/oz.
NVIDIA Grows Strongly in Both Revenue and Profit. The company’s GPUs are market leaders.
On May 22, NVIDIA reported 1Q25 revenue (as of 31/3/21) increased to $26,044 million +262%YoY, +18%QoQ and profit of $14,881 million +628%YoY. , +21%QoQ due to Data Center revenue increasing to $22.6 billion +427%YoY, +23%QoQ Automobile revenue was $329 million +17%YoY, +11%QoQ
However, some segments saw QoQ declines but YoY growth: Gaming revenue was $2.6 billion, up 18% YoY but down 8% QoQ, and Professional Visualization revenue was $427 million, up 45% YoY but down 8% QoQ. Despite stable raw material costs, the company raised product prices, increasing the gross margin to 78% from 65% in 1Q24 and the net profit margin to 57% of revenue.
Key revenue-driving projects:
- Launched Blackwell chip architecture for large-scale AI computations.
- Announced NVIDIA Quantum and NVIDIA Spectrum™ X800 Series Switches for InfiniBand and Ethernet networks.
- Released NVIDIA AI Enterprise 5.0 with NVIDIA NIM for enterprise application development.
- Expanded collaborations with AWS, Google Cloud, Microsoft, and Oracle to advance AI innovations across various sectors.
Following the earnings announcement, analysts raised the target price for 2024 to $1,038. However, NVIDIA plans a 10-for-1 stock split and a 150% increase in quarterly dividends, setting the post-split target price at $104.
TSMC Expects Semiconductor Industry to Grow Over 10% This Year
TSMC, the world’s largest contract chip maker from Taiwan, expects the semiconductor industry to grow more than 10% this year, excluding the memory chip business.
News for 24 May 2024
Gold Weakens Significantly as Fed Signals Potential Interest Rate Maintain
On May 23, the price of gold weakened, breaking the important support level of 2,350 $/oz, closing at 2,329 $/oz due to the announcement of the purchasing index numbers for the manufacturing and service sectors of the United States (Manufacturing Purchasing Manager Index or PMI) came in higher than expected at 50.9 and 54.8 respectively, causing the dollar index to rise to 104.62. The dollar strengthened, putting pressure on gold prices.
On May 24 at 7:30 p.m., there was an announcement of US durable goods orders, forecast -0.9%.
The Wind Changes Direction!!! After Major Brokers Unanimously Predict Fed to Maintain High Interest Rates for Longer
Following the release of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s monetary policy meeting report, it was revealed that Fed officials remain confident that price pressures will ease, but at a slow pace. This comes after disappointing inflation data, showing that U.S. inflation has remained high for the first three months. Currently, the market now weighs that the Fed might delay cutting interest rates from September to November. The prospect of a longer period of tight monetary policy has led to a 2% drop in the Dow Jones index and gold breaking a key support level at $2,350/oz over the past five trading days.
However, David Solomon, CEO of Goldman Sachs, forecasts that the Fed will not cut interest rates this year amid an improving economy, supported by U.S. government spending. This is in line with Jamie Dimon, CEO of J.P. Morgan, who stated that it is likely the Fed will continue to raise interest rates to curb inflation.
Moreover, both fundamental and technical factors support the downward trend. Technically, the Dow Jones index formed a double top and failed to break resistance, leading to a decline.
