The air is good in Buenos Aires

The election of Javier Milei as President of Argentina on Sunday boosted the Merval, Buenos Aires' main index, which gained over 33% in 5 days. The ultra-liberal economist, who promises to turn the country's economic fortunes around, has inspired optimism among investors, who expect him to implement market-friendly policies. The index has gained over 300% since the start of the year, while the S&P500 has risen by less than 20%. This performance is relative when set against galloping inflation (+140% year-on-year) and the evolution of the Argentine peso over the same period.

A caloric diet for Copenhagen

Boosted by the results of Novo Nordisk, which accounts for almost 65% of OMX Copenhagen (as at October 31, 2023), the Danish index has gained 3.4% over the last 5 days and 22% since January 1. The pharma company's capitalization growth continues to be fueled by sales of Ozempic, Wegovy and Victoza, its flagship drugs for diabetic and obese patients. It is taking its transnational OMX Nordic counterpart with it.

Infrastructure supports construction

Real estate continues to suffer: rising interest rates have put the brakes on residential construction and transactions, as well as their underlying assets, and the trend towards telecommuting, inherited from Covid, has seriously weakened the commercial side of the sector. Despite this real estate gloom, the Building Materials Index has been on an upward trend since April 2023.

Several factors explain this rise: materials inflation (and its effects on suppliers' profits), market expectations of renewed growth in the sector, government incentives and budgets allocated to the restoration or construction of infrastructure and industrial units (particularly in the USA).