Kuehne + Nagel benefited from improving demand for air logistics during the second quarter, when supply chains became more congested during continued disruptions in the Red Sea. Container operators have been forced to send their vessels on longer, more expensive routes around southern Africa's Cape of Good Hope to avoid the Red Sea after Houthi rebels began attacking commercial vessels at the end of last year, creating a shortage of vessels despite continued strong demand. The Swiss logistics company said earnings were supported by cost-efficiency measures launched earlier this year, while a previously announced organizational reshuffle allowed for efficiency gains and improved customer proximity. The company has discontinued its regional structure, creating a new direct reporting line of its units to simplify responsibilities, allow quicker responses to rapidly changing market developments and allowing business decisions to be implemented faster. The company reported a net profit of 288 million Swiss francs ($323.7 million) in the second quarter of 2024, down from CHF400 million in the same period a year earlier, while turnover rose 1.2% to CHF6.05 billion. Analysts polled by FactSet had expected net profit of CHF286 million on turnover of CHF6.1 billion.

The Switzerland market ended on a firm note on Monday, in line with markets across Europe, as investors assessed the developments in the U.S. political front, and awaited fresh economic data, and quarterly earnings updates. US President Joe Biden has stepped out of the race for the White House over the weekend, ending his bid for reelection. He has endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to be the Democratic Party's candidate. The benchmark SMI ended with a strong gain of 123.30 points or 1.01% at 12,296.74. The index touched a low of 12,199.04 and a high of 12,334.06 in the session. SGS climbed about 2.7%. Kuehne + Nagel, Schindler Ps, SIG Group, Novartis and Logitech International gained 2 to 2.5%. Lindt & Spruengli ended nearly 2% up. Givaudan, Julius Baer, Sonova, Swiss Life Holding, Geberit, Lonza Group and Holcim gained 1 to 1.5%. Richemont, Sandoz Group, UBS Group, Nestle, Sika, Swatch Group, Partners Group, Roche GS and ABB posted moderate gains. Belimo Holding soared nearly 17% after raising its sales guidance. Meyer Burger Tech rallied 7.7%. Georg Fischer gained about 3.6%, while Helvetia climbed 2%. Tecan Group, Sandoz, Galanica Sante, BKW and Ems Chemie Holding also posted notable gains.

Europe
The dollar slid while Treasuries rose as investors weighed the implications of U.S. President Joe Biden's exit from the presidential election race. Amid growing calls within his Democratic Party for his stepping down, Biden endorsed his Vice-President Kamala Harris for the Democratic nomination. Stocks advanced, rebounding after having suffered some sharp losses in the previous session following a global IT outage linked to issues at cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike. The pan European Stoxx 600 climbed 0.93%. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 gained 0.53%, Germany's DAX ended up 1.29%, and France's CAC 40 closed higher by 1.16%, while Switzerland's SMI settled with a gain of 1.01%. Among other markets in Europe, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Greece, Iceland, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Spain, Sweden and Turkiye all closed higher. In the UK market, Rentokil Initial soared nearly 8% on reports that former BT chief Philip Jansen is in talks to buy the British pest-control firm. Entain ended more than 2% down. The British gambling group named Gavin Isaacs, former chief of U.S.-based lottery games and betting firm Scientific Games Corp, as its new CEO. Burberry Group gained about 3.2%.

United States
A big rebound in technology shares helped lift major stock indexes, restoring some calm to markets after a rough end to the previous week. Powered in large part by Nvidia and other chip makers, the S&P 500 rose 1.1% to snap a three-day losing streak. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite gained 1.6% after dropping 4.2% over the previous three trading sessions. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.3%, or roughly 128 points. Monday’s gains followed President Biden’s announcement on Sunday that he was ending his presidential run, a move that injected fresh uncertainty into an election that could have wide ranging implications for markets and the economy. However, there was little consensus among investors and analysts about what Biden’s announcement should mean for markets in the short run, and Monday’s moves appeared to be influenced by other factors. Among those: the recent declines in stocks that started out largely concentrated in the tech sector but that broadened out by the end of last week. Among individual movers, Nvidia gained 4.8% after Reuters reported the chip maker is working on a version of its AI chips that would be compatible with U.S. controls on exports to China. Verizon fell 6.1% after the wireless carrier reported weaker-than-expected quarterly revenue. Some investors said coming earnings results for large technology companies could go far toward determining whether stocks can extend their momentum from Monday.

Asia
While the majority of stock exchanges in Asia and Australia are on course for a moderate recovery on Tuesday, important trading places such as those in China are lagging behind with losses. In Japan, the Nikkei-225 rose by a meagre 0.1 per cent to 39,641 points - held back by the significant weakening of the US dollar against the yen. Trump had recently spoken out in favour of a weak dollar and the first US interest rate cut in September is likely to be approaching.

Bonds
On Monday, longer-term Treasury yields initially edged lower - possibly reflecting worse odds of a Republican sweep - but they reversed that move before lunchtime. By the end of the session, the yield on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury note settled at 4.259%, up from 4.238% Friday.

Analysis
UBS raises Bossard target to CHF 181 (180) – Sell
HSBC raises Adidas target to 300 (240) EUR – Buy
JP Morgan lowers Aegon target to EUR 7.50 (7.60) – Overweight

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