Ford Motor said it expected to take about $19.5 billion in charges, mainly tied to its electric-vehicle business, a massive hit as the automaker retrenches in the face of sinking EV demand. The sum is among the largest impairments taken by a company and marks the U.S. auto industry’s biggest reckoning to date that it can’t realize its electric-vehicle ambitions anytime soon. Ford, which has lost $13 billion on its EV business since 2023, said it would bolster its lineup of gas-powered vehicles while shifting to hybrid and so-called extended-range electric vehicles that include onboard gasoline engines. The goal is to pull back from loss-making assets and redeploy capital designated for EVs to models with higher profitability. “Instead of plowing billions into the future knowing these large EVs will never make money, we are pivoting,” Ford Chief Executive Jim Farley said in an interview. “We now know enough about the U.S. market where we have a lot more certainty in this second inning” of reduced-emissions powertrains, he said.

The Swiss stock market closed higher on Monday evening, mirroring its European counterparts at the start of what promises to be an eventful week. Investors are patiently awaiting the European Central Bank's (ECB) decision and the publication of economic indicators in the United States. On the Swiss stock market, the SMI ended the session up 1.16% at 13,036.80 points, with a high of 13,042.39 and a low of 12,920.52. The SLI gained 1.05% to 2,109.70 points and the SPI edged up 1.05% to 17,915.20 points. Of the 30 leading stocks, 28 rose and only two fell. The day's top performers were Sonova (+2.9%), Swiss Life (+2.1%) and Galderma (+1.9%). Sika (+1.7%) pulled the index upwards. The heavyweights Novartis (+1.6%), Roche (+1.6%) and Nestlé (+1.3%) ended on a positive note. ABB (+1.2%) also added to its gains. The electrical engineering giant won a €46 million contract in the lithium sector. On the losing side, Logitech (-0.1%) came in at the bottom of the rankings. UBS (-0.5%) finished last.

Europe
European stock markets rose on Monday, getting off to a good start to a week that will be marked by several major events, including the European Central Bank's (ECB) monetary policy announcements on Thursday. The Stoxx Europe 600 index gained 0.7% to 582.5 points. In Paris, the CAC 40 and SBF 120 also rose 0.7%. In Frankfurt, the DAX 40 gained 0.2% and the FTSE 100 climbed 1.1% in London. SANOFI (-3.3%): On Monday, the pharmaceutical company announced a further postponement of the decision by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regarding tolebrutinib for the treatment of secondary progressive non-relapsing multiple sclerosis. Sanofi also announced that it was abandoning studies on this drug for another form of the disease, following the failure of a phase 3 trial. SPIE (+4.1%): Electrical and mechanical engineering specialist Spie announced on Monday that it had signed a framework agreement with US electric vehicle manufacturer TESLA (+4% on Wall Street) to develop battery energy storage systems in Europe. ORANGE (+1.3%): : On Friday evening, the telecommunications operator announced that it had reached a binding agreement with the Lorca financial consortium to increase its stake in their joint venture MasOrange to 100%. ‘Through this agreement, Orange will acquire the 50% stake held by its co-shareholder for a cash price of €4.25 billion,’ the group said in a statement.

United States
Stocks moved to the upside at the start of trading on Monday but quickly gave back ground early in the session. The major averages pulled back well off their early highs and spent much of the rest of the day lingering near the unchanged line. The major averages eventually ended the day modestly lower. While the tech-heavy Nasdaq slid 137.76 points or 0.6 percent to 23,057.41, the S&P 500 dipped 10.90 points or 0.6 percent to 6,816.51 and the Dow edged down 41.49 points or 0.1 percent at 48,416.56. The initial strength on Wall Street came as some traders looked to pick up stocks at somewhat reduced levels following the sharp pullback on Friday. Buying interest waned shortly after the start of trading, however, as AI spending worries continue to weigh on stocks like Broadcom (AVGO) and Oracle (ORCL). Traders may also have been reluctant to make significant moves ahead of the release of some key U.S. economic data in the coming days. The monthly jobs report for November along with a report on retail sales in October are due to be released on Tuesday, while a report on consumer price inflation in November is scheduled to be released on Thursday. The data could impact the outlook for interest rates following the Federal Reserve's monetary policy announcement last Wednesday. Computer hardware stocks extended the sharp pullback seen during last Friday's session, dragging the NYSE Arca Computer Hardware Index down by 2.9 percent. Considerable weakness was also visible among software stocks, as reflected by the 1.5 percent loss posted by the Dow Jones U.S. Software Index. Telecom, networking and brokerage stocks also saw notable weakness, while pharmaceutical and healthcare stocks showed strong moves to the upside.

Asia
Asian stock markets are falling sharply for the second day in a row on Tuesday. Concerns about the bursting of a possible technology bubble in the AI sector are once again making the rounds. As a result, technology stocks and technology-heavy indices such as South Korea's Kospi are recording particularly high losses.

Bonds
In the U.S. bond market, treasuries are regaining ground following last Friday's slump. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is down by 3.3 basis points at 4.161 percent.

Analysis
Morgan Stanley lowers target price for Lindt & Sprüngli to CHF 125,500 (CHF 130,500) – Equalweight
Morgan Stanley lowers target price for Barry Callebaut to Equalweight (Overweight) – CHF 1,270 (CHF 1,130)
Morgan Stanley raises target price for Straumann to CHF 80 (CHF 75) – Underweight

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