Industrial group ABB received more orders in the second quarter than ever before and, despite geopolitical uncertainties, is well on track for another record year. ABB expects further growth in the third quarter of 2025 and reaffirms its annual forecast. In the second quarter, order intake climbed 16 percent to $9.785 billion, with a 14 percent increase on a comparable basis. Revenue grew 8 percent to $8.9 billion, or 6 percent on a currency-adjusted basis. Analysts had expected revenue of $8.72 billion. Sales increased in three of the four business units, supported by the processing of the order backlog and positive developments in the short-cycle business and the service business. According to ABB, higher volumes were the main drivers of sales growth, along with slightly positive price developments. Operating EBITA grew by 9 percent compared to the same quarter last year to $1.708 billion, exceeding analysts' expectations of $1.65 billion. The margin rose by 20 basis points to 19.2 percent. ABB's share of consolidated net income rose 5 percent year-on-year to $1.151 billion, also exceeding analysts' expectations, which had averaged $1.12 billion.

After a choppy ride till around noon, Swiss stocks gained in strength on Wednesday, but following some brisk selling in the closing minutes, ended the day's session with just a small gain. The benchmark SMI ended up 9.49 points or 0.08% at 11,910.81. The index, which dropped to 11,883.04 around mid morning, climbed to 11,977.61 in late afternoon trades. Partners Group rallied about 5.1%, driven by a jump in total assets under management to $174 billion in the first half from the year-ago $149 billion. The company as forecast total new client assets of $26 billion to $31 billion for the full year. Swiss Re, Zurich Insurance Group, Swatch Group and Lonza Group gained 1.1 to 1.3%. Richemont gained more than 1% after the company said its fiscal first-quarter group sales increased year over year to 5.41 billion euros from 5.27 billion euros, thanks to a sharp 11% jump in its Jwellery Maisons segment. VAT Group ended down 3.48%. Holcim, ABB, Sika and Julius Baer lost 1.4 to 1.7%. Sandoz Group, Kuehne + Nagel, Amrize, Novartis, Geberit and Straumann Holding closed lower by 0.8 to 1.1%.

Europe
European stocks closed weak on Wednesday as concerns about tariffs, and reports that U.S. President Donald Trump will sack Fed Chair Jerome Powell sometime soon, hurt sentiment. Investors also digested a slew of corporate earnings updates that fell short of expectations. Disappointing updates from chipmaker ASML Holdings and French auto major Renault hurt sentiment. The pan European Stoxx 600 closed down 0.57%. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 ended lower by 0.13%, Germany's DAX lost 0.21% and France's CAC 40 drifted down 0.57%. Switzerland's SMI edged up 0.08%. Among other markets in Europe, Belgium, Czech Republic, Finland, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Sweden and Turkiye closed weak. Denmark, Russia and Spain ended higher, while Austria and Poland closed flat. In the UK market, Ashtead Group, Croda International, WPP, Pershing Square Holding, Melrose Industries, Persimmon, St. James's Place, Unite Group, IHG, JD Sports Fashion, Centrica and BAE Systems lost 1 to 2.6%. Intermediate Capital Group climbed nearly 3.5%. Hiscox closed lower by about 2.6%. Beazley, 3i Group, British American Tobacco, Vodafone Group, GSK, Games Workshop and Sainsbury (J) also closed notably higher. Rio Tinto gained about 1.2%. In the German market Volkswagen, BASF, Porsche, Brenntag, Siemens Energy and Heidelberg Materials lost 2 to 3.7%.

United States
Following the mixed performance seen in the previous session, stocks showed a lack of direction throughout much of the trading day on Wednesday. The major averages moved to the upside in the latter part of the session, however, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq reaching a new record closing high. The major averages all finished the day in positive territory. The Dow advanced 231.49 points or 0.5 percent to 44,254.78, the Nasdaq rose 52.69 points or 0.3 percent to 20,730.49 and the S&P 500 climbed 19.94 points or 0.3 percent to 6,263.70. Stocks came under pressure in late morning trading following reports President Donald Trump discussed the possibility of firing Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell during a meeting with House Republicans. Advanced Micro Devices, meanwhile, rose 2.9%. Shares of the chip maker rose 6.4% on Tuesday to $155.61, notching the highest close since Oct. 29, after receiving approval to resume shipments of MI308 chips to China. Shares of AMD have risen 33% in 2025. ASML tumbled 8.3% after the Dutch chip equipment manufacturer said it couldn’t guarantee growth in 2026 because of tariff uncertainty. ASML’s warning weighed on peer stocks. Applied Materials fell 2.3%, KLA declined 0.3%, and Lam Research was down 0.7%. With Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, and Morgan Stanley, three other major US banks reported figures that were largely received negatively, even though they had surprised on the upside. Bank of America fell 0.3%, Goldman rose 0.8%, while Morgan Stanley fell 1.3%. Johnson & Johnson jumped 6.2% after second-quarter earnings and sales topped analysts’ estimates.

Asia
The stock markets in East Asia and Australia barely budged on Thursday. Uncertainties about further developments in the customs dispute are causing caution, according to reports. Japanese exports fell for the second month in a row in June. Japan's deliveries to the USA slumped by 11.4 per cent compared to the same month last year, highlighting the impact of the higher tariffs. This was the third consecutive month of decline, following an 11 per cent fall in May. Japan's trade surplus with the USA shrank by 22.9 per cent in June.

Bonds
On the U.S. bond market, the ten-year yield fell by 3 basis points to 4.45 per On the US bond market, the ten-year yield fell by 3 basis points to 4.45 per cent, after initially trading higher following the US inflation figures.

Analysis
Berenberg lowers Alcon target to CHF 90 (93) – Buy
Deutsche Bank lowers SAF-Holland target to EUR 17 (18) – Hold
Deutsche Bank lowers Renault target to EUR 47 (55) – Hold