Airbnb ABNB raised its outlook for the year as the company has avoided the slowdown in travel demand being experienced by some of its competitors. The short-term rental company said it now expects annual revenue to increase by a high-teens percentage, up from its prior guidance of mid-teens percentage growth.For the fourth quarter, Airbnb expects revenue of $3.22 billion to $3.28 billion, which would be ahead of the $3.16 billion that analysts are projecting. It anticipates gross booking value will increase by a mid-teens percentage, driven by rise in nights and seats booked, as well as average daily rates. For the third quarter, Airbnb posted a profit of $1.89 billion, or $3.16 a share, compared with $1.37 billion, or $2.21 a share, a year earlier. Analysts expected $2.85 a share, according to FactSet. Revenue rose 19% to $4.87 billion. Analysts surveyed by FactSet forecast revenue of $4.75 billion. Gross booking value rose 21% to $27.7 billion, beating Wall Street’s consensus estimate of $26.43 billion.

SMI slid 0.4 percent to 14,968 points. Among individual stocks, ABB shares dropped 4.2 percent after Chinese authorities blocked the planned sale of its robotics division to Japan’s SoftBank Group. ABB had agreed to the sale to the Japanese technology investor at a valuation of $5.375 billion in October of last year. According to ABB, the two companies are working “constructively” on the transaction. Otherwise, cyclical stocks were once again in demand. Market participants reported ongoing rotations out of technology stocks. Holcim, Geberit, and Sika posted gains of up to 1.3 percent. Following the release of strong financial results, shares of reinsurer Swiss Re climbed 2 percent. Zurich (+1%) and Swiss Life (+0.7%) also outperformed the market. Swisscom’s earnings were well received. The stock jumped 3.3 percent. Tecan’s earnings (+7.1%) also scored well. In the technology sector, Logitech lost 3.3 percent within the SMI. Among smaller caps, Ams-Osram plummeted 13 percent.

Europe
European stock markets closed mixed on Thursday. The Stoxx Europe 600 index shed 0.4%, closing at 654.87 points. In Paris, the CAC 40 and the SBF 120 each rose 0.3%. In Frankfurt, the DAX 40 slipped 0.4%, as did the FTSE 100 in London. AIR FRANCE-KLM (+11.1%): The airline group revised its 2026 capacity growth forecast on Thursday, emphasizing its focus on profitability. ARCELORMITTAL (-1.4%): The steelmaker reported better-than-expected third-quarter results on Thursday, despite a decline in production and extraordinary charges related to the suspension of its operations in Ukraine. BOUYGUES (+2.6%): the diversified conglomerate raised its forecast for recurring operating profit (ROCA) on Thursday, as its nine-month results came in above analysts’ expectations. JCDECAUX (+5.8%): the world’s leading outdoor advertising company stated on Wednesday evening having significantly exceeded its organic growth forecast for the third quarter. RHEINMETALL (-16.1%): The German defense group cut its 2026 forecast for the second time this year due to the postponement of a major armored vehicle contract with the German government. SES (+8.4%): The satellite operator reiterated its outlook for 2026 on Thursday, as its third-quarter results surpassed analysts' expectations.

United States
U.S. stocks plunged as disappointment in two major chip designers' earnings and post-election fears about curbed data-center development caused a rout in artificial-intelligence companies. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 1833.06 points, or 3.44%, to 51523.06. The broad S&P 500 fell 334.89 points, or 4.36% to 7353.73. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite plunged 1421.52 points, or 5.52%, to 24315. TESLA (-10.8%), SPACEX (-9%): Elon Musk’s two companies continued to slide on Thursday as investors fear that the future Democratic majority in Congress and in key states like Texas will put the brakes on artificial intelligence projects, particularly those involving data centers. ARM HOLDINGS (-13% for the ADR): The chip designer reported a 27% increase in revenue for the second quarter of its fiscal year (which runs on a different schedule), yet its outlook for the third quarter fell short of expectations, largely due to a slowdown in the smartphone market. AMAZON (-2%), UBER (-1.6%): The e-commerce giant will offer free meal delivery via Uber Eats as part of its Prime loyalty program, as competition in the sector intensifies following the announcement that DOORDASH (-9.4%) is acquiring Instacart for $17 billion, the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday, citing an Amazon Prime official. QUALCOMM (-9.8%): The semiconductor manufacturer posted better-than-expected results for the fourth quarter of its 2026–2027 fiscal year, but continued to suffer from a decline in its smartphone-related business. SNAP (-13.9%): The operator of the Snapchat platform reported better-than-expected earnings in the third quarter, although revenue and user growth fell short of forecasts.

Asia
A sell-off is sweeping Asian stock markets on Friday. In Seoul, the Kospi is plummeting by 4.9 percent. Tech heavyweights Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix are down 5.7 percent and 9.1 percent, respectively. The Nikkei 225 is in bear market territory (more than 20 percent below its recent high in June) and dropped 5.9 percent to 57,483 points. Sony shed 1.7 percent. The electronics conglomerate had reported earnings after the market closed the previous day and raised its forecast following a jump in profits—but in this negative market environment, neither of these factors seems to have much impact. In China, the indices are holding up better; Beijing’s interventionist policies had already provided support to the semiconductor sector in particular the day before. The Shanghai Composite lost 1.2 percent, while the HSI in Hong Kong fell 1.1 percent.

Bonds
U.S. government debt yields slipped on Thursday. Inflation fears resurfaced. Safe-haven demand pushed Treasury yields down. The yield on the policy-sensitive two-year Treasury declined 0.104 percentage point to 4.475%. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell 0.055 percentage point to 4.836%. The yield on the 30-year bond shed 0.030 percentage point to 5.250%.

Analysis
Clariant price target: JPMorgan raises to 14 (13) CHF - Overweight
Arbonia price target: UBS lowers to 5.40 (6.20) CHF - Buy
Sandoz price target: Julius Bär increases to 100 (88) CHF - Buy