Trending tickers: Samsung, Boeing, Lufthansa, Bitcoin

LaToya Harding
Hong Kong, China. 29th Apr, 2024. A shopper is seen at the South Korean multinational electronics Samsung
Samsung Electronics rose more than 3% overnight as it is set to post a 13-fold increase in second-quarter profit from a year earlier. (ZUMA Press, ZUMA Press, Inc.)

Samsung Electronics rose more than 3% overnight, as it is set to post a 13-fold increase in second-quarter profit from a year earlier. This comes as demand for artificial intelligence (AI) technology boosts a rebound in memory chip prices.

Operating profit for the world's biggest maker of memory chips, smartphones and TVs likely rose to 8.8tn won ($6.34bn) in the quarter ended 30 June. This is according to the average of an LSEG SmartEstimate from 27 analysts, weighted toward those who are more consistently accurate.

That amount would be Samsung's highest profit since the third quarter of 2022, compared with an operating profit of 670 billion won in the second quarter of last year.

Performance at the tech giant's key semiconductor division likely continued to improve its second consecutive quarterly profit, as memory chip prices keep rising from mid-2022 to end-2023, a trough that was caused by a weak post-pandemic demand for gadgets that use the chips.

Samsung is expected to compete with rival Apple (APPL) at the top end of the market when it launches its latest flagship foldable phones and mobile accessories, including a new ring for health monitoring, on 10 July in Paris.

Boeing faces new perils if federal prosecutors revive a criminal charge against the aviation giant by the end of this week and the company decides to plead guilty.

A plea deal could get rejected by a judge. Big fines will have to be paid and, perhaps the biggest danger, is the effect that a conviction may have on Boeing’s already-battered bottom line.

Criminal convictions can foreclose or suspend a company’s right to contract with the federal government and frustrate its ability to secure loans, according to Eddie Jauregui, a white-collar defence attorney with Holland & Knight and former federal prosecutor.

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Those consequences have particular meaning for Boeing, which counts the federal government as its largest customer. It also happens to be the country’s largest exporter.

The matter could end up with an executive agency known as the Interagency Suspension and Debarment Committee (ISDC), which holds power to discuss government-wide suspensions and debarments that can end or disrupt a company’s business with the US government.

"The considerations are many, and they are weighty," Jauregui said. "I think the government contract work is probably an extremely important component for Boeing."

The German airline Lufthansa will consider raising its stake in Italy's ITA Airways to 90%, starting from early next year, it has been revealed.

In an interview published on Thursday, Carsten Spohr, the chief executive officer of the German carrier said: "For us, the option for the 90% starts in early 2025." He added that he would like the Italian government to retain a stake in ITA.

He was speaking after his company won EU antitrust approval to buy 41% of state-owned ITA for 325 million euros ($350m).

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When Lufthansa agreed its 41% deal with Rome's authorities last year, it said it was looking to acquire full control of ITA "at a later date."

In a separate interview with Il Sole 24 Ore daily, ITA Chairman Antonino Turicchi said the closing of the deal for Lufthansa's initial investment would take place in November, adding that Lufthansa would have the possibility of raising its stake to 90% "one year after the closing."

Italian economy minister, Giancarlo Giorgetti, said on Wednesday that his government wanted to maintain some oversight on ITA to protect national interests.

Bitcoin's value fell below $59,000 (£46,286) on Thursday as multiple factors exacerbated selling pressure on the digital asset. Bitcoin traded down 3.9% over the 24 hours, changing hands for $58,770, as of the time of writing.

Other cryptocurrencies, ether (ETH-USD) and solana (SOL-USD) have fallen further, decreasing by 4.6% and 7.3% respectively. The global cryptocurrency market cap now stands at $2.28tn, a decrease of 4.1% over the past day, according to Coingecko data.

The recent bitcoin price drop has been exacerbated by a spike in long liquidations. Futures traders betting that the price of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies will increase in value have lost over $240m in the past 24 hours, according to CoinGlass data.

Bitcoin futures saw more than $61m in long liquidations, while the cryptocurrency market as a whole recorded over $247m (£193.66m) in long liquidations. A long liquidation occurs when an investor who holds a long position in a financial instrument, such as bitcoin or another cryptocurrency, is forced to sell that position.

This typically happens in leveraged trading, where the investor has borrowed funds to increase their position size and they can't meet margin requirements, resulting in the closure of the position to prevent further losses.

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