Stock Movers: Alphabet's AI Deal, Walmart's Nasdaq 100 Inclusion, and Credit Card Rate Cap Impact

Alphabet's AI Milestone

• 🚀 Alphabet shares rose 1% to surpass a $4 trillion market capitalization, positioning it as a major beneficiary of the AI boom.
• 🤝 The company secured a multi-year deal with Apple to power its AI technology, including future versions of Siri, using Google's Gemini models and cloud infrastructure.
• 💡 This partnership is notable given Alphabet's and Apple's competitive positions in the operating system market (iOS vs. Android).

Walmart's Nasdaq 100 Entry

• 📈 Walmart shares climbed 3% to a fresh record high, driven by the announcement of its inclusion in the Nasdaq 100 Index effective January 20th.
• 🛒 Walmart is set to become the first retailer to approach a $1 trillion market cap, currently standing at approximately $940 billion.

Financial Sector Impacted by Trump's Proposal

• 📉 Capital One, American Express, and other US banks saw significant stock declines following a proposal by President Trump to cap credit card interest rates at 10% for a year.
• 💰 This potential move could significantly reduce profits for major credit card issuers, with Capital One, the largest US card issuer, experiencing an 8% intraday drop.
• ⚠️ Analysts suggest such a cap could eliminate a year's worth of earnings from credit card operations for affected companies.

Airline Merger and Retail Stock Movement

• ✈️ Sun Country Airlines surged over 10% on news of a definitive merger agreement where Allegiant Travel will acquire Sun Country in a cash and stock transaction valued at $18.89 per share.
• 🛍️ Abercrombie & Fitch shares fell 18% after revising its fourth-quarter net sales forecast to up 5% from a previous expectation of up to 6%, indicating a potential profit-taking scenario after a significant prior stock increase.

Treasury Market Activity

• 📊 The Treasury market experienced selling pressure earlier in the day due to policy proposals from Washington, impacting yields.
• 📉 While short-term yields showed little movement, the 30-year yield decreased by about two basis points, and the 10-year yield increased by two basis points.
• 📈 Strategists anticipate potential further steepening of the yield curve as investors may become hesitant to make long-duration bets.