At the top of investors' checklists for the end of August were the Jackson Hole symposium and Nvidia's quarterly results. Both of these milestones have now passed. The first was seen by the market as confirmation that interest rates will fall in the United States in less than a month. The second, which took place yesterday evening and which I will dwell on a little, went rather well considering the stakes. As a reminder, if you've just returned from a trip to the moon or live in a cave in Doucy-en-Bauges, Nvidia is a company whose revenue has grown from $11 billion in 2020 to $200 billion at the end of this year. The company's growth has not fallen below 50% for two years and one quarter. All this with huge margins: the net margin exceeds 50%, which means that for every $100 of revenue generated, Nvidia earns a profit of more than $50. It is clearly a company of superlatives, built on a flagship product: the system that provides the computing power needed for artificial intelligence.

Nvidia is therefore THE company capable of calling the shots on the markets right now, a bit like Apple in its heyday. The results published yesterday evening after the close of Wall Street were still stratospheric, despite the mess in China caused by Washington's inconsistent policy on exports of high-tech equipment to the United States' best enemy. The market took note and pretended to be disappointed. But only a little disappointed. The stock lost 3% after hours, which is not much given the usual volatility of tech stocks after earnings reports. At this stage, we can therefore consider that, like the Jackson Hole symposium, Nvidia's earnings report did not teach the market anything it did not already know: widespread investment in the rise of AI is not yet over, and Nvidia remains the best-known supplier of shovels and pickaxes for this artificial gold rush.

Before the close, the stock market mood was relatively calm. The three major US indices gained a few points for a second session of recovery after a period of uncertainty. Investors have been placing greater value on the Russell 2000 in recent days, as small-cap US stocks have come back into fashion with growing hopes of an interest rate cut. The index has gained nearly 5% in five sessions, three times better than the S&P 500 over the same period.

In Europe, Paris enjoyed a technical rebound of 0.4% after two very gloomy sessions following the return of political crisis in France. French Prime Minister Bayrou's government has committed itself to an austerity bill that is likely to bring it down, even though he yesterday sought to pave the way for negotiations with the other parties. The CAC 40's rise was mainly driven by a surge in luxury goods, boosted by upbeat comments from Swiss watchmaker Swatch on trends in the United States despite customs duties. At the moment, it doesn't take much to make the luxury sector happy. The French rebound did little to inspire the rest of Europe. The German DAX sank, betrayed by its stars of 2025, the trio of Commerzbank, Deutsche Bank, and Siemens Energy. London, Milan, Madrid, and Stockholm also lost ground.

Today's session will be marked by Nvidia's figures and tensions over French debt, whose yield is diverging from that of Germany and converging with that of Italy. This is a clear sign of the mistrust generated by the political chaos brewing in France. Investors will also focus on the countdown to Friday's inflation figures. Europe will be looking at preliminary August price data released in France, Italy, Spain, and Germany, while Wall Street will be focusing on July PCE inflation and household income and spending.

But each day has enough trouble of its own. This morning, Japan, South Korea, mainland China, and Australia posted slight gains at the end of trading. India remains under pressure after the US imposed a 50% tariff on the country. Taiwan and Hong Kong posted declines of more than 1%. European leading indicators posted slight gains.

Today's economic highlights:

On today's agenda: new car registrations in the EU27; in Switzerland, GDP; in Spain, M3 money supply and economic confidence; in the United States, annualized GDP, new jobless claims, and pending home sales. See the full calendar here.

  • GBP / USD: US$1.35
  • Gold: US$3,388.5
  • Crude Oil (BRENT): US$66.84
  • United States 10 years: 4.19%
  • BITCOIN: US$112,778

In corporate news:

  • GSK has received approval from the UK's health regulator for its new antibiotic, Blujepa, to treat urinary tract infections in women and girls aged 12 and older.
  • Boohoo founder has increased her ownership stake by purchasing GBP 1 million worth of shares.
  • Frasers Group has expanded its portfolio by acquiring trampolining and mini golf businesses.
  • Ondine Biomedical Inc. plans to raise approximately £11 million to extend its financial operations until mid-2026.
  • Eli Lilly has halted shipments of Mounjaro in the UK following a decision to increase the drug's price.
  • Rheinmetall is expanding its military business by planning acquisitions of German shipbuilders NVL and Naval Vessels Lurssen, opening a new ammunition factory in Germany, and building a munitions ignition powder factory in Romania.
  • Delivery Hero reported a slight increase in Q2 revenue above expectations but has lowered its profit forecast and full-year outlook due to the impact of a strong Euro and foreign exchange rate headwinds.
  • MediaForEurope (MFE) is set to acquire ProSiebenSat.1 after purchasing PPF's stake, which cited limited acceptance as the reason for the sale.
  • Berkshire Hathaway has increased its stake in Mitsubishi Corp to 10.23%.
  • Google has invested $9 billion in AI infrastructure in Virginia and eliminated 35% of managers overseeing small teams in the past year.
  • Pfizer and BioNTech's Comirnaty LP.8.1 vaccine has been approved by the US FDA for updated COVID shots for everyone aged 65 and older and high-risk individuals.
  • CrowdStrike's third-quarter revenue forecast fell short of expectations, leading to a significant drop in shares, despite the acquisition of Onum to boost its SIEM capabilities.

See more news from UK listed companies here

Analyst Recommendations:

  • Prudential Plc: DBS Bank maintains its buy recommendation and raises the target price from HKD 105 to HKD 120.
  • Land Securities Group Plc: Jefferies maintains its underperform recommendation and reduces the target price from GBX 492 to GBX 455.
  • Hays Plc: Citi maintains its buy recommendation and reduces the target price from GBP 1.10 to GBP 0.90.
  • Hochschild Mining Plc: JP Morgan maintains its overweight recommendation and reduces the target price from GBP 3.90 to GBP 3.70.
  • Rio Tinto Plc: Macquarie maintains its neutral recommendation and raises the target price from GBP 40 to GBP 41.