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Market Overview
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Year To Date Performances:

1. The Michigan Supreme Court has denied the group Free Speech For People’s appeal to remove former President Donald Trump from the state's 2024 presidential primary ballot. The group's appeal was based on Trump's alleged role in the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot, citing Section 3 of the 14th Amendment, which prohibits those involved in insurrection from holding office. This ruling follows a contrasting decision by the Colorado Supreme Court, which disqualified Trump from Colorado's 2024 ballot. However, the Michigan court noted significant differences in election laws between the two states. The Colorado ruling is also pending appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, which has yet to interpret Section 3 of the 14th Amendment. Similar efforts by Free Speech For People in Minnesota were also rejected. The Michigan ruling upholds an earlier decision stating that election officials cannot determine a presidential primary candidate’s eligibility and that Trump did not violate state election laws in filing to run.

2. SoftBank Group's shares surged by 5% following its announcement that it would receive T-Mobile U.S. shares valued at approximately $7.59 billion without additional cost. This development comes after the fulfillment of conditions from a merger agreement involving SoftBank’s U.S. telco Sprint and T-Mobile. The transaction significantly enhances SoftBank's portfolio, effectively doubling its stake in T-Mobile U.S. to 7.64%, bolstering its position in the market post the high-profile listing of chip designer Arm in September. According to analyst Paul Golding of Macquarie, this increase in SoftBank’s proportion of listed, measurable equity is beneficial, particularly in terms of marginable equity relative to indebtedness. SoftBank’s shares are on track for their largest gain in over a month, yet the company's year-to-date rise of about 14% lags behind the nearly 30% increase in the benchmark index. SoftBank is currently trading at a roughly 45.5% discount to the value of its assets, as per Macquarie's calculations.

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4. Headlines

   1. US Box Office sales are up 21% from 2022 to 2023 but are still down 20% from 2019 highs.

   2. The S&P 500 is within 0.5% of its all-time high.

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