The latest Market Talks covering Equities. Published exclusively on Dow Jones Newswires throughout the day.

0852 GMT - ITV selling its media and entertainment business to Comcast's Sky for up to about $2.14 billion is positive, Bernstein analysts write. It will leave ITV with its crown-jewel studio business, they add. The unit is highly sought-after and has been growing revenue in recent years, they add. Shares rise 1% to 82.55 pence. (adam.whittaker@wsj.com)

0850 GMT - UOB-Kay Hian's strong revenue growth is likely to be sustained this year, thanks to stronger trading momentum in Singapore and Hong Kong, says DBS Group Research's Rui Wen Lim in a note. The Singapore company is evolving into a broader financial-services group with its wealth-management services, she says. Its position as one of the city-state's largest retail brokerages means it should benefit from stronger trading activity amid Singapore's equities development program, she adds. Its 2026 commission income and trading income are likely to grow roughly 29% and 34%, respectively. DBS starts its coverage of UOB-Kay Hian with a buy rating and target price of 4.80 Singapore dollars, noting the shares offer around 4.0% forward dividend yield. Shares rise 2.8% to S$3.99. (megan.cheah@wsj.com)

0839 GMT - Zijin Mining Group could further boost shareholders' returns via buybacks, given the attractive valuations, say Citi analysts in a note. The Chinese miner's shares listed in Hong Kong and Shanghai have corrected around 30% since their most recent highs, given falling gold prices and investors choosing to rotate out of mining stocks into artificial-intelligence-related sectors, they say. The analysts expect Zijin to report a 70% gain in 1H earnings, with its preliminary results expected in July. Zijin Mining is Citi's top sector pick, with the bank opening a 30-day upside catalyst watch on its Hong Kong and China stocks. Citi maintains its buy ratings and target prices of 51.80 Hong Kong dollars and 46.60 yuan. Shares last closed at HK$31.20 in Hong Kong and 28.28 yuan in Shanghai. (megan.cheah@wsj.com)

0818 GMT - Thales' deal to buy Exail Technologies strengthens its naval warfare and high-precision navigation offering, Stifel analyst Thomas Mordelle writes. The French aerospace and defense group is the natural home for Exail's surface and underwater warfare units, he adds. The combined entity will be more exposed to growing naval budgets around the world, he adds. Thales shares rise 1.5% to 241.70 euros and Exail rises 2.9% to 126 euros.(adam.whittaker@wsj.com)

0811 GMT - Continental's agreement to sell ContiTech has come in at the top end of the 3.5 billion-euro to 4 billion-euro range that was expected, JPMorgan analysts Jose M Asumendi and Piyush Singla write. The company has agreed to sell the unit to Lone Star Funds at an agreed enterprise value of 4 billion euros plus a potential performance-based component of up to 250 million euros in subsequent years. JPMorgan sees it as a positive step for investors, further focusing the group's attention on the tire division, allowing the stock's multiple to rerate as it delivers higher margins over the next 12 months. The bank rates Continental stock at overweight with a 78 euro price target. Shares fall 1.4% to 74.94 euros. (dominic.chopping@wsj.com)

0736 GMT - Gold futures rise after posting their first weekly gain since May, as weaker U.S. jobs data and lower oil prices reduced expectations of interest-rate hikes by the Federal Reserve. The sharp drop in crude prices--driven by the recovery of flows through the Strait of Hormuz and OPEC+'s decision to hike output--eased concerns over inflationary pressures and strengthened the case for lower interest rates, providing a tailwind for non-yielding assets. Still, "short-dated U.S. bond yields still signal the risk of a rate hike later this year," analysts at Saxo Bank say. "A further easing in those expectations is needed to support bullion, which for now continues to consolidate." In early trading, New York gold futures rise 1% to $4,166 a troy ounce. (giulia.petroni@wsj.com)

0734 GMT - SIA Engineering's investments in capacity and geographical expansion could bear fruit as more airline customers turn to the maintenance, repair and overhaul sector amid delays in new aircraft deliveries, says OCBC Group Research's Ada Lim. Supply and manpower constraints stemming from the pandemic, alongside competition for materials and talent from the defense sector are impacting new aircraft deliveries, the analyst says. More airline operators are thus likely to require MRO services to extend the lifespans of their current fleets. In particular, SIA Engineering could secure more opportunities from customers in India, given its association with Singapore Airlines, which has a stake in Air India, she says. SIA Engineering is OCBC's top aviation-linked pick. (megan.cheah@wsj.com)

0722 GMT - European indexes are mostly higher in early trading, as semiconductor stocks lose momentum but other sectors rally. The Europe-wide Stoxx 600 is mixed. London's FTSE 100 adds 0.1% as software and defense stocks gain--Relx rises 1.9%--though metals miners edge lower. In Paris, the CAC 40 is 0.2% higher as luxuries strengthen, with bellwether LVMH up 1%. Thales drops 1.5% after agreeing to buy a stake in Exail Technologies. Germany's DAX is flat as technology companies diverge. Software giant SAP gains 2%, while chip maker Infineon falls 3.2%. The Italian FTSE MIB gains 0.4%, helped by a 4% increase for Leonardo. Spain's IBEX 35 is 0.3% lower. The semiconductor-heavy AEX index is flat in Amsterdam, even as ASML falls 1.6% and BE Semiconductor tumbles 6.4%. Prosus is up 3.4%.(josephmichael.stonor@wsj.com)

0710 GMT - In Novartis's deal to buy Myricx Bio, the upfront payment relative to the potential milestones seems high, Vontobel analysts say in a note. Novartis will pay $1.1 billion upfront, with up to $400 million in potential additional payments, it said. The purchase is extraordinary to see, as Myricx Bio's platform technology hasn't reached late-stage clinical development, the Vontobel analysts say. However, it is difficult to judge with the information at hand, they add. The acquisition will bolster the Swiss pharma company's oncology offering, they say. (aimee.look@wsj.com)

0708 GMT - The euro could rise as the European Central Bank looks set to raise interest further in September, Commerzbank's Michael Pfister says in a note. Market pricing on LSEG shows about a 70% chance of a September rate rise. That means any tightening would support the euro, he says. The ECB raised rates in June, thereby delivering already more than is expected from the Bank of England and other G-10 central banks, he says. "For once, the ECB has been proactive in responding to an inflation shock." This is a positive change for the euro, he says. The euro falls 0.1% to $1.1421.(renae.dyer@wsj.com)

0702 GMT - EasyJet shares are set to rise after the budget carrier agreed in principle to Castlelake's sweetened takeover offer, Citi analysts say in a research note. The latest proposal significantly increases the likelihood of a successful takeover, Citi says. Castlelake's fifth indicative offer, valuing easyJet at around $7 billion, has received a favorable initial response from the board. While the proposal remains conditional on regulatory approvals and other requirements, the deadline has been extended to Aug. 3. The analysts expect the shares to rise as investors assign a higher probability to the deal, noting that the previous share price implied only a roughly even chance of a takeover being completed. (nina.kienle@wsj.com)

0702 GMT - The artificial-intelligence boom is monopolizing high-end ceramic capacitors, or MLCCs--the tiny components vital for power stabilization--driving supplier backlogs to post-pandemic highs, according to research firm TrendForce. Growing concerns over potential supply shortages in late 2026 have already prompted consumer electronics makers like Apple to begin inventory preparations up to two months early, it says. Meanwhile, the focus of companies like Intel and AMD on AI processors has squeezed conventional PC supplies, forcing manufacturers into costly, urgent spot orders, TrendForce says. As top Japanese and Korean suppliers focus exclusively on high-end AI demand, TrendForce expects Chinese and Taiwanese manufacturers to step in and capture the consumer market spillover. (jie.yang@wsj.com)

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

July 06, 2026 04:52 ET (08:52 GMT)

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