🇺🇸 The US could swerve a recession

Chinese tech brand Xiaomi gave Apple a run for its money | The UK's housing market is in a slump | [Finimize](   TOGETHER WITH   Hi {NAME}, here's what you need to know for November 14th in 3:11 minutes.   😘 Wall Street will move to London on December 5th and 6th, when expert names like Ray Dalio and Jamie Dimon will speak at our [Modern Investor Summit](. And get this: if you register for a free global virtual ticket before November 20th, you could win a pair of flights to join us at the London event. [Register to be in with a chance]( Today's big stories - Chinese tech company Xiaomi overshadowed its US rivals last quarter - The US seems more likely to swerve a recession, after all – [Read Now]( - Asking prices for UK homes dropped 1.7% in November, their biggest fall at that time of year for five years Xiao Off [Xiao Off] What’s going on here? Chinese tech company Xiaomi grabbed all the attention last quarter, leaving US competitors in the shadows. What does this mean? Chinese shoppers haven’t been won over by the iPhone 15, despite Apple generously fitting the devices out with a couple more millimeters of display and some extra oomph in the inner core. Instead, their heads have been turned by Xiaomi’s more budget-friendly offerings. In fact, of the world’s five biggest smartphone brands, Xiaomi’s the only one that shipped more phones last quarter than both the previous quarter and the same time last year. Fold in a successful electric vehicle arm and hopes of AI-fueled streamlining, and the Chinese company’s stock has dialed up by 62% since June. Why should I care? For markets: Asia is a changing landscape. China’s economic woes are shaping shoppers’ spending habits across the board, not just concerning new gadgets. On top of that, Japanese products are especially out of favor, with China taking a hard stance ever since Japan dumped treated water from the damaged Fukushima nuclear plant into the ocean. Case in point: Japanese cosmetics brand Shiseido was forced to trim its predictions for this year’s profit on Friday. So along with similarly hard-pressed peers like Apple, the company may want to look toward India for cheaper production costs and mounting demand for nice-to-haves. The bigger picture: The US is old news. China’s tech companies struggled to find their feet this year, tripped up by the country’s wobbling recovery. That’s left some big names nursing bruised stock prices, a stark contrast to US stocks which have picked up this year. So investors, wise to the fact that the likes of Apple and Tesla are facing challenges locally, could take the opportunity to back Chinese rivals for less. The Nasdaq Golden Dragon China index could be a popular choice: featuring major companies like Alibaba and JD.com, it’s around 30% cheaper to buy into than the Nasdaq 100 index. You might also like: [The opportunity for India amid ever-evolving US-China ties.]( Copy to share story: [( 🙋 [Ask a question](mailto:questions@finimize.com?body=Ask us a question: Where are you writing from? Let us know and we'll mention it when we reply.&noapp=true&subject=Xiao Off&utm_campaign=daily-global-14-11-2023&utm_source=email) Analyst Take US Companies Are Doing Awesome, Actually [US Companies Are Doing Awesome, Actually]( By Paul Allison, CFA, Analyst Earnings season is almost entirely in the bag – and you’ve got to admit, [things don’t look too shabby](. Some 82% of S&P 500 companies [surpassed expectations](, blowing past the five-year average “beat ratio” of 77%, despite everybody’s worries. And analysts now expect US firms to eke out [a 1% gain in profit]( for the year – pretty remarkable considering how many people were predicting an earnings slump. It’s worth dwelling on, especially because of what’s driving this strength: good old, underestimated, [fundamental performance](. That’s today’s Insight: [the awesome US earnings season and what it could mean for you](. [Read or listen to the Insight here]( SPONSORED BY ORACLE Five secrets of ultra-efficient business leaders Just about everyone is feeling the pinch these days. Business leaders, though, still have to [turn out enough profit to impress shareholders]( – despite contending with higher costs and recessionary threats. If that’s you, [Oracle NetSuite]( has some words of wisdom: this [five-step guide]( is designed to help [business owners and leaders become even more efficient while producing solid results](. You’ll find out how to create smart tracking metrics, automate repetitive tasks, and increase productivity without spending more. If you want the details, [check out the report here](. [Find Out More]( When you support our sponsors, you support us. Thanks for that. Shaky Structures [Shaky Structures] What’s going on here? Asking prices for homes in the UK posted their biggest wobble for five years. What does this mean? British property company Rightmove tracks asking prices around the country, capturing the initial asking price of almost every house up for sale. And this lot of stats is less than reassuring: asking prices slipped by 1.7% between October and November, the biggest fall at that time for five years, with London’s prices stripped back by 2.1%. See, high interest rates have made mortgages prohibitively expensive, so sellers have been forced to slash more than £6,000 ($7,320) off their homes to attract any buyers still in the market. But even with an average asking price of roughly £362,000 ($443,500), the lowest since the end of last year, there were still 10% fewer sales made than the same time in 2019. Why should I care? For markets: Not-so-mates rates. Rightmove’s tracker indicates that the housing market’s backbone is weakening under the weight of high interest rates and economic uncertainty. Mortgage rates are triple what they were in 2022, and with 1.6 million fixed-rate mortgages due to expire next year, plenty of homeowners will soon be facing higher monthly payments. That’s a rough prospect for Brits who are already contending with wallet-emptying prices for everyday must-haves. The bigger picture: The market’s pros could be a con. In fairness, prices haven’t crashed – yet, anyway. Instead, they’ve been working their way down slowly to land just 3% below their May peak. And if anything, the rental market is too strong, with rising mortgages trickling into lease prices with a lag and pricing out plenty of hopefuls. Plus, newly optimistic builders seem to be anticipating a turnaround in the not-too-distant future. Thing is, all of those factors could be down to a limited supply of homes, rather than a projected one-eighty in demand. You might also like: [How to invest in UK property](. Copy to share story: [( 🙋 [Ask a question](mailto:questions@finimize.com?body=Ask us a question: Where are you writing from? Let us know and we'll mention it when we reply.&noapp=true&subject=Shaky Structures&utm_campaign=daily-global-14-11-2023&utm_source=email) Despite this economic downturn, [retail investors are optimistic](. Yup, 84% of the hardy bunch we surveyed are planning to invest more or the same as last quarter, with [67% predicting that global stock markets will be higher a year](. And women are bringing out the big guns: [42% of female investors have between $5,000 and 100,000 to invest]( in the next year, and more than a third plan to invest over 11% of their monthly income. See, despite being painted as less confident than male investors, the women we surveyed said that wasn't the case. In fact, [more than three-quarters are fully confident in managing their investments themselves](. If you want the rest of the scoop on how retail investors are trading, you can [grab the full report here](. [Read The Report]( 💬 Quote of the day "A bank is a place that will lend you money if you can prove that you don't need it." – Bob Hope (an American comedian and actor) [Tweet this]( SPONSORED BY CROWDCUBE AND HAATCH Don’t invest unless you’re prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high-risk investment and you are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong. [Take 2 minutes to learn more](. Get in on the ground floor As a retail investor, your investment options are a bit more limited than the pros’. So when an opportunity comes along to invest in something a bit different, you might want to consider it. Together, [Crowdcube]( and [Haatch]( are giving you access to an [SEIS fund](. What’s that, you ask? It stands for Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme, and it’s a way to [invest in very early-stage companies](. Crowdcube and Haatch have lowered the minimum investment to £2,000, which is a fifth of the typical entry price. And it gets better: SEIS investments give [generous British tax breaks](. So you’d be backing early-stage companies for a [fraction of the price]( and getting tax relief. Now that’s not something you see every day: [check out the SEIS fund](. [Find Out More]( Don’t invest unless you’re prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high-risk investment and you are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong. [Take 2 mins to learn more.]( Information is for guidance only and is dependent on individual circumstances. It is always recommended that you take professional advice regarding tax reliefs for your individual circumstances. When you support our sponsors, you support us. Thanks for that. 🎯 On Our Radar 1. Forget about pumpkin spice. [Masala lattes]( are your perfect winter warmer. 2. NFT games have become a big hit among gamers and investors alike. Let's look into the [two most popular NFT gaming projects](.* 3. Sports watches are old news. [Taping your mouth shut]( could be the key to athletic prowess. 4. AI isn't new. Here's [what investors need to know]( about its evolution – and its future.** 5. A formula for success. Here's how [Formula 1]( found a new fanbase. Your capital is at risk. 68% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.** When you support our sponsors, you support us. Thanks for that. 🌍 Finimize Live 🥳 Coming Up Soon... 🎉 [Modern Investor Summit 2023](: 12pm, December 5th and 6th (UK time) [Register by midnight on November 20th for a chance to win free flights to the in-person London summit event]( ❤️ Share with a friend Thanks for reading {NAME}. 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