• GRIT
  • Posts
  • All Eyes On China

All Eyes On China

China, Palantir, Snapchat

Good Morning! 👋

Let’s tackle the biggest news of the day!

Before we get into it, fill out our subscriber survey here and help us improve our newsletter! 📩 We want your thoughts and feedback to deliver the best newsletter experience possible. ⚡️

Here’s our focus today:

👉 The investment world is watching China

👉 Palantir earnings are in

👉 Snapchat lays off workers

CHINA: The Investment World Is Watching

Expectations are high for decisive actions by the Chinese government to address their stock market downturn, with plans to brief President Xi Jinping about the situation as early as Tuesday. After Bloomberg reported that regulators, including the China Securities Regulatory Commission, would discuss market conditions and policy responses with senior leaders, Chinese stocks rallied. The CSI 300 index surged 3.5%, marking its best performance since late 2022. Smaller-cap stocks also saw significant gains, with the CSI 1000 index jumping 7%, the largest increase since 2008.

Source: NPR

The outcome of the meeting with President Xi is uncertain, but investors are hopeful for effective measures to reverse the decline that has erased about $7 trillion in value from Hong Kong and China equities since 2021. Efforts to stabilize the market are critical to avoid further damage to consumer confidence, especially before the Lunar New Year holiday.

The day also saw optimistic moves, including Central Huijin Investment Ltd.'s commitment to buy more exchange-traded funds and a surge in foreign investments, with overseas funds adding over 12 billion yuan ($1.7 billion) of mainland shares, the most this year. However, past experiences, such as the 2015 stock market crash, caution that market recovery may not be immediate despite government interventions

🎯 GRIT TAKE: As you might know, one of the most famous…upgrade to VIP to read the full GRIT Take. 

PALANTIR: Dominates Earnings

Palantir Technologies exceeded Wall Street's profit expectations for 2024 and reported its "first profitable year" due to strong demand for its AI products. This caused its stock to surge over 19% after hours. The company's focus on AI has paid off, with its shares nearly tripling in 2023, significantly outpacing the Nasdaq 100's gains.

Source: Palantir

In the fourth quarter, Palantir secured 103 deals worth over $1 million each, driving a 70% increase in U.S. commercial revenue to $131 million. This growth led to a total commercial revenue of $284 million, surpassing expectations. The company forecasts at least 40% growth in U.S. commercial revenue for 2024, up from 36% in 2023.

Despite the commercial success, growth in Palantir's government business is slowing, with an 11% increase compared to a 23% jump the previous year.

SNAPCHAT: Lays Off Workers

Snapchat will lay off around 10% of its workforce to boost in-person work. The news led to a 3% drop in Snap's stock, closing down 1.8%. This is part of Snap's ongoing layoffs since 2022, where they had significant cuts in August 2022.

Source: WSJ

Per a regulatory filing, Snap expects to incur $55 million to $75 million in charges due to the layoffs. This move aligns with a broader tech industry trend of job cuts, with nearly 24,000 tech jobs lost in January 2024, including reductions at Meta, Amazon, and Alphabet. Despite challenges, Snap recently ended a revenue slump and initiated a $500 million share buyback, showing financial optimism.

Headlines You Need To Know: 🎙

  • Docusign to lay off about 10% of workers

  • Adam Neumann wants to take over WeWork

  • Why The FAA can’t fix Boeing

  • Meta issues stark warnings to investors over Zuck’s love for combat

  • King Charles was treated for cancer

  • Brookfield wants $15 billion for real estate bet

The Founding of Duolingo

Duolingo, the world's most popular language-learning platform, was co-founded by Luis von Ahn and Severin Hacker in 2011. Born out of the desire to merge free language education with the power of technology, Duolingo has its roots in Carnegie Mellon University, where the founders met. Von Ahn, already famous for creating CAPTCHA and reCAPTCHA, was driven by a vision to provide free education while helping translate the web.

Source: NBC

The initial idea was to teach languages while leveraging users' efforts to translate documents online. This innovative approach not only democratized language learning but also made it fun and accessible to millions around the globe. With its gamified lessons, Duolingo broke down barriers to education, making it possible for anyone with internet access to learn a new language. Duolingo continues to grow today, offering courses in over 30 languages to hundreds of millions of users worldwide.

Chart of the Day

📊 Borrowers Issue Record Amounts of Debt

Source: FT

GRIT Meme of the Day 😂

Tag GRIT Capital on social media for a chance to be featured in our meme or Tweet of the day in our GRIT daily newsletter! 👇

Source: @wallsteetoasis

Don’t follow us on social yet? Follow us on Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter.

Do you have feedback to share? Click HERE.

Interested in being featured in our GRIT Newsletters? Click below!

The author, publisher or insiders of the publisher may currently have long or short positions in the securities of the companies mentioned herein, or may have such a position in the future (and therefore may profit from fluctuations in the trading price of the securities). To the extent such persons do have such positions, there is no guarantee that such persons will maintain such positions.

Grit is a publisher of financial information, not an investment advisor. Grit does not provide personalized or individualized investment advice or information that is tailored to the needs of any particular recipient. Grit does not guarantee the accuracy or completeness of the information provided in this page. All statements and expressions herein are the sole opinion of the author or paid advertiser.

THE INFORMATION CONTAINED ON THIS WEBSITE IS NOT AND SHOULD NOT BE CONSTRUED AS INVESTMENT ADVICE, AND DOES NOT PURPORT TO BE AND DOES NOT EXPRESS ANY OPINION AS TO THE PRICE AT WHICH THE SECURITIES OF ANY COMPANY MAY TRADE AT ANY TIME. THE INFORMATION AND OPINIONS PROVIDED HEREIN SHOULD NOT BE TAKEN AS SPECIFIC ADVICE ON THE MERITS OF ANY INVESTMENT DECISION. INVESTORS SHOULD MAKE THEIR OWN INVESTIGATION AND DECISIONS REGARDING THE PROSPECTS OF ANY COMPANY DISCUSSED HEREIN BASED ON SUCH INVESTORS’ OWN REVIEW OF PUBLICLY AVAILABLE INFORMATION AND SHOULD NOT RELY ON THE INFORMATION CONTAINED HEREIN. INVESTORS SHOULD OBTAIN INDIVIDUAL INVESTMENT ADVICE BASED ON THEIR OWN CIRCUMSTANCES BEFORE MAKING AN INVESTMENT DECISION

No statement or expression of opinion, or any other matter herein, directly or indirectly, is an offer or the solicitation of an offer to buy or sell the securities or financial instruments mentioned.

The author, publisher or insiders of the publisher may currently have long or short positions in the securities of the companies mentioned herein, or may have such a position in the future (and therefore may profit from fluctuations in the trading price of the securities). To the extent such persons do have such positions, there is no guarantee that such persons will maintain such positions.

Any projections, market outlooks or estimates herein are forward looking statements and are inherently unreliable. They are based upon certain assumptions and should not be construed to be indicative of the actual events that will occur. Other events that were not taken into account may occur and may significantly affect the returns or performance of the securities discussed herein. The information provided herein is based on matters as they exist as of the date of preparation and not as of any future date, and Grit undertakes no obligation to correct, update or revise the information in this document or to otherwise provide any additional material.

Grit does not accept any liability whatsoever for any direct or consequential loss howsoever arising, directly or indirectly, from any use of the information contained herein.

By using the Site or any related social media account, you are indicating your consent and agreement to this disclaimer and our terms of use. Unauthorized reproduction of this newsletter or its contents by photocopy, facsimile or any other means is illegal and punishable by law.

If you have any questions please contact us at help@gritcap.io

Reply

or to participate.