[Morning Report] The American managing partner of SoftBank VF for cars and smartphones has left the company with over 200 billion yen in subsidies to major US semiconductor contractors

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Subsidies to major semiconductor companies exceed 200 billion yen for cars and smartphones, domestic production expansion - US administration
The US Biden administration announced on the 19th that a major US semiconductor contract manufacturing company $GlobalFoundries(GFS.US)$It was announced that a subsidy of 1.5 billion dollars (about 230 billion yen) will be issued to it. It will be used to establish new factories to manufacture semiconductors for automobiles, smartphones, etc., and to increase production capacity. We will expand domestic production of semiconductors and promote “de-dependency” of the supply chain (supply network) from China.

Individual investors who have begun to return to virtual currency - will Bitcoin return in earnest if it continues to rise
Individual investors have begun to return to crypto assets (virtual currency). There is no momentum as seen in the bull market 3 years ago, but individual transaction income etc. of crypto asset exchange companies is increasing. According to a letter addressed to shareholders published on the 15th, at Coinbase Global, the largest crypto asset exchange company in the US, net income from individual transactions in 2023/10-12 (fourth quarter) increased 60% compared to the same period last year, and increased 80% compared to the previous fiscal year.

The Nikkei Average is aware of the right to buy 40,000 yen from overseas players that are behind the highest
While awareness is being raised that the Nikkei Stock Average will reach a new high, overseas investors are beginning to look “ahead of the highest price.” In the options market, overseas players with a short-term perspective have increased their holdings of calls (right to buy), and there are also voices predicting “developments where buying invites buying.” However, the driving force for current stock prices is biased in part. There is also a sense of alarm that price movements will be intense after the high price is updated.

The estimated exchange rate of “140 yen” is 40%, and yen depreciation is expected to be revised for the fiscal year ending 24/12
The estimated exchange rate for domestic listed companies for the fiscal year ending 2024/12 averaged 140 yen against the dollar. The yen is about 10 yen higher than the prevailing market price of about 150 yen. There are many companies that see that the current depreciation of the yen will be corrected and that there will be no effect of boosting performance due to reduced observations of interest rate differences between Japan and the US.

Profit and surpluses increased by 60% in the listed company industry from April to December, and cars and food grew
In the financial results for the fiscal year ending 2023/4/12 of domestic listed companies, 23 industries, which is over 60% of all 36 industries, increased profits or turned into surpluses on a final profit and loss basis. In the manufacturing industry, automobile-related earnings grew significantly in response to the depreciation of the yen and mitigation of parts shortages, and industries that promoted price increases were also doing well. The movement of people became active in the non-manufacturing industry, and transportation-related and inbound (foreign visitors to Japan) related growth was conspicuous.

SoftBank VF's managing partner in the Americas, Mr. Jet is leaving the company
$SoftBank Group(9984.JP)$When Lydia Jet, who worked as the Americas Managing Partner at the Vision Fund, left the company, people familiar with the situation made it clear. The representative of SoftBank G declined to comment. Jet did not respond to requests for comment.

Construction machinery engine to be ordered to Toyota Loom to review model cancellation
$Toyota Industries(6201.JP)$Due to the exhaust gas data fraud issue, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism solidified a policy of issuing a “corrective order” to the company in February ordering drastic organizational improvements to prevent recurrence. Of the engines where fraud was discovered, 1 model for excavators will consider canceling the certification “type designation” necessary for production because it does not meet exhaust gas performance standards.

Red Sea merchant ship, crew abandons ship and evacuates - Houthis claim British ship “sinks”
A merchant ship sailing in the Red Sea was attacked by the pro-Iranian armed group Houthis faction in Yemen, and the crew abandoned the ship and evacuated. This is the first such evacuation since the Houthis began attacking merchant ships in the Red Sea at the end of last year.

“Diners” parent company and Bank of America are in takeover negotiations even if they exceed 4 trillion yen
US silver $Capital One Financial(COF.US)$It became clear on the 19th that they are considering the acquisition of Discover Financial Services, a major credit card company that has “Diners Club” under its umbrella. There is a possibility that the size of the acquisition will exceed 28 billion dollars (approximately 4.2 trillion yen).