An investment story

Amazon shares fell 3.5 per cent after hours on disappointing operating profit guidance for the current quarter due to costly investments into video and warehouses. “The story is an investment story,” CFO Brian Olsavsky said on a conference call, noting “stepped-up” spending levels have continued into 2017. Amazon’s cloud computing division saw revenue jump 47 per cent to $3.5B; however, that still missed expectations. Apple will begin assembling iPhones in India by the end of April, heightening its focus on the world’s fastest-growing major smartphone market. The tech giant tapped Taiwan’s Wistron Corp to put together its phones in the tech capital of Bangalore, Karnataka, said Priyank Kharge, the state’s IT minister. Apple CEO Tim Cook also announced on an earnings call this week that India is “the place to be.”

Nordstrom won’t be selling Ivanka Trump’s merchandise in its stores for the spring season, but the department store denied any political motivation or connection with anti-Trump activist group called “Grab Your Wallet.” “Each year we cut about 10 per cent [of brands] and refresh our assortment with about the same amount,” Nordstrom said. “In this case, based on the brand’s performance we’ve decided not to buy it for this season.”

Leading US exporters have launched an “American Made Coalition” in support of a House Republican plan for a “border adjustment” tax on all imports. It includes more than 25 companies, like General Electric, Boeing, Dow Chemical, Eli Lilly, Pfizer and Oracle. “American workers and businesses are not competing today on a level playing field with foreign competitors because of an outdated and unfair tax system,” said a spokesperson for the group.

Following a likely exit in the US, Toshiba plans to withdraw from its lead role in projects to build nuclear plants in Britain and India as it wrestles with an imminent multi-billion dollar writedown. Such a move would leave its Westinghouse unit focused on the much narrower field of nuclear reactors and services, rather than civil engineering for nuclear power plants or their construction.

Honda has lifted its annual profit forecast for the second time in as many quarters due to cost-cutting and the impact of a weakening yen, while sales in China remained strong. Japan’s third-largest automaker said it expected net profit for the year through March at ¥545bn ($4.82bn), up from previous guidance upgraded in November, and 58.2 per cent more than a year earlier.

Oh Snap! Snap has officially filed to go public, looking to raise up to $3bn, but warned it may never achieve or maintain profitability as it outlined a loss of over $500m for 2016. Founders Evan Spiegel and Bobby Murphy own about 20 per cent each and said they plan to be the first public offering in the US to issue only non-voting shares, meaning they will control all stockholder decisions.

Super Bowl 51 will bring the country to a standstill on Sunday night, but lots of money will have already moved around. This year the cost of a 30-second spot exceeds $5m, more than double what it was 10 years ago, while viewers are expected to spend an average of $75 on food, décor and team apparel, according to the National Retail Federation. The Super Bowl is also traditionally the most bet-upon sporting event of the year.

[Seeking Alpha]