China’s Luckin Coffee closes 20% higher on market debut | Calamatta Cuschieri

Today’s article gives an overview of the Maltese, European and U.S. markets on Friday, together with latest news about Chinese Starbucks competitor

Shares of Luckin Coffee jumped 20% in its first day of trading on the Nasdaq stock market
Shares of Luckin Coffee jumped 20% in its first day of trading on the Nasdaq stock market

The Maltese market closed in the red on Friday, with MSE Equity Total Return Index ending the session 0.331% lower, to 9,617.968 points. There was no positive performance among the equities. Biggest faller was Malita Investments plc by losing 1.75% to close at 0.84, followed by Lombard Bank Malta plc and GO plc which shed 1.69% and 1.40% to close at 2.32 and 4.22 respectively. PG plc slid 1.20% to 1.65 while Bank of Valletta plc fell 0.75% to close at 1.33. International Hotel Investment plc, Malta International Airport plc and RS2 Software were active but closed unchanged.

European stocks snapped a three-day winning streak on Friday amid global trade jitters after Beijing ratcheted up its war of words with Washington, while the end of Brexit talks between British political parties put a lid on risk sentiment. The pan-European STOXX 600 index fell 0.4%. Germany’s exporter-heavy DAX declined 0.6%. Milan-traded shares fell 0.2%, while peers in Paris and London edged 0.2% and 0.1% lower, respectively.

U.S. stocks on Friday wrapped up a Byzantine journey into negative territory, a period that began with the worst day for stocks since January, yet featured sessions marked by uncanny intraday swings that helped equities to limit losses for the week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 0.38%, to 25,764.00. The S&P 500 index slid 0.58%, to 2,859.53, and the Nasdaq Composite Index fell 1.01%, to 7,816.28.

Luckin Coffee goes public

Shares of Luckin Coffee jumped 20% in its first day of trading on the Nasdaq stock market.

After opening at $17.00, shares of the Chinese Starbucks competitor climbed as high as $25.96 or more than 50%, before settling back down to $20.38 at the market’s close. The company has a market cap north of $5 billion after its first day of trading.

The brick-and-mortar coffee chain has achieved major success in China by offering speedy delivery services to Chinese consumers. The company has nearly 2,400 stores compared to Starbucks’ 3,500, but it has plans to more than double that number by the end of the year as it seeks to become the country’s coffee king.

Luckin’s success doesn’t immediately seem to be thwarting the stock market success of Starbucks, which has had a glowing 2019. The company hit another all-time high Friday, closing out the day at $78.91, up more than 35% from a year ago, giving the Seattle Company a market cap of nearly $96 billion.
 

This article was issued by Nadiia Grech, junior trader at Calamatta Cuschieri. For more information visit, www.cc.com.mt. The information, view and opinions provided in this article are being provided solely for educational and informational purposes and should not be construed as investment advice, advice concerning particular investments or investment decisions, or tax or legal advice. Calamatta Cuschieri Investment Services Ltd has not verified and consequently neither warrants the accuracy nor the veracity of any information, views or opinions appearing on this website.