US stock markets finished lower across the board on Monday as the slow start to the second quarter continued. The S&P 500 ended flat with the Nasdaq falling 0.4% and the Dow Jones down 0.2%.
This week sees another quarter of reporting season, but the news overnight was more company-specific.
Alibaba shakes off record fine
E-commerce giant Alibaba (NYSE: BABA) shares finished 9.1% higher after the Chinese regulator announced a US$2.8 billion fine for antitrust or anti-competitive activities.
This stands out as one of the largest fines in the world, with management nearly thanking the regulator for effectively rubber-stamping their business.
Microsoft doubles down in healthcare
Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) announced an expansion into healthcare, buying ‘conversational artificial intelligence leader’ Nuance (NASDAQ: NUAN) for US$56 per share, implying a 20% premium to Nuance’s last closing price. If completed, the all-cash transaction will be valued at US$19.6 billion.
Nuance’s operations focus on delivering more efficient clinical services by leveraging the Microsoft Cloud. Nuance solutions are currently used by more than 55% of physicians and 75% of radiologists in the US, while also being used in 77% of US hospitals.
NVIDIA powers ahead
Intel (NASDAQ: INTC) is facing more pressure from global chip leader NVIDIA (NASDAQ: NVDA), who announced they were pushing into the supply of microprocessors, which have been the core of Intel’s dominance.
At its annual investor day, NVIDIA also revealed its first-quarter revenue for fiscal 2022 is tracking above the US$5.3 billion guidance. “We are experiencing broad-based strength, with all our market platforms driving upside to our initial outlook,” said Colette Kress, executive vice president and chief financial officer of NVIDIA.
