The latest Market Talks covering Technology, Media and Telecom. Published exclusively on Dow Jones Newswires at 4:20 ET, 12:20 ET and 16:50 ET.

0723 GMT - Apple's iPhone sales in China are likely to remain negative in 1Q unless market discounts are expanded further, analysts at Jefferies writes in a note. Despite more original equipment manufacturer discounts and government subsidies, smartphone sales in China were worryingly weak in December, they note. Government subsidies this year will likely include the iPhone, which could help stabilize its declining market share, and keep market sentiment positive. However, iPhone's sales volume have already declined significantly in December compared with November, they say. With some customers having already upgraded their handsets in the past year and given limited innovations in phones, increasing sales may be not be easy, they add. (kimberley.kao@wsj.com)

0552 GMT - Taiwan's Taiex rose 2.8% to 23547.71, marking its largest one-day percentage gain since September. The island's equity market carried over strong momentum into the new year, driven by expectations of sustained demand for AI-related applications. Index heavyweight TSMC gained 4.65% after its ADR rose 3.5% on Wall Street on Friday, following Nvidia's lead. Investor sentiment was likely boosted by Microsoft's $80 billion data-center investment plan, signalling continued confidence from global tech giants in emerging technologies. Foxconn Technology, which is playing an increasingly important role in building AI servers for tech companies, advanced 1.9%. The company reported record 4Q revenue, with December sales surging 42% on year. Quanta Computer rose 1.7% and MediaTek gained 4.4%. (sherry.qin@wsj.com)

0359 GMT - Tencent and NetEase's shares could benefit from the potential success of their new game launches, Daiwa analysts say in a research note. The new games "Path of Exile 2" and "Marvel Rivals" released by Tencent and NetEase, respectively, in December could exceed market expectations as their sales momentum remains strong after four weeks, the analysts say. The success of the games could help expand the Chinese game makers' influence in the international market, they say, noting that international expansion remains an important catalyst for their stock re-rating. Tencent remains Daiwa's top pick, while NetEase could deliver an upside surprise if one of its titles achieves better-than-expected sales. Tencent's shares are 1.35% down at HK$408.00, while NetEase is up 0.3% at HK$136.90. (sherry.qin@wsj.com)

0354 GMT - Tencent will continue to focus on producing high quality content and cut the quantity of dramatic video content in 2025, Citi analysts write in a note. The company aims to reallocate resources to more high quality content to strengthen its influences and cultivate industry growth, they add. Tencent's management team highlighted its video profitability further improved last year after turning profitable in 2023, they say. Citi reiterates its buy rating for the stock given its positive strategic direction with a target price of HK$573.00. Shares were last at HK$408.40. (jiahui.huang@wsj.com; @ivy_jiahuihuang)

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 06, 2025 04:20 ET (09:20 GMT)

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