A snapshot of motorcycle and ATV industry share performance across key manufacturers and major global markets at the trading week closure on Friday 27 October 2023. BDN financial editor Roger Willis reports.
USA — QUARTERLY COUNTDOWN
Middle East conflict slipped onto the back burner to some extent during the past week as US investors were more troubled by a series of poor Q3 results, generally missing analyst estimates and dragging market indices lower. Worst upsets came from “Big Tech” stocks — the so-called Magnificent Seven comprising Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta, Microsoft, Nvidia and Tesla — with only Amazon boasting a really decent advance.
Blue-chip S&P 500 stocks closed 2.4% down and the Dow Jones Industrial Average incurred a 2.1% loss. S&P’s MidCap 400 went backwards by 2.3% and NASDAQ’s tech-heavy Composite finished 2.6% in arrears.
Among ordinary mortals like bike manufacturers, Harley-Davidson’s Q3 statement proved to be deeply disappointing and the company was duly punished with a dramatic share sell-off. Indian Motorcycle parent and ATV champion Polaris Industries didn’t do too well either. But the most aberrant investor response actually rewarded Harley’s electric spin-off. Although its parental number-crunch couldn’t hide an extended operating loss, LiveWire’s production roll-out of a cheaper S2 Del Mar model offered the promise of sales growth in Q4, so the LVWR ticker stacked on speculative value.
| Currency: dollar | Price | Week | Month |
| Harley-Davidson | 26.17 | -13% | -20.8% |
| Polaris Industries | 85.27 | -8.5% | -18.1% |
| Textron | 75.25 | -0.9% | -3.7% |
| Ideanomics (Energica) | 2.13 | -10.5% | -24.7% |
| Niu Technologies | 1.97 | -2.5% | -30.4% |
| LiveWire | 9.51 | +14.2% | +37.2% |
EUROPE — MORE OF THE SAME
Weak third-quarter reports also blighted European stocks over four consecutive sessions. All eurozone market indices concerning elements of industries we follow closed negative. Frankfurt’s Xetra Dax was 0.8% down, the FTSE MIB in Milan retreated by a more trivial 0.3% and Austria’s Wiener Börse ATX finished 0.5% lower.
Volkswagen was a notable automotive loser, although its luxury sector spanning the Audi, Bentley, Lamborghini and Ducati brands did well. Ducati’s nine-monthly operating profit soared by 28.1%, despite a 4% retail motorcycle sales slump. Investors got their retaliation in early on BMW, which is due to reveal Q3 details on 3 November. Piaggio received similar doubtful treatment. Only KTM parent Pierer Mobility was glowing, for reasons that will become evident shortly for MV Agusta enthusiasts.
| Currency: euro | Price | Week | Month |
| BMW | 88.49 | -5.5% | -8.5% |
| Volkswagen | 106.40 | -8.3% | -14.8% |
| Pierer Mobility | 61.40 | +5.1% | -4.7% |
| Piaggio Group | 2.62 | -5.8% | -13.5% |
JAPAN — SOMBRE MOOD
The Nikkei 225 index, highlighting activity on stock exchanges in Tokyo and Osaka, continued to decline for a second successive week — this time losing 0.9%. Among indigenous motorcycle manufacturers for whom quarterly corporate results revelations are imminent, only Suzuki finished the week shiny side up. Indecisive central bankers at the BoJ are failing to clarify anti-inflation policy, discouraging investor commitment.
| Currency: yen | Price | Week | Month |
| Honda | 1595 | -2.3% | -5.2% |
| Yamaha | 3752 | -0.7% | -4.6% |
| Suzuki | 5838 | +0.9% | -3% |
| Kawasaki | 3364 | -2% | -7.1% |
INDIA — BUYERS IN SHORT SUPPLY
With the Diwali Festival of Lights peak purchase frenzy now not even a fortnight away, commercial gloom as to the Indian public’s current under-funded position is rampant. Mumbai’s S&P BSE Sensex stock index continued to fall, deteriorating from a 1.4% loss in the previous week to 2.5% down this time around. The share prices of every major motorcycle manufacturer were consistently negative.
| Currency: rupee | Price | Week | Month |
| Hero MotoCorp | 3112.20 | -3.1% | +1.8% |
| Bajaj Auto | 5373.55 | -2.1% | +6.1% |
| TVS Motor | 1591.85 | -0.3% | +4.6% |
| Eicher Motors | 3394.85 | -2.5% | -1.5% |
| Mahindra | 1510.80 | -3% | -2.8% |
CHINA — CLUTCHING AT STRAWS
Against a background of Chinese shares falling by 15% so far this year, and now down to pre-pandemic levels, the Beijing government and its central bankers are desperately piling stimulus into the economy and seeking the return of overseas investors.
There are faint signs that some of this effort is working. Sliding market indices perked up to positivity in the past week. Shanghai’s SSE Composite put on 1.2% and the blue-chip CSI 300 covering both Shanghai and Shenzhen exchanges added 1.5%. Eight of the ten listed Chinese motorcycle manufacturers benefited from some share price recovery.
| Currency: yuan | Price | Week | Month |
| Qianjiang | 12.99 | -1.2% | -7.9% |
| Zongshen | 6.69 | +4.9% | -2% |
| Sundiro | 2.55 | +11.4% | +3.2% |
| CETC (Jialing) | 14.66 | +1.1% | +7.3% |
| Lifan | 3.79 | +8.9% | +3.8% |
| Loncin | 5.71 | +3.8% | -2.1% |
| Linhai | 9.09 | +4.7% | -1.5% |
| Guangzhou Auto | 10.44 | +5% | +4.3% |
| CFMoto | 103.53 | -6.8% | -26.2% |
| Xinri E-Vehicle | 14.00 | +5.6% | +1.6% |