Shares of Alphabet rose sharply on Tuesday, closing the session more than 5% in the green, after Google unveiled a new quantum computing chip called Willow.
Hartmut Neven, founder and head of Google Quantum AI, said in an announcement on Monday that the chip offers “state-of-the-art performance across a range of metrics.”
He said the chip enabled two achievements, including the fact that the chip can “exponentially reduce errors as we scale with more qubits,” which refers to a fundamental unit of information in quantum computing.
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“This overcomes a key challenge in quantum error correction that has plagued the field for almost 30 years,” said Neven.
“Second, Willow performed a standard benchmark calculation in less than five minutes, which would take one of today’s fastest supercomputers 10 septillion (i.e. 1,025) years – a number that far exceeds the age of the universe,” he added added.
Neven said the Willow chip represents a “big step” in the company’s journey in this area.
Investment bank Morgan Stanley (MS) increased its price target on Tesla to $400 (£314.32) from $310 and maintained an Overweight rating on the stock.
The company also reiterated its top pick status for electric vehicle (EV) maker.
Analyst Adam Jonas expects the potential Trump-era backlash against electric vehicles to be short-lived as the US looks to maintain its leadership in autonomous driving technology.
Meanwhile, data from Tesla China showed the carmaker sold 21,900 electric vehicles in China in the first week of December, marking the highest weekly sales in the fourth quarter of this year, Reuters reported.
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Tesla reportedly sold 556,000 units of its Model Y in China last year, which was said to be the company’s best-selling passenger car.
Shares of Tesla closed Tuesday’s session almost 3% in the green but were little changed in premarket trading Wednesday morning.
The stock has been trending higher recently as Tesla CEO Elon Musk prepares to take on an advisory role in President-elect Donald Trump’s new administration after being named co-head of the out-of-state Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE ) was appointed.
Shares of US pharmacy group Walgreens rose almost 18% on Tuesday after reports that private equity firm Sycamore Partners is in talks to buy the company.
The Wall Street Journal reported that the deal would see Walgreens disappear from the public markets after a turbulent period for the company, which saw the company’s market value fall from a high of more than $100 billion shrunk to less than $8 billion.
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Separately, Sky News reported that the deal could trigger a new auction for British chain Boots, part of the larger Walgreens Boots Alliance.
Walgreens is struggling in the U.S. as it faces pressure from the growth of online prescription delivery platforms and ongoing retail restrictions.
In October, Walgreens announced it would close 500 stores by the end of next year, reaching a total of 1,200 store closures in the U.S. over the next three years.
Lucky Strike owner British American Tobacco (BAT) said in a full-year trading update before the close on Wednesday that the company is on track to deliver 2024 guidance.
BAT said it recorded an improvement in performance in the second half of the year, driven by the gradual introduction of innovations in its new business segment, which includes e-cigarettes.
The trading update gave a glimpse of expectations for actual full-year results, due to be released in February.
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BAT said it expects low single-digit growth in organic sales and adjusted operating profit.
Dan Coatsworth, investment analyst at AJ Bell (AJB.L), said: “Although tobacco industry sales are starting to decline, it is only on a small scale and next-generation products such as e-cigarettes are filling the gap.”
“Admittedly, growth rates for next-generation products have not been as strong as some companies would have liked, but the transition from old to new continues.”
Shares of BAT were up less than 1% on Wednesday morning.
Shares in TUI were down 3% on Wednesday morning after the tour operator’s pace of growth appeared to slow next year.
TUI said full-year revenue rose 12% year-on-year to €23.2bn (£19.1bn), while profit before interest and tax rose 33% to €1.3bn be.
For the 2025 financial year, TUI forecast an increase in sales of 5 to 10% and an increase in adjusted earnings before interest and taxes of 7 to 10%.
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Coatsworth said: “The outlook remains optimistic, albeit with forecasts for lower sales and profit growth. It’s not that people don’t want to go on holiday, it’s more about affordability and TUI needs to maintain its reputation for offering people good value for money.
“TUI needs to invest in its business to keep it current and relevant for holidaymakers and there is some argument to be made that it still has some catching up to do with competitors in this area.”
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