Here's a quick overview of today's main events:

  • Apple and Intel have signed an agreement to manufacture chips in the USA.

  • Federal and Remington Ammunition, part of the CSG group, have won a contract from the FBI worth $77.4 million.

  • The Strait of Hormuz is reopening immediately, according to Pakistan.

  • The Fed, under Warsch, hinted at the possibility of raising interest rates later this year.

  • Simulations Plus is moving towards an acquisition for $375 million.

  • Janus Henderson has postponed the completion of the merger to June 30th.

Foreign Investment

President Donald Trump announced on the Truth Social network that Apple and Intel have reached an agreement to design and manufacture chips directly in the United States. According to CNBC, Intel's stock rose by more than 10 percent in a single day, reaching a historic high. According to available information, Intel is expected to manufacture older or low-cost chips for Apple products in its factories in Oregon, Arizona, and Ohio, while the most powerful processors for the latest iPhones will remain the domain of the Taiwanese company TSMC.

The Czech defense group Czechoslovak Group (CSG), owned by entrepreneur Michal Strnad, has achieved a significant success in the American market. The companies Federal and Remington Ammunition, which are part of the CSG group, have won a contract from the American Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to supply rifle ammunition worth $77.4 million, or approximately 1.6 billion crowns. According to available information, deliveries are expected to begin later this year and will strengthen CSG's position in the American defense market.

The pharmaceutical and biotechnology sector continues to consolidate around AI-accelerated drug development. Simulations Plus has finalized an agreement under which it will be acquired by the investment fund Altaris for approximately $375 million, with shareholders receiving $18.50 per share in cash. The transaction includes a 26 percent premium to the sixty-day weighted average share price and is expected to accelerate the planned merger with Chemical Computing Group.

An update on a previously agreed merger is coming from the asset management sector: Janus Henderson Group has, according to a regulatory announcement, postponed the completion of the merger with a consortium of investors to June 30, 2026, giving the parties more time to fulfill the remaining conditions of the transaction.

The integration of the recently announced merger of chemical giants Olin Corporation and Huntsman Corporation is also continuing. The all-stock transaction has been revalued to $4.27 billion and will create an integrated North American leader in the chemical industry.

Significant Events with Global Impact

A key geopolitical development was the confirmation that a memorandum of understanding between the United States and Iran has come into effect immediately. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who mediated the negotiations between Washington and Tehran, announced that Iran will immediately reopen the Strait of Hormuz, and the United States will lift the naval blockade of Iranian ports. According to the Al Jazeera news agency, the markets reacted with a 2.3 percent drop in Brent crude oil prices, while stock indices in Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan rose.

The Federal Reserve System of the United States, in its June meeting led by new chairman Kevin Warsh, suggested that an increase in interest rates later this year cannot be ruled out, which, according to traders, surprised part of the market and triggered a short-term sell-off in stocks on Wednesday. According to Charles Schwab, investors partially recovered some of the losses on Thursday, thanks in part to positive news from the technology sector. The American markets remained closed on Friday, June 19, due to the Juneteenth national holiday. gnews.cz - GH

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