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The Select Harvests Limited (ASX: SHV) share price is in positive territory today, nearing its 52-week high of $7.79. This comes after the almond producer provided a trading update to the ASX this morning.

At the time of writing, Select Harvests shares are up 1.73%, trading at $7.66.

Crop update

In its release, Select Harvests advised it has processed 70% of its crop so far. The company estimates that crop volume, including the acquired Piangil Almond Orchard, will be approximately 28,250 metric tonnes. This reflects a 21.5% increase on 2020 levels, which stood at 23,250 metric tonnes.

The company added that its investment in new inshell optical sorters and better crop quality had led to increased production in Chinese and Indian markets. Inshell volume had already reached last year’s full-year amount and was “trading at a premium” to its almond kernels.

Strong market conditions

In addition to the crop update, Select Harvest touched on the Almond Board of Australia’s May Export Position Report.

It reported that Australian almond exports surged 67% year-on-year (March to May 2021), with the South/Central Asia market rocketing 306% during the period. Other notable increases included Europe, up 20%, and the North-East Asia (China) market also up 46%.

The current market price for almonds accelerated between $6.75 per kilo to $7.25 per kilo, reflecting a $0.50 per kilo jump. Select Harvests noted that demand remained robust at these levels.

So far, 65% of the company’s 2021 crop has received commitments at prices in the range of $6.15 per kilo to $6.45 per kilo. The remaining portion is said to be at the lower value grades.

In addition, the company said next year’s crop was tracking as planned, with “good tree health” and “sufficient chill hours” from all regions. It expects pollination to peak around mid-August, and beekeepers have begun delivering hives to Select Harvests orchards.

Select Harvests managing director Paul Thompson commented:

The strengthening of current market conditions is pleasing with the demand for inshell almonds, almond kernels and value-added almond products remaining strong.

We are looking forward to a strong performance in 2022 including the benefits of our Piangil Almond Orchard acquisition, the improving profile of our orchards and the recent strengthening of the almond price.

About the Select Harvest share price

Over the past 12 months, Select Harvest shares have lifted to record a 52-week high of $7.79 yesterday. The company’s share price has gained more than 30% since this time last year.

On valuation metrics, Select Harvest presides a market capitalisation of around $905 million, with 120 million shares on its books.

The post Select Harvests (ASX:SHV) share price edges higher after business update appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• Why the Select Harvests (ASX:SHV) share price is soaring 15% today

Motley Fool contributor Aaron Teboneras has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The Openpay Group Ltd (ASX: OPY) share price briefly opened higher this morning, up 3% to $1.24 after the company announced its June quarter results.

But its rally was short-lived, sliding back into negative territory, down 1.25% to $1.185 at the time of writing.

Openpay share price continues to struggle following quarterly results

The Openpay share price has really struggled to stay afloat this year, sliding almost 50% year-to-date. While its shares might be tumbling, the company continues to make headway in the BNPL space.

In the June quarter, the company reported 2.0 million active plans, a 141% increase on the prior corresponding period (pcp) and up 16% quarter-on-quarter.

Openpay had 541,000 active customers during the quarter, achieving a growth rate of 69% on the pcp. The company advised that 51% of active customers were from the UK.

Pleasingly, Openpay said that strong customer engagement and awareness has translated to its highest-ever percentage of active plans held by repeat customers.

Active merchants on the platform increased 77% on pcp to 3,800. This figure represents the company’s strongest year-on-year growth in terms of active merchants.

What to look out for in FY22

While the Openpay share price might have opened lower on Wednesday, the company revealed a number of growth initiatives for the year ahead.

Openpay signed two partnership agreements with major platform and aggregator partners in Australia and New Zealand. The company described this move as one which will enable merchants to “simply switch on Openpay as a payment type” rather than signing them up one-by-one.

Openpay UK has now outpaced Australia in terms of total active customers.

The company continues to focus on driving UK partnerships to position its product in front of thousands of new merchants. It also intends to expand into new verticals such as healthcare.

Back in June, Openpay acquired a leading automotive BNPL provider in the UK.

The acquisition of Payment Assist would welcome more than 177,000 active customers and 4,500 merchants to Openpay.

This move was aimed at providing the company with “significant expansion and scale opportunity” in the UK automotive vertical.

Finally, and perhaps most exciting, is Openpay’s plan to launch in the United States in early October 2021.

The company said that it has “built a large pipeline of banking and funding partners, wholesale merchant aggregators aligned with our key verticals”.

Management commentary

Openpay CEO Michael Eidel commented on the company’s achievements to date saying:

“The June quarter was perhaps the most pivotal for Openpay since we announced our US launch in December. Headlining the quarter was our acquisition of leading UK BNPL Auto provider, Payment Assist. The combination of their strong, profitable franchise in Auto with our organic launch in Healthcare in June creates a formidable player in the UK BNPL market with significant growth synergies.

With a US launch right around the corner, Eidel also added:

We are putting the finishing touches on our launch into the US market, targeting go-live in our key Healthcare vertical in early October 2021. This will present another major step forward for Openpay and the first of many very significant commercial opportunities for Opy USA.

A long way to go for the Openpay share price

The Openpay share price is down 47% year-to-date from $2.26 to $1.185 at the time of writing.

Looking ahead, the company believes that “FY22 will be the year when Openpay will record initial substantial volume growth in the largest global consumer market, the US, where all high-growth competitors have built a presence, creating a fundamental quantum leap in growth and scale.”

The post Openpay (ASX:OPY) share price falls despite strong quarter and US plans appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Kerry Sun has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

Reuters reported early on Tuesday that Amazon.com‘s (NASDAQ: AMZN) “India arm is in talks with several domestic players in film and media distribution including cinema chain Inox Leisure Ltd for a potential stake, the Indian Express newspaper reported on Tuesday, citing sources.”

Inox denied that it was in any discussions with Amazon India, Reuters said, while Amazon India didn’t immediately respond to the news agency’s request for comment. Of course, we’d expect denials even if the information is accurate. Companies nearly always attempt to keep these types of discussions confidential.

Inox Leisure is the No. 2 multiplex chain in India

Inox is India’s second-largest multiplex chain by number of screens, behind PVR Cinemas. Inox had 153 multiplexes with 648 total screens in 69 Indian cities, as of March 2020.

For some context on relative size, in 2019, PVR had 812 movie screens, Inox Leisure had 612, and the No. 3 player, Carnival Cinemas, had 412, according to Statista.

Inox has “reported a net loss for at least five consecutive quarters since March 2020, when a nationwide coronavirus lockdown was imposed,” according to Reuters. This information, of course, isn’t surprising, as movie theaters across the globe have been one of the industries hardest hit by the pandemic.

Does it make sense that Amazon is interested in an Indian movie theater chain?

At first glance, it wouldn’t seem like the e-commerce and tech giant would be that interested in getting into the movie theater chain business. A movie studio or production company would seem a better fit, as that type of acquisition or stake would expand the company’s content library for its Prime Video streaming service.

Indeed, in May, Amazon announced that it was acquiring famed U.S. movie studio MGM for $8.5 billion. That deal immediately struck me as a highly synergistic, as content is king in the video-streaming business.

However, it doesn’t seem out of the realm of possibilities that Amazon could be interested in acquiring a stake in either Inox or another similar Indian company involved in movie distribution.

India presents an attractive market in general due to its size — it’s the second most-populous country in the world — and population dynamics. Big waves of consumers in this country of about 1.4 billion people continue to move up into the middle class, and this dynamic should continue for some time.

The country is one of the fastest-growing markets for Amazon and has a long runway for growth given the population dynamics mentioned above.

Moreover, the pandemic has presented financially strong companies an ideal opportunity to make acquisitions or acquire stakes in companies that are struggling because they are involved in businesses that have been particularly hurt by the global crisis. Some companies are probably considering making deals they’d not have otherwise considered had the pandemic not presented them with certain opportunities they view as financially attractive.

Whether or not Amazon (which is scheduled to report its second-quarter results on Thursday after the market close) makes a deal with Inox Leisure or another Indian movie theater chain remains to be seen. However, it makes perfect sense that the e-commerce titan would be on the hunt for attractive deals of some kind in the entertainment realm in India.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

The post Amazon reportedly considering deal with top movie theater chain in India appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Beth McKenna has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. John Mackey, CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and has recommended Amazon. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has recommended the following options: long January 2022 $1,920 calls on Amazon and short January 2022 $1,940 calls on Amazon. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Amazon. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

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It’s not often you see an ASX 200 share with an almost vertical price chart.

This has been the fortunate case for Mineral Resources Limited (ASX: MIN).

On a weekly chart, the Mineral Resources share price has set a new record high every week, for the past 8 weeks since 7 June.

The company’s shares have rallied an astonishing ~350% from March 2020 lows, with very few pullbacks in between.

Why Mineral Resources is a top performing ASX 200 share

Leveraging Australia’s surging commodity exports

During the February reporting season, Mineral Resources reported that its mining services segment experienced a 28% increase in revenue to $784 million (or 51% of overall revenue).

This growth was primarily driven by continued growth in high-profile mining hubs such as Yilgarn and Utah, where many ASX 200 shares such as BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) and Fortescue Metals Group Limited (ASX: FMG) operate.

As part of Mineral Resources’ 5 year plan, the company is targeting “significant growth” for its mining services, with the expectation that this segment “more than [doubles]”.

Mineral Resources share price riding the sky high iron ore prices

According to Mineral Resources, the company is Australia’s 5th largest iron ore producer, tailing behind ASX 200 shares BHP, Fortescue and Rio Tinto Limited (ASX: RIO)

In the company’s third quarter update, it cited iron ore shipments totalling 4.1 million wet metric tonnes (wmt), consistent with Q2 FY21 output and up over 51% on the prior corresponding period (pcp).

In addition, total iron ore production during the third quarter was 4.9 million wmt up 44% on pcp.

Mineral Resources has an aspirational goal to increase its iron ore production from 20 million tonnes per annum to 90 mtpa over the next five years.

Did I mention lithium?

The lithium sector is surging with ASX 200 shares such as Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS), Galaxy Resources Limited (ASX: GXY) and Orocobre Limited (ASX: ORE) delivering near triple digit year-to-date returns.

The Mineral Resources share price could also be benefiting from the hype around the lithium sector and renewables industry.

According to the company’s website, its two hard rock lithium mines in Western Australia make it “one of the world’s largest owners of hard rock lithium units”.

The post This ASX 200 share has made new record highs every week for the past 8 weeks appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Kerry Sun has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The Apple Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL) share price moved to the downside overnight despite the company reporting another quarter of solid growth.

Shares in the US tech giant slipped in the session leading up to Apple’s third-quarter results. The Apple share price proceeded to move lower after-hours following the release of its results after the market closed.

Let’s inspect the numbers that failed to enthuse investors.

Growth across all major product lines

Although Apple’s results for Q3 may not have impressed investors, it did beat analysts’ estimates. On the top line, total revenue came to US$81.41 billion compared to estimates of US$73.30 billion. This represented an increase of 36% year-over-year (YoY).

Meanwhile, net income totalled US$21.74 billion, equating to earnings per share of US$1.31 per share. Analysts were expecting US$1.01.

Breaking down Apple’s sales by category, iPhone sales increased 49.7% YoY to US$39.57 billion. Similarly, services revenue surged 33% to US$17.48 billion. Other products, Mac, and iPad sales came to US$8.76 billion, US$8.24 billion, and US$7.37 billion respectively.

In fact, all major product lines delivered double-digit growth. Much of this growth came from sales in China. According to the release, Apple notched up US$14.76 billion in sales from China – representing an increase of 58.2% on the prior corresponding period.

Commenting on the result, Chief Financial Officer Luca Maestri said:

Our record June quarter operating performance included new revenue records in each of our geographic segments, double-digit growth in each of our product categories, and a new all-time high for our installed base of active devices. We generated $21 billion of operating cash flow, returned nearly $29 billion to our shareholders during the quarter, and continued to make significant investments across our business to support our long-term growth plans.

Chip shortage weighs on Apple share price

While the results were a major positive for the tech company, concerns surrounding the ongoing computer chip shortage appear to have investors on edge.

During the earnings call, CEO Tim Cook signalled Apple is seeing supply constraints that could impact iPhone and iPad sales in the September quarter.

Additionally, the shortage affected Mac and iPad numbers during the third quarter. However, Cook said the company was able to mitigate some of the impacts.

Lastly, Apple once again did not provide guidance, potentially putting further pressure on the Apple share price.

The post Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) share price slips despite smashing estimates appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Mitchell Lawler owns shares of Apple. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and has recommended Apple. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has recommended the following options: long March 2023 $120 calls on Apple and short March 2023 $130 calls on Apple. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Apple. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The Nitro Software Ltd (ASX: NTO) share price is rising on Wednesday.

In morning trade, the document productivity software company’s shares are up 1.5% to $3.50

Why is the Nitro share price trading lower?

The Nitro share price is trading higher today following the release of a solid second quarter result.

According to the release, Nitro’s annualised recurring revenue (ARR) reached US$33.8 million at the end of June. This was an increase of 56% over the prior corresponding period.

This means that Nitro is on course to deliver on its FY 2021 guidance for ARR of between US$39 million and US$42 million.

Management advised that this was driven by the continuation of its sales momentum. This includes key customer wins and expansions such as Silicon Valley Bank, FLSmidth & Co, Canadian Natural Resources, Thermo Fisher Scientific, and AmSpec.

It notes that the strong demand for the Nitro Productivity Platform continues to be underpinned by the global shift to remote and digital work, accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic. There were more than 1 million eSign requests sent in the first half of FY 2021. This is the same number of eSign requests that were sent for the entirety of FY 2020.

Nitro ended the period with a cash balance of US$38.8 million with no debt.

SaaS model transition continues

Also giving the Nitro share price a boost today was the strong progress the company is making with its transition to a SaaS business model.

The release reveals that subscription revenue comprised 63% of total revenue for the first half. This compares to 48% in the prior corresponding period. Furthermore, in the larger Business sales channel, 85% of revenue was from subscriptions.

Nitro’s Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Sam Chandler, commented: “The evolution of the Nitro Productivity Platform has continued to accelerate across the past quarter, with major milestones that have enabled us to offer a full suite of powerful productivity solutions to meet our customers’ needs.”

“In June, we announced the acquisition of PDFpen, adding Mac, iPad and iPhone capabilities to our platform and opening up new market opportunities. This month we have unveiled a comprehensive new pricing and packaging structure that, for the first time, includes the full commercial availability of Nitro Sign as a standalone subscription product offering.”

“With these developments, our Platform offers customers the flexibility to tailor individual productivity solutions that remove barriers to growing their businesses in this fast-changing, post-COVID world,” he added.

Outlook

As mentioned above, Nitro is on track to achieve its FY 2021 ARR guidance of between US$39 million and US$42 million.

In addition, the company has upgraded its revenue guidance to be between US$47 million and US$50 million. This compares to the prior guidance range of between US$45 million and US$49 million. Management notes that the favourable revenue expectation is due to higher return on investment from some of the company’s first half initiatives.

Another positive is that its full year operating EBITDA loss is not expected to be as great as previously expected. It now expects a loss within the range of US$9 million to US$11 million, compared to the previous guidance range of US$11 million to US$13 million.

This is due largely to its stronger revenue performance and partly from cost efficiencies and the timing of personnel hiring.

The Nitro share price is up 70% over the last 12 months.

The post Nitro (ASX:NTO) share price pushes higher following strong Q2 update appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Nitro Software Limited. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The Eagers Automotive Ltd (ASX: APE) share price is racing higher on Wednesday morning.

At the time of writing, the automotive retailer’s shares are up a sizeable 5.5% to $16.59.

This means the Eagers Automotive share price is now up an impressive 23% since the start of the year.

Why is the Eagers Automotive share price charging higher?

The catalyst for the rise in the Eagers Automotive share price on Wednesday has been the release of a first half trading update.

According to the release, for the six months ended 30 June, Eagers Automotive expects to record an underlying operating profit before tax from continuing operations of approximately $218.6 million.

This will be a massive 442% increase on the prior corresponding period. Though, management acknowledges that FY 2020’s first half performance was materially impacted by the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

On a statutory basis, the company expects to report a net profit before tax from continuing operations of $267.4 million.

What is driving this strong performance?

The release explains that the Australian new car market continues to rebound from the pandemic. So much so, during the first half, the new car market grew 28.3% compared to the first six months of 2020.

Management advised that these market dynamics are further buoyed by demand continuing to materially outstrip supply.

In addition to this, Eagers Automotive’s underlying profit continues to be supported by the ongoing benefits of its material cost out program completed over the last 12 months and the ongoing synergies resulting from its transformative merger with AHG.

Nevertheless, the company continues to monitor the evolving COVID-19 situation and the associated effects of lockdowns in key markets nationally. As a result, it will manage the business with a balanced approach towards optimising all key stakeholder outcomes.

The post Eagers Automotive (ASX:APE) share price races higher after 440% profit jump appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The ALS Ltd (ASX: ALQ) share price is on the move on Wednesday morning.

At the time of writing, the testing services company’s shares are up 3% to $12.94.

Why is the ALS share price rising?

Investors have been bidding the ALS share price higher today after the release of its annual general meeting presentation and the announcement of an acquisition.

In respect to the former, the presentation took investors through the company’s performance in FY 2021 and provided an update on trading so far in FY 2022.

ALS has started FY 2022 strongly and is expecting this to lead to solid first half profit growth. Management has provided guidance of first half underlying net profit after tax of between $115 million and $125 million. The midpoint of this guidance range represents a sizeable 49% increase on the prior corresponding period.

It advised that this reflects the strong start that it is seeing across its Life Sciences and Commodities divisions as volumes continue to improve as global activity increases.

Acquisition news

Not included in its first half guidance is the proposed acquisition of an initial 49% interest in NUVISAN, a pharmaceutical testing business with operations in Germany and France.

Management believes the acquisition provides it with the platform to expand its offering from quality control testing into ‘upstream’ services in research and development.

Growth in this area of the market is driven by major pharmaceutical companies outsourcing drug development research and testing due to increasing pricing pressure, lack of internal capability, and expertise from external providers.

ALS will initially acquire 49% of the equity in NUVISAN for a consideration of ~EUR145 million. It also has an exclusive call option to acquire the remaining equity from 1 January 2024. This option expires by 30 September 2026 at the latest.

Should this option be exercised, the remaining 51% equity in NUVISAN will be acquired at 13x adjusted EBITDA based on the 12 months preceding the purchase.

ALS’ Managing Director and CEO, Raj Naran, commented “This is a significant expansion of our Life Sciences capability as we grow our presence in the strategically important Pharmaceutical market. This will allow us to move our service offering up the supply chain into drug development and research testing, which significantly expands our addressable markets. NUVISAN offers us a platform in the key markets of Germany and France which has long been an aspiration for our Life Sciences division.”

The post Why the ALS (ASX:ALQ) share price is charging higher today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The Crown Resorts Ltd (ASX: CWN) share price will be in the spotlight on Wednesday morning following a Victorian casino tax update.

At yesterday’s market close, the casino operator’s shares finished the day down a sizeable 5.47% to $8.98.

Victorian casino tax update

In Tuesday’s late market release, Crown Resorts provided an update to the ongoing review of potential casino tax underpayments by Crown Melbourne.

The group stated that it has resolved to make payment to the Victorian Commission for Gambling and Liquor Regulation (VCGLR). From the 2012 financial year until yesterday’s date, Crown Resorts underpaid approximately $37 million in casino tax. This is in relation to Crown Melbourne incorrectly deducting certain bonus rewards given to customers from its electronic gaming machines.

As a result of the underpayment, Crown Resorts incurred $24 million in penalty interest for the nine-year period. Combined with the principal amount, Crown has paid a total of $61 million to the state of Victoria. The VCGLR has been notified of the above outcome.

In addition, Crown went on to note that it is continuing to assess other aspects of casino tax payments. This includes the company’s review of its loyalty promotion, Matchplay. Using Matchplay, Crown Rewards Points are redeemed for credits to use in electronic gaming machines.

Once the Victorian Royal Commission delivers its final report, the VCGLR advised it will finalise Crown’s potential casino tax underpayments.

Crown share price snapshot

Since mid-May, Crown shares have recorded heavy losses of more than 30% for investors. These levels have not been seen since November 2020 where an AUSTRAC investigation took place.

However, when looking over a longer period, the company’s share price is relatively flat. Year to date the Crown Resorts share price is down 6.75%. While over a 12-month period Crown shares are down just 0.22%.

Based on valuation grounds, Crown Resorts commands a market capitalisation of roughly $6 billion, with around 677 million shares outstanding.

The post Here’s why the Crown Resorts (ASX:CWN) share price is in focus today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Aaron Teboneras has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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Investors need to keep 3 big picture trends in mind when picking ASX shares, an expert has warned.

According to AXA IM core investments chief investment officer Chris Iggo, the issues perplexing stock markets earlier this year seem to be irrelevant now.

“Worries about the economy overheating appear to have been overdone as the Delta variant [of COVID-19] reminds us that the battle with the pandemic is far from over,” he said.

“Bond yields have responded accordingly and investors should prepare for the possibility that the US 10-year yield hits 1% again soon.” 

But while the coronavirus still occupies everyone in the short term, there is still a massive long-term worry that needs to be addressed.

“The planet is overheating and climate disorder is very evident,” said Iggo.

“Carbon reduction will become one of the most important investment strategies as investors respond to the urgency of combating climate change.”

With these forces in mind, Iggo suggested investors consider 3 major themes for the future when picking shares in the present.

We’ve hit peak air travel 

The pandemic might have brought forward an inevitability, according to Iggo.

“Some of the things that spring to mind include the notion that peak air travel is well and truly behind us until an economically scalable sustainable alternative to jet fuel is developed.”

This could mean trouble for ASX shares such as Qantas Airways Limited (ASX: QAN) and Air New Zealand Limited (ASX: AIZ).

Work-from-home is here to stay

A trend that may have never entered the mainstream if not for COVID-19 is working from home.

And Iggo reckons life will never be the same again.

“The ‘working from home’ genie is not going back in the bottle,” he said. 

“The machismo displayed by some financial institutions insisting on full time back in the office is unlikely to be the norm across the private sector.” 

This means that investors must look for ASX shares that’ll benefit from lifestyle changes.

“There are long-term implications for urban planning and infrastructure spending, on the demand for smart-housing and on how much households spend on leisure relative to commuting.”

Blockchain technology will shake up ASX shares

The database technology called blockchain isn’t just about speculative cryptocurrencies.

Iggo thinks the system, which allows decentralisation of centuries-old financial processes, is set to shake up every part of the sector.

“On the financial side, blockchain technology is likely to lead to changes in bank operating models, on payments systems and potentially even on financial instruments like equity and mutual funds,” he said.

“Decentralising all kinds of activity has become desirable and achievable which has huge organisational implications.”

The post 3 long-term trends ASX share investors can buy into appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Tony Yoo owns shares of Qantas Airways Limited. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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