BofA: Cigarettes and Coca-Cola tend to hold up during recessions

If the US does spiral into a self-induced recession, as economists are increasingly predicting, history shows consumer staples may be one of the safest places to invest, according to Bank of America analysts.

Some of the companies it recommends are Zyn maker Philip Morris International, sugary drink staple Coca-Cola, and condiment and spice seller McCormick. Those industries have outperformed in most recessions, with the exception of COVID-19.

They have also outperformed this year as President Trump’s tariff threats have rattled global markets.

Screenshot 2025-04-08 at 12.22.37 PM — (Bank of America)

Screenshot 2025-04-08 at 12.23.08 PM — (Bank of America)

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Claire Yubin Oh10m

IBM rises after announcing partnership with Anthropic which will integrate Claude into IBM's software portfolio

IBM jumped as much as 7.5% in early trading on Tuesday after announcing that the company is partnering with Anthropic to integrate its AI model Claude into IBM’s software offerings. No financial details were released.

Per IBM’s press release: “Through the partnership, Claude will be integrated into select IBM software products, starting with IBM's new AI-first integrated development environment (IDE), designed with advanced task generation capabilities for enterprise software development lifecycles (SDLC), including software modernization.”

As part of the partnership, IBM has also created a guide that helps businesses build and use AI agents, including “best practices guides, reference architectures, and open-source tooling developed from IBM's experience deploying AI across thousands of client environments.”

By making Anthropic’s models readily accessible to its customers, IBM is doubling down on its AI offering — although it’s unclear how this new partnership with Anthropic will impact its own AI models like Granite.

For Anthropic, this partnership builds on its momentum in the enterprise arena — yesterday the company announced a deal with Deloitte to roll out Claude to more than 470,000 employees across 150 countries.

Tom Jones1h

Trilogy Metals soars on US government’s 10% stake announcement

Shares in Trilogy Metals, a Canadian minerals exploration company, have soared as much as 200% in early trading today, after the US government announced it had taken a 10% stake in the company worth $35.6 million, along with warrants to build that investment by another 7.5% down the line.

The Trump administration’s position in the company, which had five full-time employees as of November last year, reflects growing government interest in reducing America’s dependence on China for critical mineral supplies, given Trilogy Metals’ mining claims in Alaska.

In a section of the announcement subtitled “UNLOCKING ACCESS TO AMERICA’S CRITICAL MINERALS,” the White House detailed how the investment and decision to green-light the Ambler Road Project, which will open up road access to the Ambler Mining District, overturns the Biden government’s move to block the same project last year. The area reportedly has “one of the largest undeveloped copper-zinc mineral belts in the world and contains extensive deposits of copper, silver, gold, lead, cobalt, and other strategic metals.”

Similar Washington deals with mining companies like MP Materials and Lithium Americas sent those companies’ shares soaring too — Critical Metals, meanwhile, which jumped yesterday on reports around talks of a government stake in the business, has slumped 5% in premarket trading today.

Claire Yubin Oh1h

Amkor rises after breaking ground on its new semiconductor packaging campus in Arizona, while increasing investment in the project to $7 billion

Amkor Technology Inc soared in after-hours trading on Monday after announcing that it was breaking ground on its semiconductor advanced packaging and test plant in Arizona, whilst also increasing the investment in the facility to a total of $7 billion in collaboration with the US government.

The expanded investment will add an “additional cleanroom space and a second greenfield packaging and test facility,” creating a campus with “over 750,000 square feet of cleanroom space and as many as 3,000 high-quality jobs,” per the company’s press release. The plant will focus on “advanced packaging and testing technologies and will complement TSMC’s front-end wafer fabrication for full end-to-end semiconductor manufacturing.”

Located close to TSMC’s factories in Arizona, the proximity should reduce the need to send US-produced chips back to Asia for the final stages of production.

Amkor’s mega-plant was already set to be one of the most ambitious US-sited semiconductor packaging operations before the expansion, but the latest announcement raises the total project investment by more than $5 billion, backed by the Trump Administration’s CHIPS for America Program.

According to the company, the “construction of the first manufacturing facility on the campus is expected to be completed in mid-2027, with production beginning in early 2028.”

Amkor’s mega-plant has already locked in Apple and Nvidia as customers, with Apple’s chief operating officer, Sabih Khan, saying:

Factories across the United States are producing 19 billion chips for Apple this year alone, and Amkor’s new facility will package and test the Apple silicon produced at TSMC Arizona just down the road. We’re proud to invest in Amkor through Apple’s American Manufacturing Program, which is a key part of our $600 billion commitment to create jobs and accelerate innovation right here in the U.S.

J. Edward Moreno14h

Oscar Health jumps after Trump signals openness to extending ACA subsidies as part of deal to end government shutdown

Oscar Health jumped in after-hours trading after President Trump suggested he is open to extending Affordable Care Act subsidies as part of a funding bill to reopen the government.

The stock was recently up 9.1%.

ACA plans, which are a major source of revenue for some insurers, including Oscar, are at the center of budget negotiations as the government shutdown stretches on.

According to NBC News, when asked if he would be willing to make a deal on the subsidies, Trump told reporters: “If we made the right deal, I’d make a deal.” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer denied that Trump was talking with Democrats about reaching an agreement but said, “We’ll be at the table,” The New York Times reported.

J. Edward Moreno15h

Constellation Brands earnings report beats Wall Street estimates

Constellation Brands ticked up in after-hours trading Monday after it reported earnings results that beat Wall Street expectations.

Constellation, which owns a variety of booze brands including Modelo Especial in the US, reported quarterly adjusted earnings per share of $3.63, higher than the $3.38 analysts polled by FactSet were expecting.

It also reported $2.48 billion in revenue, slightly above the $2.45 billion the Street predicted.

The company slashed its full-year guidance last month, reducing its fiscal 2026 adjusted EPS outlook to $11.30 to $11.60, down from its previous range of $12.60 to $12.90. Analysts are penciling in $11.49 adjusted earnings per share for the fiscal year.

The company left that guidance unchanged.

Despite owning one of the US’s most sold beers, Constellation is facing various headwinds ranging from declining beer consumption and pressure on Hispanic consumers.

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