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Glonghui, May 25 — According to a research report by CICC, we have reviewed the stock prices and performance of the US medical devices sector so far this year. We are optimistic about a short-term recovery, though breakthroughs with high-potential blockbuster products are still awaited for the future. In the short to medium term, we believe the weak stock prices in the medical devices sector are at odds with solid fundamentals, and valuations for the sector have already bottomed out. We are optimistic about short- to medium-term recovery opportunities in the medical devices sector. In the long run, we think it is still necessary to wait for the emergence of major blockbuster products. At this stage, we recommend focusing on high-growth segments such as electrophysiology, structural heart disease, complex vascular interventions, surgical robots, and neuroscience.

```htmlGlonhui May 25th｜The mood among Americans is evidently very bad, but the stock market is clearly not reflecting this. Usually, this is not the case. Historically, high stock prices are often accompanied by happy consumers, and vice versa. How bad is consumer confidence? Americans have just set some kind of milestone. Last Friday, the University of Michigan reported that its Consumer Sentiment Index fell to the lowest level in more than 70 years of survey history. At the beginning of this year, consumer confidence was already at a low level; at the end of February, the outbreak of the Iran war caused gasoline prices to soar, and this indicator dropped sharply as a result. Before this year, the previous lowest point of the index occurred in June 2022, when inflation was at the highest level in decades. The consumer sentiment reading released on Friday was even 10% lower than that previous low. "Prices are still extremely high, the labor market has obviously weakened over the past four years, and now we're in the midst of a war," said Joanne Hsu, director of consumer surveys at the University of Michigan. "I don't think it's surprising that the index fell below the level of June 2022." However, looking at the stock market performance alone, also on Friday, the S&P 500 achieved its eighth consecutive week of gains, and the Dow Jones set a record closing high for the second consecutive trading day.```

Golden Ten Data reported on May 25 that influenced by hopes for a peace agreement between the US and Iran, Brent crude oil futures fell below $100 per barrel. Pepperstone strategist Chris Weston stated that if Brent oil prices approach $90, risk assets may see a resurgence as short-term inflation expectations ease moderately and 2027 implied rate hike bets drop slightly. Weston noted that the US core personal consumption expenditure data will be released this week, putting inflation expectations to the test, and it is expected that this data will show a year-on-year increase. Overall PCE inflation is projected to be 3.8%—almost double the Federal Reserve’s target. The decline in oil prices may limit the dollar’s reaction to the upcoming data. “USD positions have become rather tight, and the drop in inflation expectations due to falling energy prices may trigger some unwinding of USD long positions,” Weston said.