The latest Market Talks covering Equities. Published exclusively on Dow Jones Newswires throughout the day.

0744 GMT - South Korea is seeking to usher in a new "golden age" of national growth by building regional high-tech industrial ecosystems, according to President Lee Jae Myung. Speaking at a meeting reviewing the government's mega projects on Monday, Lee called the next 12 months a critical time, urging officials to accelerate implementation and ensure the benefits of growth extend beyond the capital region. He said the planned Honam semiconductor cluster should be developed at a pace matching or surpassing Japan's Kumamoto tech hub. To speed development, Lee instructed the Defense Ministry to temporarily transfer operations from Gwangju Military Airport to another military airfield by mid-2028, clearing the way for early construction of the chip complex. (jie.yang@wsj.com)

0732 GMT - Wizz Air is managing through its breakneck capacity growth remarkably well, Bernstein analysts Alex Irving and Antoine Madre say in a research note. The next year will still be painful for the budget carrier but it should be one of transition, the analysts say. "It has had a lot of those recently, but there are tangible milestones coming," the analysts add. While management remains determined to stick to the plan this year--combining high fuel prices and issues surrounding geared turbofan engines--the analysts expect a net loss of more than 500 million euros. Shares trade 0.4% lower at 1,091 pence. (nina.kienle@wsj.com)

0729 GMT - Novartis's odds of success in a late-stage trial for cholesterol-lowering drug pelacarsen seem in the balance, analysts at J.P. Morgan say in a note. For the trial to be successful, the Swiss drugmaker likely needs the medicine to cut cardiovascular risk by 13% in the overall population and by 15% in patients with at least 90 milligrams per deciliter of lipoprotein(a)--a variant of the so-called bad cholesterol--in their blood, according to JPM. The analysts see a 40% chance of this happening. "Even if the trial was successful, we see the ultimate commercial opportunity as relatively limited given a borderline statistically significant result is unlikely to be seen as sufficiently clinically meaningful to support adoption of Lp(a) testing and widespread use of an additional therapy," they add. Novartis shares rise 0.3%. (adria.calatayud@wsj.com)

0722 GMT - European markets were mixed in early trade with the Europe-wide Stoxx 600 and Germany's DAX extending Friday's record highs, while France's CAC 40 and London's FTSE 100 index were lower. Germany's Aumovio was leading the Stoxx 600 index risers after a rating upgrade, closely followed by Plus500 after the online trading company reported earnings. The Stoxx 600 and DAX were around 0.01% and 0.08% higher, respectively, while the CAC and FTSE were down 0.05% and 0.1% respectively. (ian.walker@wsj.com)

0646 GMT - Apple may keep price hikes minimal for its coming iPhone 18 Pro despite a sharp jump in production costs, according to research firm TrendForce. The cost of components used in the iPhone 18 Pro 256GB model is expected to surge about 38% on year, largely due to soaring memory prices. Memory chips accounted for just 10% of the phone's component costs a year ago, but that share is projected to exceed 40% by early 2027, TrendForce says. To avoid hurting demand, Apple may accept lower profit margins on the new model and could even raise prices on older iPhone models to help offset the higher costs, TrendForce says. (jie.yang@wsj.com)

0642 GMT - Hero MotoCorp's ongoing diversification away from its core business of commuter motorcycles augurs well, as this provides better growth avenues, say HDFC Securities' analysts in a research report. Management also highlighted that demand remains good despite its price increases in its internal combustion engine vehicle and electric vehicle portfolios, the analysts note. For India's two-wheeler industry, management expects 2Q FY 2027 to have a similar growth path as 1Q, and is positive that this industry will post double-digit growth in FY 2027. The brokerage raises the stock's target price to 7,012.00 rupees from 6,742.00 rupees, with an unchanged buy rating. Shares are 2.3% higher at 5,862.00 rupees. (ronnie.harui@wsj.com)

0635 GMT - Sandoz Group offers an attractive growth profile for the coming years, with core earnings per share expected to rise at a double-digit percentage through the end of the decade and to sustain momentum beyond, J.P. Morgan analysts say. Investors in the Swiss maker of generic drugs await an event scheduled for Sept. 8. The company is expected to provide an update on its midterm outlook and the opportunities presented by big drugs going off patent over the coming decade, the analysts say in a research note. JPM expects Sandoz's core EPS to grow at an annual rate of 11% over the 2027-2030 period, and lifts its target price on the stock to 80 Swiss francs from 75 francs. Sandoz shares closed at 72.78 francs on Friday. (adria.calatayud@wsj.com)

0617 GMT - WPP's latest results show the U.K. advertising group is making progress, but it still faces an uncertain path to return to top-line growth, Citi analysts say in a research note. While WPP's revenue less pass-through costs is still in decline on a like-for-like basis, trends are improving, the analysts say. Moreover, the company is showing signs of strategic progress despite being only six months into a three-year program, they add. Citi raises its target price on the stock to 430 pence from 285 pence. "However, we believe a wait-and-see approach is prudent given the steep re-rating, and while we acknowledge the clear progress, uncertainty remains regarding the path back to growth," the analysts say. WPP shares closed at 411.40 pence on Friday. (adria.calatayud@wsj.com)

0613 GMT - NetLink NBN Trust's distribution sustainability is likely to be the key driver for its unit price, its bull at Citi Research says in a note. The trust, which owns and operates the passive fiber network infrastructure for Singapore's broadband network, posted 1Q revenue and Ebitda that was in line with consensus estimates, but profit fell short, analyst Luis Hilado says. He expects the business trust's management to address whether its distribution per unit can be maintained in the medium-to-long term at its Tuesday results briefing, flagging the trust's sequentially higher net debt-to-Ebitda ratio. Citi retains its buy rating and target price of 1.13 Singapore dollars. Units last closed flat at S$1.01, before the results. (megan.cheah@wsj.com)

0558 GMT - The share of foreign AI chip suppliers such as Nvidia and AMD in China is expected to fall to roughly 10% in 2026, as geopolitical headwinds continue to stifle foreign solutions, according to research firm TrendForce. Despiste that, China's high-end AI chip market is projected to expand rapidly, with shipments rising more than 83% year on year, TrendForce says. Domestic alternatives are expected to capture nearly 90% of the market, driven by chips developed by China's leading cloud and technology companies, and local semiconductor firms including Huawei and Cambricon. To maintain a presence in the market, Nvidia is expected to shift its focus to a lower-end product aimed at enterprise customers running smaller AI training and inference workloads, TrendForce says. (jie.yang@wsj.com)

0550 GMT - Recruit Holdings is likely seeing signs of progress with products for large companies, Nomura's Jiyong Oum says in a research report. Management said that there has been marked growth in sales to major customers and that this would be a major source of medium-term earnings growth, the analyst notes. Management also said orders have been rising in area of automation of hiring processes with usage of artificial intelligence. Nomura lifts its sales forecasts for the Japanese technology company by 5.0% for this fiscal year, 5.4% for next fiscal year, and 5.6% for FY ending March 2029. It raises the stock's target price to 18,500 yen from 16,000 yen with unchanged buy rating. Shares are 23% higher at 16,165 yen. (ronnie.harui@wsj.com)

0548 GMT - Lingyi iTech is likely to benefit from growing demand for electronic devices thanks to its comprehensive product offerings and original-design-manufacturing services, Citi analysts say in a note. Lingyi iTech, which supplies companies such as iPhone maker Apple, is a provider of high-precision functional components and manufacturing solutions. Over 2025-2028, the analysts see the company logging a compound annual growth rate of 23% in revenue and 33% in net profit, partly thanks to Apple products and edge artificial-intelligence devices. Citi initiates coverage of Lingyi iTech's Shenzhen-listed stock at neutral with a target price of 13.00 yuan. It sets a buy call on shares listed in Hong Kong, with a target price of 8.00 Hong Kong dollars. The company's A shares fall 1.9% to 12.48 yuan; its H shares decline 1.4% to HK$6.13.