Trade Summit, Fed Decision and Earnings Move the Markets
There has been a decidedly mixed response from investors following yesterday’s Fed meeting. Although the US central bank announced a 0.25% interest rate cut as expected, and that it will end its Quantitative Tightening program on December 1st, remarks from Chair Powell that a rate cut in December is not a foregone conclusion sent stocks […]
Two Central Banks and a Bunch of Earnings
It’s central bank decision day in North America. At 9:45 am EDT, the Bank of Canada is expected to announce a 0.25% interest rate cut to 2.25%. At 2:00 pm today, the Federal Reserve Board is widely expected to announce a 0.25% interest rate cut to 4.00%. In addition to the interest rate news, investors […]
Trade Developments and Earnings Drive Market Action Today
New and continuing developments related to tariffs, trade, and sanctions appear to be having a significant impact on the markets. With new sanctions against Russia and Russian energy companies taking hold, Crude Oil is up another 1.00% today, trading near $62.50/bbl. Last night, in response to an advertisement critical of tariffs, President Trump has stopped […]
Crude Oil Selloff Continues
The last trading day of the month and the quarter finds a number of markets which have staged strong performance lately backsliding a bit. US index futures are down 0.2%-0.3%, Gold is down 0.4% and Silver is down 1.4%. Some reports have suggested that this could be related to concerns over a potential US government […]
Positive Economic Data Boosts the US Dollar
This morning, several key US economic indicators have come in significantly better than expected. The latest US Q2 GDP update (3.8% vs Street 3.3%), and durable goods orders (2.9% vs Street -0.5%) suggest a more robust economy than previously thought. Meanwhile, fewer than expected weekly initial jobless claims (218K vs previous 232K) suggest US labor […]
Stocks Rebound Following a Correction
Yesterday’s pullback in North American equities from recent all-time highs, which saw the NASDAQ lose 1.0% and the S&P slide 0.6%, appears to have been short lived. Better than expected earnings from chipmaker Micron Technology ($3.03 vs Street $2.86) appears to have shored up confidence. This morning finds US index futures trading flat to up […]
Precious Metals Keep on Climbing as PMI Numbers Disappoint
There appears to be a growing disconnect between what equity and non-equity asset classes are telling us about investor sentiment. On the one hand, equity indices in the US and elsewhere continuing to reach new all-time highs seems to suggest an increased level of confidence and optimism about the future. This morning, US index futures […]
Gold Reaches Another New High
Between central bank interest rate cuts potentially devaluing paper money over time, and anti-austerity protests in France over the weekend suggesting governments may struggle to get their fiscal houses in order, capital appears to be increasingly seeking out havens in hard assets, particularly precious metals. Gold is up 1.4% this morning trading at a record […]
Semiconductor Stocks Soar on Intel Deal
Early this morning news came out that Nvidia is going to invest $5 billion into Intel, and that the two companies plan to develop semiconductors for PC and data center applications together. Coming on the heels of the US government recently taking a 10% stake, Intel shares are up 28.7% in premarket trading today, while […]
Buckle Up, it’s Central Bank Decision and Forecast Day!
Steady markets are awaiting today’s monetary policy decisions from North America’s two main central banks. Both the Fed (2:00 pm EDT decision) and the Bank of Canada (9:45 am EDT) are expected to lower their benchmark interest rates by 0.25% to 4.25% and 2.50% respectively. With employment weakening on both sides of the border investors […]