Written by Gary
US markets closed mixed. The DOW up 10 points, the Spooze closed down -0.09% and the Nasdaq up 0.7%. WTI crude remained steady at $46 and the rally that pushed the SP 500 to record highs every day this week ran out of steam shortly after the opening bell. Next week an onslaught of company earnings could help investors assess the impact of Britain’s vote to exit the European Union.
Todays S&P 500 Chart
The S&P 500 (SPX) has returned 7.1% so far this year, which is remarkable considering all the panic when the index declined 10% early this year and all the worry over Brexit. Valuations are the highest they’ve been for this time of the year since 2003. But Mark Hulbert says the market’s technical strength points to more good times ahead .
The Market in Perspective
| Here are the headlines moving the markets. | |
 | Wall Street’s week-long rally fades as bank results disappoint(Reuters) – A rally that pushed the S&P 500 to record highs every day this week ran out of steam on Friday, with financials leading Wall Street lower after disappointing results from big banks. |
| U.S. retail sales, industrial output data suggest strong Q2 GDP growthWASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. retail sales rose more than expected in June as Americans bought motor vehicles and a variety of other goods, bolstering views that economic growth picked up in the second quarter. |
| Herbalife settles pyramid scheme case with regulator, in blow to Pershing’s AckmanWASHINGTON/NEW YORK (Reuters) – Herbalife Ltd agreed to pay $200 million and change the way it does business to avoid being labeled a pyramid scheme by regulators, a blow to hedge fund manager Bill Ackman who for years has been betting against the dietary supplements maker. |
| Criminal probe casts 2009 Ackman-Target boardroom brawl in new lightBOSTON (Reuters) – A widening criminal probe casts new light on a bitter defeat hedge fund activist Bill Ackman suffered in his 2009 bid for board seats at U.S. retailer Target Corp. |
| Can stocks stay at highs? That depends on earningsNEW YORK (Reuters) – After finally eclipsing year-old record highs, the U.S. stock market will be tested again next week, when the onslaught of company earnings could help investors assess the impact of Britain’s vote to exit the European Union. |
| Takata settles Florida air bag injury lawsuitWASHINGTON (Reuters) – Lawyers for a Florida woman who was left a quadriplegic after a Takata air bag inflator deployed in a 2014 crash said Friday they had settled a lawsuit against the Japanese company. |
| Paramount stake sale could hamper deal for Viacom: National Amusements(Reuters) – Sumner Redstone’s privately held movie theater company said on Friday it opposes the sale of a minority stake in Viacom Inc’s Paramount Pictures, because such a transaction could hurt the chances of a deal involving all of Viacom. |
| Citi beats expectations, bets on consumers amid low rates(Reuters) – Citigroup is betting on U.S. consumers and multi-national corporate clients to navigate lower interest rates after a rebound in trading helped it beat Wall Street’s subdued expectations for the second quarter. |
| Wells Fargo management prodded on expenses after profit decline(Reuters) – Top Wells Fargo & Co executives were grilled by analysts on Friday about whether they’re doing enough to control expenses after the bank reported a drop in second-quarter profit. |
| These Are The 10 Corporate Bond With The Most Negative Yields In The WorldEarlier today Germany’s 10Y Bund crossed back into positive yield territory for the first time since Brexit, after touching as low as -0.20% earlier in the week…
… but that, oddly, does not mean that corporate bunds have to follow. In fact, as Goldman finds, negative corporate bond yields may turn out to be even stickier than their respective government treasuries. According to Goldman’s Lotfi Karoui finds there is “more negative yielding EUR corporate bonds despite the rates selloff. The amount of corporate bonds with negative yields continues to grow in the EUR market despite the rate sell-off this week.” In fact, as of last night, using the bond constituents of the EUR iBoxx IG index, there is now a record high 216 billion in negative yielding corporate debt, representing 14% of the index. Within the broader EUR fixed income complex, a total of 4.1 trillion now trades in negative-yield territory representing 49% of the combined size of the sovereign, quasi-sovereign, covered and corporate iBoxx bond indices. Zooming in on the corporate bond market, the chart below provides the top 10 capital structures with negative yielding bonds in the EUR iBoxx IG index. These capital structures have a total negative yielding bond outstanding of 61 billion, equivalent to 28% of the corporate sub-zero universe in the iBoxx index. Somewhat surprisingly, the mix of ratings and sectors is quite diverse. As the CSPP carries on, and barring a remake of the Bund tantrum experienced last year, this list will likely grow and thus fuel more rotation into the … |
| China Economy Tilts Further in Wrong DirectionThe pressure for Beijing to do more to prop up growth only seems to increase. |
| How to Understand the Biggest Concern Facing the U.K. Post BrexitA weaker pound will unwind some of the U.K.’s current account deficit, though the benefits may be limited. |
| Viacom’s Infighting Opened Door to Chinese BidViacom’s move to strike a deal with Wanda for Paramount may be a way for its embattled CEO to get the upper hand. |
| Commodities Corner: Guess which commodity booked the biggest gain this weekCotton boasts the best gain for the week among commodities, thanks to a slowdown in global production. It could be due for a correction before its next move higher, analysts say. |
| Market Extra: Here’s why 10-year Treasury may still drop below 1%The U.S. government bond market has been flirting with record low yields but some analysts and strategist think that it could fall even further. |
| Personal Finance Daily: Planning for the unexpected and how to build wealth while raising kidsFriday’s top personal finance stories |
Summary of Economic Releases this Week
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