Written by Gary
US equities markets edged higher in a volatile session today (SPY +0.3%). Industrial stocks rose on strong results from some marquee companies and a jump in oil prices pushed energy stocks higher.
Here is the current market situation from CNN Money | |
North and South American markets are broadly higher today with shares in Brazil leading the region. The Bovespa is up 1.76% while U.S.’s S&P 500 is up 0.27% and Mexico’s IPC is up 0.22%. |
Traders Corner – Health of the Market
Looking at the last three columns (below), the first one (Actual), is what was reported this morning. The second column (Forecast) is what analysts had forecast and the third column is the previous report. Full calendar HERE.
Stocks rise after strong earnings from CSX and United
The so-called smart money has started to sell at the end of the trading day, a bad sign for this bull
Dow transports surges to a higher high, a week after a Dow Theory sell signal was triggered
US on unsustainable path of debt growth: Dallas Fed president
What Is Moving the Markets
Here are the headlines moving the markets. | |
Morgan Stanley executives tamp down enthusiasm on record profit(Reuters) – Morgan Stanley reported record first-quarter profit on Wednesday thanks to a surge in trading activity, much like other Wall Street banks, but executives warned results through the rest of the year may not be quite as strong. | |
Energy, industrial stocks lift Wall Street, IBM drags(Reuters) – Wall Street edged higher in a volatile session on Wednesday as industrial stocks gained on strong results from some marquee companies and a jump in oil prices boosted energy stocks. | |
Exclusive: OPEC’s new price hawk Saudi Arabia seeks oil as high as $100 – sourcesDUBAI/LONDON (Reuters) – Top oil exporter Saudi Arabia would be happy to see crude rise to $80 or even $100 a barrel, three industry sources said, a sign Riyadh will seek no changes to an OPEC supply-cutting deal even though the agreement’s original target is within sight. | |
Zuckerberg under pressure to face EU lawmakers over data scandalSTRASBOURG (Reuters) – Facebook Inc’s Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg came under pressure from EU lawmakers on Wednesday to come to Europe and shed light on the data breach involving Cambridge Analytica that affected nearly three million Europeans. | |
China’s ZTE delays earnings release following U.S. export ban(Reuters) – Chinese smartphone maker ZTE Corp on Wednesday postponed the release of quarterly earnings, saying it needs time to assess the impact of a U.S. government order that bans American companies from selling it parts. | |
VW’s Electrify America to install EV chargers at Walmart storesDETROIT (Reuters) – Volkswagen AG unit Electrify America will install electric vehicle charging stations at more than 100 Walmart Inc store locations in 34 U.S. states by mid-2019 as part of Electrify’s plans to bolster charging infrastructure across the country, the two companies said on Wednesday. | |
Whiskey sour? China importers fret over U.S. trade battleSHANGHAI (Reuters) – When spirits dealer Daniel Taytslin brought his first pallet of American Ragtime Rye whiskey into Shanghai in early April, the 672 bottles faced a 5 percent import tariff at China’s customs. | |
Abbott sticks to earlier forecasts, disappoints investors(Reuters) – Abbott Laboratories’ just beat expectations for first quarter profits and revenue on Wednesday but stuck to a full-year profit forecast some investors had expected would be raised, sending the healthcare company’s shares lower. | |
Explainer: Ant Financial’s $150 billion valuation, and the big recent bump-upHONG KONG (Reuters) – Ant Financial’s rapid climb to become the world’s biggest super unicorn valued by some investors at around $150 billion showcases investor enthusiasm for the biggest Chinese tech companies and also how quickly valuations can shift. Just two months ago, bankers and investors were tentatively talking of a figure closer to $100 billion. | |
“Chart Trouble” Looms For FinancialsSince the big US banks began dropping their blockbuster earnings last Friday morning, things have not gone according to plan for the shareholders… And the smaller banks have been drastically underperforming as the yield curve collapses… And while asset-gatherers and commission-takers see the big banks are ‘no brainers’, perhaps this is a good as it gets? As NorthmanTrader.com’s Sven Henrich asks (and answers): What if you have a record earnings party and nobody shows up? That’s … | |
Puerto Rico Hit With Island-Wide BlackoutPuerto Rico has been hit with an island-wide blackout, as residents struggle to cope with an increasingly unstable power grid almost seven months after Hurricane Maria devastated the Caribbean.
The cause is unknown, though a fault was detected on the line “50700” which starts in Aguirre Central. Electric Power Authority spokeswoman Yohari Molina tells The Associated Press that crews are investigating, while officials said Wednesday it could take 24 to 36 hours to fully restore power.
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Blankfein: “Central Banks All Around The World Are Buying All The Risky Assets”We can finally put to rest any financial, economic, ideological or simply philosophical debates why stocks have risen over 300% since the March 2009 post-crisis lows of 666, and we have Lloyd Blankfein’s underperformance mea culpa to thank for putting it so simply and succinctly, even a majority of fintwit might actually get it. From today’s CNBC interview:
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IMF Sounds The Alarm On Global Debt, Warns “United States Stands Out”Exactly one year ago, in its Global Financial Stability report, the IMF issued a stark warning when looking at the soaring level of private sector debt: it found that more than 20% of US corporations are at risk of defaults once interest rates rise, and calculated that the combined assets of firms threatened by default – those who earnings do not cover their interest expense – could reach almost $4 trillion. Fast forward exactly one year to today, when the IMF once again sounded the alarm on debt, only this time on the public side of the ledger, warning about – what else – excessive global borrowing, and noting that with a total of $164 trillion of debt, or 225% of global debt to GDP… … the world’s public and private sectors are more in debt now than at the peak of the 2008 financial crisis, when global debt/GDP peaked at … | |
Apple Faces the MusicMusic is key to growing Apple’s services base, but big profits will have to come from elsewhere. | |
Aluminum Bulls Should Soon Return to Rare-Breed StatusAluminum prices have skyrocketed in London following the Trump administration’s decision to impose sanctions on major Russian producer Rusal. But that kind of gain may prove too much, too soon. | |
Back to the Drawing Board for TeslaLatest Model 3 shutdown should make investors nervous. | |
Capitol Report: Help-wanted ads point to Boston, D.C. area as top sites for Amazon HQ2Boston and the greater Washington, D.C. metro might be the most likely places for Amazon to build its second headquarters If help-wanted ads are any indication. | |
Look for the Whole Foods rewards program to be folded into Amazon PrimeJefferies analysts say it looks as if Whole Foods will be integrated into the Amazon Prime ecosystem soon. | |
Economic Report: Global debt has reached a record high, IMF says, and three countries are to blameGlobal debt has reached a record high, and three countries account for more than half of it, according to a new International Monetary Fund report released Wednesday. |
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