Written by Gary
Risk-on rally as market steps back from the cliff’s edge (SPY +2.0%). SP 500 back above 2900 and near its 50-day moving average (2934).
The Market in Perspective
| Here are the headlines moving the markets. | |
 | Wall Street jumps, with tech leading the advanceU.S. stocks jumped on Thursday, led by a more than 2% gain in technology shares, while better-than-expected economic data in the United States and China helped to offset worries about the trade war. |
| New U.S. pipelines poised to start price war for shale shippersThe operators of two new pipelines in West Texas shale fields are offering discounted prices to attract shippers accustomed to high fees to move oil to export hubs, according to the pipeline companies and federal filings. |
| Facebook loses facial recognition appeal, must face privacy class actionA federal appeals court on Thursday rejected Facebook Inc’s effort to undo a class action lawsuit claiming that it illegally collected and stored biometric data for millions of users without their consent. |
| Oil rises more than 2% on firm yuan, expectations of more OPEC cutsOil jumped more than 2% on Thursday on expectations that falling prices could lead to production cuts, coupled with a steadying of the yuan currency after a week of turmoil spurred by an escalation in U.S.-China trade tensions. |
| Barrick Gold plans to sell Tongon gold mine in Ivory Coast – BBGBarrick Gold Corp is looking to sell its Tongon gold mine in the Ivory Coast and is working with Bank of Nova Scotia to identify buyers, Bloomberg said https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-08-08/barrick-said-to-weigh-sale-of-tongon-mine-amid-asset-disposals on Thursday. |
| Venture capital fuels Latam ‘unicorns’ expansion beyond bordersSurging venture capital investment in Latin American startups has financed international expansion across the region and beyond, as business models that do not require large amounts of capital have helped many firms avoid silos common in the region. |
| Chinese trade data calms volatile global marketsStronger-than-expected Chinese export data helped push global stock markets higher on Thursday following a volatile week that had investors scrambling for safety on fears of a worldwide economic pullback. |
| Amazon’s Alexa comes under scrutiny of Luxembourg privacy watchdogLuxembourg’s privacy regulator has asked Amazon for information regarding its Alexa voice assistant, an indication of rising regulatory unease over companies’ use of personal data. |
| Anadarko shareholders go for the cash in $38 billion Occidental buyoutShareholders of Anadarko Petroleum Corp on Thursday voted overwhelmingly to sell the company for $38 billion to rival Occidental Petroleum Corp , ending a short-lived contest that pitted two of the most storied names in the oil industry against one another. |
| Stocks, Bonds, & Gold Gain As Easing Hopes Hide Global RisksAnother buyback-sponsored surge in stocks met with gains in bonds and bullion… Once again all eyes were on the yuan fix overnight which was set weaker than 7/USD for the first time since 2008, but was slightly stronger than expected (and thus interpreted as China seeking stability)… |
| “Nobody Speaks For The United States”: Trump Bashes Macron Over Mixed Signals Toward IranPresident Trump took to Twitter Thursday to express frustration over the US “maximum pressure” campaign designed, according to prior statements, to bring the Iranians back to the table to “negotiate a better deal” after the White House’s unilateral pull out of the 2015 nuclear deal brokered under Obama. He slammed EU countries, particularly France, for sending mixed signals. |
| Who Is Buying And Who Is Selling Stocks HereThere is once again confusion as to what is going on in the markets: Monday’s violent selloff, which was accompanied by extremely heavy volume and which saw both active funds, systematic investors and passive entities liquidating, has given way to the now traditional, no participation levitation, the consequence of buybacks and algos forced to chase gamma. The result is that stocks are virtually unchanged for the week despite a huge volume imbalance to the downside, as if the sellers are just biding their time when to start hitting bids again. As Nomura’s Masanari Takada puts it best, “investors in US equities seem not to all be on the same page” and he adds that right now is “precisely when one might expect the US market to see the sort of spontaneous rebound that often follows a selloff, and we think the market is likely to resist further downside thanks to a combination of bargain-hunting by fundamentals-oriented investors and contrarian buying by ultra-short-term traders through perhaps 15 August.” However, as the Nomura quant warns, if key market indices fail to climb back above trend-chasers’ major trigger lines (at around 2,960 for the S&P 500 and around 7,720 for the NASDAQ 100), then he would expect “trend-followers that are currently sitting on unrealized losses (including CTAs) to start exiting their long positions in equities at a quickening pace.” Meanwhile, as of now, the Nomura quant merely sees the rebound in US stocks as a technical rally that looks like no more than a bump in the road on the way down. |
| New York Times Shares Continue Plunge After Company Admits Ad Revenue Will Decline Next QuarterShares of “the failing New York Times” were crushed up to 20% on Wednesday after the company told investors that it expects its advertising revenue to fall by “high single digits” in the third quarter, according to Markets Insider. The company’s revenue came in at $436.25 million, which fell short of the $439.25 million that analysts were expecting. And, despite beating on EPS by $0.02, the company’s operating profit fell from last year to $37.9 million, from $40 million. |
| What’s dragging the Indian economy? The devil is in the microWhat’s dragging the Indian economy? The devil is in the microEconomists will bat for factor markets reform to revive growth. But we need to fix the problem sector by sector. |
| Infy boss has a plan to fix attrition problemInfy boss has a plan to fix attrition problemSalil Parekh exuded confidence that over time Infosys will be able to address the attrition problem. |
| Why Article 370 was revoked in 2019Why Article 370 was revoked in 2019Some roots lie in July 2016, when the Valley erupted following the gunning down of terrorist Burhan Wani. |
| Stock market steps back from the cliff’s edge — here’s what to watch for nextA key reversal in the market suggests a rally is pending; however, it could prove to be fleeting. |
| Deep Dive: 20 companies, including Amazon and Chipotle, that are getting more profitable as sales improveEarnings season is turning out to be better than expected — many companies are having their cake and eating it too. |
| Bond Report: 10-year Treasury yields edge up, auction of $19 bln bonds met by tepid demandU.S. Treasury bond yields climb from multiyear lows set on Wednesday after a series of interest rate reductions by international central banks sent investors scrambling for haven assets. |
Summary of Economic Releases this Week
Earnings Summary for Today
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