Written by Gary
The Empire State Manufacturing Survey for December increased to 3.5 from the prior month’s reading of 2.9 (SPY +0.6%) and shows manufacturing remains subdued.
Here is the current market situation from CNN Money | |
 | European markets are broadly higher today with shares in London leading the region. The FTSE 100 is up 2.35% while France’s CAC 40 is up 1.16% and Germany’s DAX is up 0.76%. |
What Is Moving the Markets
| Here are the headlines moving the markets. | |
 | Global stocks gain as investors welcome preliminary U.S.-China trade dealWorld stock markets rose on Monday, trading a notch below a record high hit last week on the back of a preliminary trade deal agreed between the United States and China. |
| H&M’s recovery continues as fourth quarter sales jump 9%Fashion retailer H&M said on Monday its sales rose 9% in the fourth quarter, putting it on course to increase annual profits for the first time in four years following heavy investment in online and other services to adapt to a changing market. Shares in the world’s second-biggest apparel group were up 2% at 1000 GMT, outperforming the wider market in Stockholm . |
| Villains or visionaries? Hedge funds short companies they say ‘greenwash’Tens of trillions of global investment dollars are pouring into companies touting robust environmental, social and governance credentials. Now short-sellers spy an opportunity. |
| Oil prices hold near three-month highs on U.S.-China trade dealOil prices on Monday held near three-month highs, supported by last week’s announcement that an initial trade deal had been reached between the United States and China. |
| Ousted Renault CEO Bollore raised concerns of governance problems at Nissan: reportRenault’s former chief executive Thierry Bollore, who was ousted in October, had sought to flag alleged conflicts of interest and governance problems at the company’s Japanese alliance partner Nissan before his departure, Le Monde reported on Monday. |
| Volvo Cars issues SEK 5 billion of preference shares to Swedish investorsChinese-owned Volvo Cars said on Monday it had issued convertible preference shares worth 5 billion crowns ($519 million) to a group of Swedish institutional investors. |
| Cineworld tops North American box office with Cineplex dealCineworld will buy Canada’s Cineplex for $1.65 billion in cash, making the British firm the biggest cinema operator in North America as it looks to tackle increasing competition from online streaming services. |
| Electrolux’s shares skid after it warns of extra U.S. costs and savings delaysShares in Electrolux plunged 12% on Monday after the appliance maker warned of a bigger than expected hit to fourth-quarter earnings at its North American business, and slashed its savings forecast for 2020 from its investment program. |
| U.S. top trade negotiator praises deal, China remains cautiousU.S. President Donald Trump’s top trade negotiator praised a “phase one” U.S.-China trade deal which is expected to nearly double U.S. exports to China over the next two years, while China remained cautious ahead of the signing of the agreement. |
| Fed’s Emergency Repo Operation Oversubscribed As Repo Rates Spike To December HighFed’s Emergency Repo Operation Oversubscribed As Repo Rates Spike To December High Ahead of today’s massive liquidity drain, which according to some calculations will be as much as $100 billion between $54BN in coupon settlements from last week’s Treasury auctions and an additional $50 billion or so in corporate income tax payments to the Treasury… … |
| Obama Says Women Are “Indisputably Better” Than Men, And Should Lead Every CountryObama Says Women Are “Indisputably Better” Than Men, And Should Lead Every Country Are President Obama and his wife having some kind of lover’s quarrel? |
| A “Market” That Needs $1 Trillion In Panic-Money-Printing To Stave-Off Implosion Is Not A MarketA “Market” That Needs $1 Trillion In Panic-Money-Printing To Stave-Off Implosion Is Not A Market Authored by Charles Hugh Smith via OfTwoMinds blog, It was all fun and games enriching the super-wealthy but now the karmic cost of the Fed’s manipulation and propaganda is about to come due. A “market” that needs $1 trillion in panic-money-printing by the Fed to stave off a karmic-overdue implosion is not a market: a legitimate market enables price discovery. What is price discovery? The decisions and actions of buyers and sellers set the price of everything: assets, goods, services, risk and the price of borrowing money, i.e. interest rates and the availability of credit. The U.S. has not had legitimate market in 12 years. What we call “the market” is a crude simulation that obscures the Federal Reserve’s Socialism for the Super-Wealthy: the vast majority of the income-producing assets are owned by the super-wealthy, and so all the Fed money-printing that’s been needed to inflate asset bubbles to new extremes only serves to further enrich the already-super-wealthy. The apologists claim the bubbles must be inflated to “help” the average American, but that claim is absurdly specious. The majority of Americans “own” near-zero assets that earn income; at best they own rapidly-depreciating vehicles, a home that doesn’t generate any income and a life insurance policy that pays off only when they pass away. The average American uses the family home for shelter, and so its c … |
| Global Markets Hit All Time High As Traders Brace For “Phase Two” OptimismGlobal Markets Hit All Time High As Traders Brace For “Phase Two” Optimism This is where we stand as we enter Monday morning: European markets are firmer this morning, though the FTSE 100 significantly outperforms on a second-wave of UK election optimism. China State Council stated it will continue to suspend additional tariffs on US vehicles and auto parts due to the Phase One deal. China sources cited by CNBC’s Yoon note that the USD 40-50bln target on agricultural purchases is a “best case target”. Boeing (BA) is mulling cutting or stopping its 737 MAX production, via WSJ ” Co. shares are down 2% pre-market USD remains subdued although Sterling and Euro were dented by the latest poor PMIs. Now that “Phase one” of the US-China deal is in the history books, traders around the world are bracing for a full year of “Phase Two” optimism in continuation of the only thing that matters since the spring of 2018 (that, and central banks cutting like there’s a global crisis, of course). And after US cash markets hit a new all time high on Friday, world stock markets rudhes to catch up with the US on Monday, trading at fresh all time highs in what was another “sea of green” day. |
| Gita Gopinath has a few tips for Modi govt on fixing the economyGita Gopinath has a few tips for Modi govt on fixing the economyRecommending policy priorities for the govt, Gopinath said that it was right time for structural reform push. |
| Centre bites the GST bullet ahead of key meetCentre bites the GST bullet ahead of key meetUnder fire over delay in GST compensation, the government today released Rs 35,298 crore to states. |
| Another Rs 3,000 crore bond default loomsAnother Rs 3,000 crore bond default loomsThe trustee charged a penal interest rate of 12 per cent applicable from November 19 this year. |
| December 2019 Empire State Manufacturing Index Marginally ImprovedWritten by Steven Hansen
|
| Need to Know: Best investments for 2020 and the next decade, according to a top U.S. financial advisorDouble-digit percentage gains for stock markets aren’t just limited to the U.S., with Europe and parts of emerging and Asian markets also having enjoyed a solid year. Think international going forward, says our call of the day from Raj Sharma, private wealth advisor at Merrill Private Wealth Management |
| Economic Report: Empire State index shows manufacturing remains subdued in DecemberThe New York Fed said Monday its Empire State index inched up to 3.5 in December, the seventh straight subdued reading. |
| The Wall Street Journal: ESG funds face SEC questions over criteriaWall Street’s push into impact investing draws questions from regulators over ESG criteria. |
The Empire State Manufacturing Survey index marginally improved but barely remains expansion. Overall this survey remains below values seen in the last 2+ years.Earnings Summary for Today
leading Stock Positions
Current Commodity Prices
Commodities are powered by Investing.com
Current Currency Crosses
The Forex Quotes are powered by Investing.com.
To contact me with questions, comments or constructive criticism is always encouraged and appreciated:
