Written by Gary
VIX futures point to coronavirus worries for months to come. SPY closed up 3.4%, investors are unsure of crazy market fluctuations, but more pain is on the way.
The Market in Perspective
| Here are the headlines moving the markets. | |
 | Exclusive: U.S. Treasury wants details on airline debt, liquidity, loyalty programs – sourcesU.S. Treasury officials have asked airlines seeking government payroll support to provide additional detailed information on capital structure, liquidity and loyalty programs, people briefed on the matter told Reuters. |
| Lufthansa CEO says it’s seeking state aid in Germany, other countriesLufthansa will seek state aid in Germany, Switzerland, Belgium and Austria as the coronavirus crisis that forced it to ground almost all of its planes will persist longer than feared, the German airline’s chief executive said. |
| VIX futures point to coronavirus worries for months to comeInvestors are betting on stocks to remain volatile well into the year, suggesting that many expect the long-term economic and public health impact of the pandemic caused by the novel coronavirus to continue roiling markets despite a recent rally. |
| Equities climb on hopes pandemic is peakingWorld equity markets moved higher and oil prices stabilized on Wednesday on hopes the coronavirus pandemic is getting close to peaking and that more government stimulus measures could be on the way. |
| Zoom sued for overstating, not disclosing privacy, security flawsZoom Video Communications Inc was slapped with a class action suit by one of its shareholders on Tuesday, accusing the video-conferencing app of overstating its privacy standards and failing to disclose that its service was not end-to-end encrypted. |
| Zoom hires former Facebook security chief to beef up privacy, safetyZoom Video Communications Inc has tapped former Facebook security chief Alex Stamos as an adviser and set up an advisory board to improve the privacy and security of its rapidly growing video-conferencing app amid a global backlash. |
| U.S. senators question Amazon CEO about firing of warehouse protest leaderFive Democratic lawmakers on Wednesday wrote Amazon.com Inc to raise concern about its firing of a worker who protested warehouse operations during the coronavirus pandemic, according to a copy of the letter seen by Reuters. |
| German foreign ministry restricts use of Zoom over security concernsThe German foreign ministry has restricted use of the video conferencing service Zoom to fixed-connection desktop computers because of “critical” security and data protection weaknesses, the newspaper Handelsblatt reported on Wednesday. |
| Wobbly U.S. fiscal response could deepen coronavirus recessionThe U.S. government’s massive effort to nurse the economy through the coronavirus crisis was billed as a send-money-and-don’t-sweat-the-details flood of cash to people and businesses in a $22 trillion system that has ground to a halt. |
| Stocks Bounce On ‘Peak Virus’ Hope Despite World’s Deadliest Day YetStocks Bounce On ‘Peak Virus’ Hope Despite World’s Deadliest Day Yet After the deadliest virus day in the world yesterday, today started with optimistic comments by Fauci about a turning point and the total deaths likely be lower than predicted… only to be crushed by the deadliest day ever in UK, the deadliest day ever in New York and New Jersey, and Italy new cases re-accelerate… and the biggest plunge in consumer confidence ever… and the lowest home purchase mortgage applications. Worst day yet… |
| S&P Futures Surge 20 Points In One Tick On $2BN MOC Buy ImbalanceS&P Futures Surge 20 Points In One Tick On $2BN MOC Buy Imbalance In a mirror image of yesterday’s last 10 minutes action, when the S&P dumped by 40 points in seconds, when a $2.4BN “market on close” sale imbalance was announced at 3:50pm ET… |
| Nelson Peltz’s Trian Partners Down 16% In March As Unhedged Bets In Food & Beverage SlammedNelson Peltz’s Trian Partners Down 16% In March As Unhedged Bets In Food & Beverage Slammed Nelson Peltz and Trian Partners were amongst those not “immune” to the coronavirus impact on markets to start the year, with his portfolio taking a 16% hit in March alone. Year to date, it puts the asset manager down nearly 25%, far exceeding the S&P’s nearly 18% drop YTD, according to Bloomberg. Trian investments General Electric and Proctor and Gamble saw their shares drop 37% and 9.7%, respectively, for the year. Trian also owned shares of food distributor Sysco, which fell disproportionately to the rest of the market as its customer base shut down across the U.S. and Europe. Sysco shares are down 46% on the year and the company has since said it’s going to suspend its share buyback program. It also drew down $1.6 billion of a $2 billion credit line. Trian is also the largest holder in Wendy’s, which is down 33% from the beginning of the year. Wendy’s also suspended its share buyback program. |
| Morgan Stanley Spots Something Very Strange About This RallyMorgan Stanley Spots Something Very Strange About This Rally Following an earlier note from Morgan Stanley’s quants which observed that the rally in stocks and the plunge in the VIX has been abnormally fast for a country sliding into a deep recession, something which Reuters picked up on later in the day… |
| A $13 bn pill to ease Covid pain of India’s small businesses?A $13 bn pill to ease Covid pain of India’s small businesses?Last month, India outlined a Rs-1.7L-cr stimulus plan to give relief to millions of poor hit by the lockdown. |
| India’s best bet now is to get back to workIndia’s best bet now is to get back to workAn extension will mean the informal sector, daily wage workers and MSMEs bearing the brunt of the lockdown. |
| The ‘phone booths’ changing how India testsThe ‘phone booths’ changing how India testsIt is low-cost; each costs Rs 15,000-20,000. It is also portable ” it can be mounted on a car and transported. |
| Dispatches from a Pandemic: ‘I could be home for 3 weeks. I could be home for 4 days. I have no idea.’ This plumber is struggling to pay rent, despite being an ‘essential worker’‘I had some money in the bank to pay off the month. I have one little side job tomorrow, but that just still is not enough,’ says Rafael Nunez, a New York City plumber. |
| A warning for Atlanta and other potential hot spots: Pollution is linked to higher COVID-19 deathsDying from COVID-19 is more likely for stricken residents of U.S. counties with higher levels of long-term air pollution, according to a study released this week by Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health. |
| Commodities Corner: OPEC+ is set to face oil challenges head on in Thursday’s virtual meetingIn a sign of the times, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allied oil producers will hold a virtual meeting Thursday to make a decision on global crude production that could make or break the oil market. |
Summary of Economic Releases this Week
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:
