Written by Gary
Hotel rates on the rise as travel demand ticks up (SPY flat +0.03%). Stocks making the biggest moves midday: Shopify, Spotify, Enphase Energy.
Here is the current market situation from CNN Money | |
North and South American markets finished mixed as of the most recent closing prices. The Bovespa gained 1.21%, while the IPC led the S&P 500 lower. They fell 1.14% and 0.06% respectively. |
What Is Moving the Markets
Here are the headlines moving the markets. | |
Canadas Oil Sands In Trouble As COVID Cases SoarThe northern parts of Canadas province of Alberta have seen rising coronavirus cases in recent weeks with several oil sands sites becoming hot spots of outbreaks as workers are flying in and out for maintenance at the crude upgraders. The high active COVID cases have not impacted production in the Canadian oil patch, but some maintenance work has been stretched because of the outbreaks, industry officials told Bloomberg. According to data from Alberta Health at the start of this week, cited by CBC News, there were as many as 12 outbreaks | |
Oil Creeps Higher After EIA Data ReportCrude oil moved higher today after the Energy Information Administration reported a small inventory build of 100,000 barrels for the week to April 23. At 493.1 million barrels, oil inventories are within the five-year seasonal average. Analysts had expected the EIA to report a lightly larger inventory increase of 375,000 barrels. A week earlier, the EIA reported a modest inventory build in crude oil, at 600,000 barrels. The authority also reported a 100,000-barrel inventory increase in gasoline inventories, with average production at 9.6 million | |
Biden Administration To Provide $8.25 Billion In Grid Improvement LoansAs the cost of the energy transition begins to draw growing attention, the Biden Administration has announced it will provide $8.25 billion in loans for companies to upgrade the power grid as part of efforts to adapt the grid to the planned shift to renewables. The Energy Department will finance projects that improve resilience and expand transmission capacity across the electrical grid, so we can reliably move clean energy from places where its produced to places where its needed most, Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm | |
Aramco Could Sell 1% Stake To ”Leading Global Energy Company”The government of Saudi Arabia is negotiating the sale of a 1-percent stake in Aramco to a “leading global energy company”, according to Crown Prince Mohammed, as quoted by Bloomberg. The deal, according to the Crown Prince, could fetch up to $19 billion and would help Aramco to secure future demand for its crude. “I don’t want to give any promises about deals finalizing, but there are discussions happening right now about a 1 percent acquisition by one of the leading energy companies in the world,” Mohammed said. “This deal could be very | |
Cautious Hedging Costs U.S. Drillers BillionsA month ago, ConocoPhillips warned it would book a $600-million impairment to its first-quarter profits from its acquisition of Concho Resources and, as Reuters reported at the time, related oil price hedges. Now, it is emerging that Concho is not the only one that hedged too early. When the price of crude oil began to recover last year after a devastating first half of the year, U.S. oil producers began to hedge their 2021 output at higher prices. They hedged less than normally, Rystad Energy noted in an October report, at 41 percent of their | |
European Oil Majors Out-Traded U.S. Peers In 2020Last year might have been a harrowing one for oil markets, but dozens of big-time oil traders netted tons of profit harnessing the volatility opportunities. Exxon wasn’t among them. The American oil giant appears to have failed where its giant European counterparts excelled, according to an eye-opening Reuters report detailing how the supermajor cut funding for its trading unit and relegated it to the sidelines amid a COVID-19 pandemic that others capitalized on, heartily. While Dutch energy and commodity trading giant Vitol raked | |
Spotify founder ‘very serious’ about buying his favorite club, Arsenal, says he’s secured funding“I’ve been an Arsenal fan since I was 8 years old,” Swedish billionaire and Spotify CEO Daniel Ek told CNBC. “I’m prepared that this could be a long journey.” | |
Atlanta-based Blackhall Studios sold to private equity firm for $120 millionBlackhall Studios, a Georgia-based production studio, has been sold to Commonwealth Group, a Los Angeles-based private equity firm. | |
SoulCycle’s new CEO looks to mend the company’s culture and compete with at-home fitness rivals like PelotonAs SoulCycle reopens its studios and welcomes riders back to classes indoors, it has a new CEO with a fresh vision for the fitness chain. | |
Chicken sandwich wars pay off for KFC and McDonald’s, putting pressure on supplyNew chicken sandwiches from KFC and McDonald’s are driving sales for the chains. | |
Dr. Scott Gottlieb: New CDC mask guidance late and confusing, but a ‘step in the right direction’Dr. Scott Gottlieb told CNBC on Wednesday he’s concerned people could “stop listening” to the CDC unless the agency changes its approach to Covid guidance. | |
U.S. is averaging 2.7 million Covid vaccine shots per day, majority of states have half of adults jabbedThe United States is reporting an average of 2.7 million daily vaccinations over the past week and more than half of adults have gotten a shot in most states. | |
Boeing posts sixth consecutive quarterly loss, expects turning point in 2021Boeing said it expects 2021 to be a turning point as more people are vaccinated against Covid. | |
Taco Bell parent Yum Brands tops earnings estimates fueled by U.S. sales growthYum Brands reported quarterly earnings that crushed analysts’ expectations as U.S. consumers returned to its restaurants. | |
Shoemaker Allbirds reportedly in talks with banks for IPO as public market heats upShoe brand Allbirds is in the process of interviewing banks in preparation for an initial public offering, according to The New York Times. | |
Starbucks faces more competition from local beverage brands in China, its biggest market outside the U.S.Investors in China are stepping up their bets that locals will buy more beverages that aren’t from Starbucks. | |
One dose of a Covid vaccine can almost halve transmission, study findsA single dose of a coronavirus vaccine can reduce household transmission by up to half, a study by Public Health England has found. | |
Hotel rates on the rise as travel demand ticks upTravel technology firm Koddi says hotel and resort rates, while still lower than a year ago, are slowly ticking back up along with demand. | |
Workers could get 12 weeks of paid leave under Biden’s plan. Here are the detailsBiden is calling for a paid leave policy that would compensate workers for 12 weeks while they took care of children or parents or healed from an illness. | |
Bond Traders Laugh Off Commodities Supercycle DreamsBond Traders Laugh Off Commodities Supercycle Dreams Authored by Garfield Reynolds via Bloomberg, Treasury yields are signaling the global economy will be too weak in the coming years to sustain the explosion in commodity prices. Source: Bloomberg Ten-year yields dropped some 11 basis points this month amid a resurgent pandemic and uneven vaccine progress. In contrast, the Bloomberg Commodity Spot Index is up ~8% so far in April – heading for its best month since August. Source: Bloomberg Much of that has been powered … | |
Biden Stiffs Dems Over SALT, Putting Pelosi In PickleBiden Stiffs Dems Over SALT, Putting Pelosi In Pickle As we mentioned earlier today, President Biden’s $1.8 trillion proposal to ‘expand the social safety net’ notably omits the removal of a Trump-era cap on the SALT deduction, which allows wealthy taxpayers to deduct state and local taxes from their federal returns. The deduction – which largely affected the wealthiest Americans – most of whom are Democrats, has become a major sticking point on Capitol Hill, as Democratic lawmakers have been calling for Biden to repeal the 2017 cap instituted by former President Trump as part of his signature tax legislation, which lowered taxes or increased refunds for most Americans.
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The Battle Royale: Stocks Versus Bonds (Which Is Right?)The Battle Royale: Stocks Versus Bonds (Which Is Right?) Authored by Michael Lebowitz via RealInvestmentAdvice.com, The S&P 500 is at valuations higher than those in 1929 and rival those of 1999. Despite a recession, the index is 25% above where it was trading before the pandemic. The equity stampede is undoubtedly bullish about corporate earnings prospects and, by default, economic growth.  As the stock bulls party, bond investors are glum about future economic prospects. Bond yields are below where they were before the pandemic started. Current yields warn of paltry economic growth and little inflation in the future. Who has it right? (My colleague Lance Roberts touched on this issue in this past weekend’s newsletter.) Flipping Valuations Traditional equity valuation analysis frequently involves the comparison of a fundamental metric to share price. The result is often interpreted as quantifying the richness or cheapness of the numerator in the ratio. In the case of the more popular metrics like P/E or P/BV, that is price. By assuming the price is fair, we can reverse traditional logic and calculate what the market implies for the denominator. For example, assume the P/E ratio on XYZ stock jumps to 20 after lingering around 10 for decades. With this knowledge, we can make one of two assumptions. The price of XYZ is twice as high as it should be XYZ’s … | |
‘Mom And Pop’ Landlords Dying On The Vine As Un-Evictable Tenants Enjoy Pandemic Protections‘Mom And Pop’ Landlords Dying On The Vine As Un-Evictable Tenants Enjoy Pandemic Protections As millions of renters across America continue to benefit from sweeping protections against eviction during the COVID-19 pandemic, their landlords haven’t been so fortunate. The three-unit rental, left, that landlord Joaquin Villanueva owns in Boston. According to Bloomberg, nearly $47 billion in rent relief from the Biden Administration has been slow to materialize, forcing “mom-and-pop” landlords into financial hardship – or forced to sell to wealthy investors. Bloomberg, perhaps to invoke sympathy for the landlord class, focused on the impact felt by minority landlords. | |
Asda: George brand to sell second-hand clothing in shopsThe supermarket says the move will stop thousands of tonnes of clothes going to landfill every year. | |
Reckitt: More sex, fewer colds drive sales at Durex makerConsumer goods giant Reckitt saw a rise in sales of its condoms in countries where lockdowns eased. | |
Sainsbury’s: Cost of Covid has been highWhile full-year sales jumped 8% the supermarket giant made a loss due to pandemic and other costs. | |
Don’t keep staring at Sensex & Nifty; focus on individual stocksShares of companies whose balance sheets are good and are not impacted by Covid-19 will perform well. It is time to look at individual performances, and not the indices. | |
Is Power Grid InvIT a good option for low-risk investors?“Investors preferring annuity-like income overgrowth can subscribe to the issue from a long-term perspective,” said Vikas Jain, analyst, Reliance Securities. | |
Overseas investors withdraw record $5.4 bn from equities; economists call for cautionReserve Bank of India’s (RBI) monthly data showed that the outflows were due to repatriation or disinvestment. | |
: Six Flags saying hiring isn’t so easy, because of immigration limitations, high unemployment benefits and school schedulesSix Flags Entertainment Corp. said Wednesday that while its customers are showing signs of strong pent-up demand for its theme parks, and money to spend, it is having a hard time hiring enough people to fully service those customers. | |
NewsWatch: The No. 1 emerging property market in America isn’t in Texas or Florida ” you may never even have heard of itPreviously overlooked real-estate markets brace for the ‘New American Consumer.’ | |
The Margin: Popular culinary site Epicurious cuts new beef recipes in a ‘pro-planet’ move ” its users didn’t complainPopular culinary site Epicurious took away all its beef recipes and promotions, a deliberate move to promote “sustainable” eating. |
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