Written by Gary
May payrolls miss: 559k jobs added, below expectations; unemployment rate drops to 5.8% (SPY +0.4%). U.S. Cities and states clash over natural gas.
Here is the current market situation from CNN Money | |
 | European markets are mixed. The DAX is higher by 0.06%, while the CAC 40 is leading the FTSE 100 lower. They are down 0.43% and 0.07% respectively. |
What Is Moving the Markets
| Here are the headlines moving the markets. | |
 | Climate Activism Is Great News For Saudi Arabia And RussiaBig Oil has lately come under a plethora of attacks from all directions, ranging from uncooperative financiers and investors amidst a global shift to renewable energy to hostile governments and hardline climate activists. But not all oil and gas players will be on the losing end of those attacks. Some of the biggest names in the oil and business have recently suffered a trifecta of blows by climate activists and investors. Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) lost three board seats to Engine No. 1, an activist hedge, in a stunning proxy campaign. |
| Can We Actually Harness Energy From A Black Hole?Could black holes be the key to the future of our energy production? Some scientists think so. And the secret to harvesting their energy lies in gamma-ray bursts, the most powerful transient objects in the known universe. These bursts, which are thought to be the product of the formation of a black hole, are the strongest and brightest explosions in existence. In the few finite seconds that one of these bursts lasts, they can create as much energy as our solar systems sun will produce during the entirety of its 10-billion-year lifespan. |
| U.S. Natural Gas Storage Capacity Hardly Increased Since Start Of Shale BoomUnderground storage capacity for natural gas in the United States has stayed essentially flat between 2012 and 2020, and was little changed from 2019 to 2020, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) said on Thursday. Last year, design capacity, or the total working natural gas capacity for all active facilities in the Lower 48 states, rose by 4 billion cubic feet (Bcf), or by 0.1 percent compared to 2019. Demonstrated peak capacity, or the total of the highest storage levels reached by each storage facility during any month during the |
| U.S. Cities And States Clash Over Natural GasIt all began in California. In 2019, the city of Berkeley enacted the first city-wide ban on new natural gas hookups in residential buildings. The aim was to reduce emissions and accelerate the energy transition. Now, more cities are thinking of doing the same thing. State authorities, however, are not having it. Several major cities, including Denver, New York, Seattle, and San Francisco, have either followed in Berkeley’s footsteps or have plans in place to do it, The Wall Street Journal reported earlier this week. The governments of the |
| Colombian Oil Production Slips Amid Deadly ProtestsProtests which erupted across Colombia in late April 2021 in response to proposed government tax hikes are now in their fifth week. There are indications that anti-government rallies will continue for some time after failed attempts at violent oppression, which has left 71 protestors dead with 36 at the hands of authorities, fuels further protests.In response to the Duque administrations heavy-handed attempts at repressing anti-government demonstrations, protestors have established roadblocks blockading many of Colombias main transport |
| Russia Bets On Waste-To-Energy PlantsRussia is advancing projects to have waste-to-energy plants produce electricity, Sergei Ivanov, Special Presidential Representative for Environmental Protection, Ecology, and Transport said at an economic forum in Russia on Thursday. Garbage will never end. It is just like the forest, the wind and the sun. I hope the sun will not go out, the wind will always be. We need to build incinerators so that there is less waste and more clean energy, Ivanov said at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF), as carried |
| A TikTok tune has become Sally Beauty’s new anthem as it embraces vivid hair color to fuel growthThe retailer has reached out to younger customers, grown its e-commerce business and emphasized vibrant hair colors as it emerges from the pandemic. |
| Mall favorite Fossil struggles in the era of the smartwatchFossil Group was a shopping mall fixture – with its leather belts, handbags, and of course, quartz watches sold in collectible tins. And now it is struggling |
| Government confident India will have over 2 billion vaccine doses by December, minister saysIndia has so far reported more than 28.5 million cases and over 340,000 deaths. |
| AMC CEO Adam Aron urges shareholders to support plan to issue 25 million more sharesAron’s latest push to persuade investors to allow AMC to issue more stock comes after it failed to gain shareholder support to add 500 million shares. |
| As electric vehicle sales surge, discussions are now turning to noise and safetyWith the number of electric vehicles on the planet’s roads increasing, society will need to adapt. |
| The 50 best bars in Asia: This year’s list is again dominated by two citiesFor six years straight, bars in Hong Kong and Singapore have topped Asia’s 50 Best Bars list. |
| 5 things to know before the stock market opens FridayU.S. stock futures were mixed ahead of Friday’s release of the government’s May employment report. |
| Malaysia’s Covid lockdown puts ‘a lot of pressure’ on government finances, says ministerMalaysia’s Covid-19 outbreak has substantially worsened despite the government imposing lockdowns of varying degrees over the past year. |
| Lululemon first-quarter sales rise 88%, topping estimates, as store traffic reboundsLululemon on Thursday reported fiscal first-quarter revenue that soared 88%, topping analysts’ estimates, as shopper traffic steadily rebounded to its stores. |
| Charts show Asia is far behind the U.S. and Europe in Covid vaccinationsAsia-Pacific is experiencing a surge in Covid-19 infections, with India, Malaysia and Japan among countries that have reported record increases in daily cases. |
| NIH scientists say they may have found a promising new oral antiviral drug for CovidThe drug, called TEMPOL, can reduce Covid-19 infections by impairing an enzyme the virus needs to make copies of itself once it’s inside human cells, they said. |
| Vanessa Bryant, Kobe’s widow, alleges Nike leaked unauthorized Mambacita shoesVanessa Bryant wants Nike to explain why the exclusive sneakers that she worked on to honor her daughter have been released without her permission. |
| White House lays out plan to share millions of Covid doses with poorer nationsThe U.S. plans to allocate 75% of the vaccines through the COVAX global vaccine sharing program, according to the White House. |
| May Payrolls Miss: 559K Jobs Added, Below Expectations; Unemployment Rate DropsMay Payrolls Miss: 559K Jobs Added, Below Expectations; Unemployment Rate Drops With so much of the recent labor market discourse focusing on widespread shortages resulting from Uncle Sam’s generous unemployment benefits (15 million people still collecting some form of weekly unemployment benefit), today’s jobs report which is expected to show a substantial rebound from April’s big miss, was set to be defining: another big miss and the shortage narrative would dominate for a long time, a big beat would meanwhile spark renewed reflation worries. Well, it appears that “shortages” won out in the end because moments ago the BLS reported that in April just 559K jobs were added, which while a big improvement to April’s upward revised 278K, was another big miss compared to the 674K expectations.
While the miss was material, it was within the range of expectations, less than 1 SD compared to consensus, and far less pronounced than last month’s miss. |
| Crypto Crumbles Amid Musk, Miami, & Meme Stock MiasmaCrypto Crumbles Amid Musk, Miami, & Meme Stock Miasma Crypto markets took a spill overnight after Elon Musk took to Twitter (once again) to troll the HODLers with a ‘broken-heart’ emoji and two memes…
Musk has previously said Tesla would not sell its bitcoin, but his tweets were enough to unsettle markets still fragile following May’s crash.
That – reportedly – sparked a $2000-plus drop in Bitcoin..
Source: Bloombe … |
| While We WaitWhile We Wait By Michael Every of Rabobank While We Wait It goes without saying that today will be all about US payrolls ” more so after a bumper ADP print of 978K yesterday. Which means those of us in Asia face a long day of waiting ahead. However, we have enough to chew on in the meantime. In the US, President Biden has dropped some proposed tax increases as part of the fiscal package he now seems less likely to be able to get through due to having less ‘reconciliation’ bullets than had been thought (or so says the Senate Parliamentarian). He’s apparently prepared to discuss a floor corporate tax rate of 15%, closing off loopholes and exemptions, rather than any increases. This would match the rate being proposed globally to be discussed at the G7 next week ” and G7 finance ministers, including Yellen, will be meeting today in advance of the national leaders. Expect related headlines today and Saturday. The press reports the president also had a call with Larry Summers, who despite being regarded as the one who discovered œsecular stagnation (rather than Kalecki), is also a critic of current US fiscal stimulus plans. On another front, the White House issued an executive order expanding, not reducing, the Trump-era list of Chinese firms off-limits to US investors due to their links to the Chinese military. There are 59 now named, including China Mobile and Huawei. US China hawks suggest this was actually a step backwards by not expanding the scope of the order, and excluding some candidates … |
| Futures Coiled Ahead Of Closely Watched Jobs ReportFutures Coiled Ahead Of Closely Watched Jobs Report US stock index futures fluctuated listlessly in a narrow range on Friday as investors braced for a crucial report that is likely to show jobs growth accelerated last month, possibly fanning fears over inflation and easing of the Federal Reserve’s support. At 7:30am emini were down 11 points, or 0.03%, S&P 500 e-minis were up 3 points, or 0.08%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were up 22 points, or 0.16%. The meme mania was dormant this morning with reddit stocks all lower after peaking two days ago. Treasuries were steady and the dollar rose modestly to fresh 3-week highs. Gold dropped and bitcoin slumped after a Elon Musk tweet trolled cryptos.
Shares of so-called “meme-stocks” weakened in early trade, with AMC Entertainment down nearly 10% a day after the Reddit darling completed its second share offering this week. Here are some of the more notable premarket movers: AMC Entertainment (AMC) drops 6% in Friday … |
| Some Portugal passengers still plan to travel despite rule changeHalf of Tui passengers are going ahead with travel to Portugal, despite it being moved to the amber list. |
| Brexit: UK announces trade deal with Norway, Iceland and LiechtensteinLiechtenstein – another non-EU country – is also included in the post-Brexit deal. |
| Facebook probed by UK and EU competition watchdogsAuthorities in the UK and EU are concerned the firm is using ad data to gain an unfair advantage over rivals. |
| AMC, BlackBerry shares slip as ‘meme stock’ rally fizzlesCinema operator AMC was down about 9.7 per cent in early deals after falling 18 per cent on Thursday as it completed its second share offering in three days, taking advantage of a nearly 400 per cent surge in its share price since mid-May. |
| Global money market funds lure massive inflows in the week to June 2According to Refinitiv data, money market funds had net purchases of $20.5 billion, making a fourth successive week of inflows. |
| Tata Elxsi, Muthoot Finance among 6 midcaps that analysts loveAs the overall structure of the market remains positive amid a steady decline in new Covid cases and a pick up in the speed of vaccinations, the smallcap and midcap indices continue to outperform the benchmark indices. In 2021 so far, the midcap index is up 25% and the smallcap index by 32% even though the benchmark index Nifty has gained only about 11%. Here is a collection of 6 midcap stocks recommended by analysts: |
| Economic Report: U.S. creates modest 559,000 jobs in May, pointing to widespread labor shortagesThe U.S. added a modest 559,000 new jobs in May even though most companies are eager to hire, signaling that widespread labor shortages are holding back an economic recovery. |
| Need to Know: Why markets have been stuck, and what might get them moving againLike a pinball stuck in a machine, markets have been wedged in. Here’s one reason why. |
| Deep Dive: We put these eight meme stocks through a rugged analytical test. Which are poised for growth and which have big downsides?AMC, GameStop and Nokia are lumped together, but not all meme stocks are alike ” whether you are a day-trader or a long-term investor. |
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