Friday the 13th may have negative historical connotations, but we have no reason to change our daily routines. Unless, of course, our livelihoods are directly tied to the traditional brick-and-mortar retail space, particularly department stores.
While it’s hard to make much sense of the market’s day-to-day movements at present, there is no such issue with what is expected to happen to Disney (DIS) and Macy’s (M) shares in today’s session. They both missed the mark in...
Today’s weaker-than-expected April ADP jobs report likely adds to the global growth worries. The US labor market has been a source of consistent strength and stability in an otherwise uncertain economic backdrop. Even as a number of...
Today’s March Personal Income & Spending report reconfirms what we saw from the sub-par Q1 GDP report on Thursday, with the U.S. economy barely staying in positive territory. Consumer spending in Q1 was up +1.9%...
We are entering the heart of the Q1 earnings season, with more than 100 S&P 500 members coming out with results this week and more than 170 index members reporting next week. The unsuccessful weekend meeting among oil producers...
With the Dow up five days straight and oil now perched above $40 a barrel, we see futures up this Friday. This week — complete with a dovish opinion from the FOMC regarding forward interest rates and some better-than-expected earnings...
Fresh weakness in oil is dragging stocks lower today. We don’t have much on the economic data front, but the earnings calendar is very busy today, with 32 S&P 500 index members reporting results, of which 18 reported this morning and the...
Stocks are seeing another big sell-off with the immediate catalyst being nothing more than fresh weakness in oil prices that is pushing the commodity to multi-year lows. Stocks have been moving in-sync with oil prices lately, with market...
Better-looking data out of China is helping market sentiment in today’s session, with oil off its multi-year lows and the major indexes on track for a positive start. Hard to tell how long this mood will last as no one sees today’s Chinese data as a sign of enduring shift. China’s December trade...
Another day, another China-centric market sell-off, with the US indexes deeply in the red following losses all over the world. To say that markets have been volatile in the New Year would be an understatement. One recurring theme of market activity...
The Alcoa (AA) report after the close on January 11th will put the spotlight on the Q4 earnings season. We have a total of 11 S&P 500 members reporting results next week, including J.P. Morgan (JPM), Wells Fargo (WFC), Citigroup (C) and Intel (INTC). But the reporting cycle will really ramp...
Today’s weak factory sector data out of China reminds us of the market’s persistent China growth worries. The December PMI survey by Caixin Media and Markit came in weaker than expected at 48.2 vs. 48.6 in November, the 10th straight month of a sub-50 reading from this key private...
Next week will bring some top-tier economic readings, but the major coming catalyst for the market is the Q4 earnings season that gets into the spotlight following the January 11th earnings report from Alcoa (AA). To that end, the ongoing weakness in oil prices...
Pre-open sentiment indicated a positive start for the major indexes on the last full trading session ahead of the Christmas, with the favorable tone of this morning’s income and spending data reconfirming the economy’s modest growth trajectory.
The Fed should be very happy with how the markets dealt with lift-off, with stocks, bonds and currencies all seeing the move as a vote of confidence in the US economy’s outlook. Importantly, the central bank has been able to keep the markets onboard with its future plans. Interest rates will...
It’s been almost a year since oil prices started sliding, with a combination of oversupplied markets and soft demand pushing prices lower. On the supply side, US production hasn’t declined at the pace that many in the market were banking on earlier this year, with declines at the Shale fields...
The European Central Bank (ECB) came through on the commitment it made in October to sweeten its ongoing monetary policy stimulus program in order to spur growth and fight deflation within the common currency block. This commitment had produced the desired effect in the markets...
The major indexes are on track to for a weak open, with heightened geopolitical tension superceding the positive revision to the Q3 GDP growth pace. The Middle East is a complicated region in the best of the times and it has become even more so with the rise of ISIS and the entry of Russia in the...
China’s inflation reading came in a tad cooler than expected, spotlighting the persistently weak demand conditions in that country that have been a worry for the markets lately. The country’s consumer price index increased +1.3% for October from the year-earlier...
The market’s impressive comeback over the past month has helped erase all of the late-summer losses. Driving the gains is hope of continued Fed support on the back of a softer domestic economic backdrop.
