Archives by Month:

Archives by Year:

U.S. Producer Prices Jump In September

U.S. Producer Prices Jump In September

Producer prices in the U.S. rose higher in September following the biggest increase in gasoline price in more than two years. The producer price index increased by 0.4 percent in September, up from an increase of 0.2 percent in August, the Labor Department said on Thursday. On a yearly basis, producer prices rose 2.6 percent, […]
After Solid Third Quarter, Stock Markets Look Ahead To Promising Q4

After Solid Third Quarter, Stock Markets Look Ahead To Promising Q4

July-September was another record-breaking quarter for Wall Street, as investors rallied behind upbeat corporate earnings and expectations of tax reform under the Trump administration. European markets in September also rung up their best month of 2017, a sign that the bull market still had legs. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rounded out its eighth consecutive […]
Why The U.S. Exports Oil

Why The U.S. Exports Oil

U.S. crude oil exports are surging, even as we continue to import millions of barrels per day. The reasons for that come down to logistics and refinery economics. In the years leading up to the shale oil boom, crude oil exports from the U.S. were nearly nonexistent. There were two reasons for that. First, following […]
Out Of Sync

Out Of Sync

I have written many times about the tendency for the market to follow various seasonal patterns. Frankly, it is eerie how often the S&P 500 winds up mirroring these historical cycles. To be sure, the market doesn’t always follow the seasonal patterns and therefore, it doesn’t pay to trade heavily on what history suggests may […]
The Fed Is About To Cause A Recession

The Fed Is About To Cause A Recession

And now back to your regularly scheduled recession predictions. Last month, the 5s30s was on everyone’s radar screen when it dropped below 91.6bp for the first time since December 2007. A couple of fleeting steepening episodes notwithstanding, things haven’t really changed since. Well now, with the Fed looking hell-bent on sticking to their near-term rate path […]
Bullish Sentiment Approaching 40%

Bullish Sentiment Approaching 40%

This week’s sentiment survey from AAII showed an increase in bullish sentiment back near 40% and back near the recent high of 41.29% from mid-September. While 40% is hardly an extreme reading by any stretch of the imagination, this year there have only been four weeks where bullish sentiment actually topped 40%. With 40% being hard enough, an […]
Political Focus Shifting In Europe

Political Focus Shifting In Europe

There was a huge sigh of relief among investors when it became clear that the populist-nationalist wave that ostensibly led to Brexit and Trump’s election was not going to sweep through Europe. The euro gapped higher on April 24, and it has not looked back. We have suggested that with the outcome of the German election, European politics shift from tailwind to headwind.  […]
October 2017 Initial Unemployment Claims Rolling Average Improves Again

October 2017 Initial Unemployment Claims Rolling Average Improves Again

Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria impacted this week’s claims – but significantly less than previous weeks. The market expectations for weekly initial unemployment claims (from Bloomberg / Econoday) were 250 K to 275 K (consensus 252,000), and the Department of Labor reported 243,000 new claims. The more important (because of the volatility in the weekly reported […]
Pound Drops On Reports That Brexit Talks Have Hit Deadlock

Pound Drops On Reports That Brexit Talks Have Hit Deadlock

The US dollar showed some mixed dynamics in Thursday’s European session. It’s made gains against the Swiss franc, Canadian dollar, and British pound while losing ground against the Kiwi and Aussie dollars as well as the Japanese yen. The euro is trading slightly up against the greenback. When trading opened in Europe, buyers erased the […]
Citigroup Q3 Earnings Improve, High Revenues Recorded

Citigroup Q3 Earnings Improve, High Revenues Recorded

Have you been eager to see how Citigroup Inc. (C – Free Report) performed in Q3 in comparison with the market expectations? Let’s quickly scan through the key facts from this New York-based money center bank’s earnings release this morning: Earnings Improve Citigroup came out with earnings per share of $1.42, compared favorably with earnings of $1.24 in the […]