December Jobs Report: Late Cycle Mediocre Growth Reasserts Itself
Jan 05, 2018
Jeremy Parkinson
Finance
HEADLINES: +143,000 jobs added U3 unemployment rate unchanged at 4.1% U6 underemployment rate rose +0.1% from 8.0% to 8.1% Here are the headlines on wages and the chronic heightened underemployment: Wages and participation rates Not in Labor Force, but Want a Job Now: rose +43,000 from 5.265 million to 5.308 million Part time for economic […]
Morgan Cautious On Fitbit Ahead Of CES, While Roth Says Stock ‘Misunderstood’
Jan 05, 2018
Jeremy Parkinson
Finance
Shares of Fitbit (FIT) are in focus in morning trading following a cautious report from an analyst at Morgan Stanley, who lowered his price target on Fitbit ahead of the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. In contrast, Roth Capital initiated coverage of the stock, saying that the value of Fitbit’s loyal installed base has […]
Commodities And Stocks Take The Lead As Dollar Lags
Jan 05, 2018
Jeremy Parkinson
Finance
The year started on a high note with positive data from China, Europe, the United States, and other emerging markets (EM). During the week, we saw an increase in trading volumes as investors came back from the long holiday. The equities, commodities, and forex markets saw major movements during the week. In the United States, […]
Novan Announces Pricing Of $38.0 Million Offering Of Common Stock And Warrants
Jan 05, 2018
Jeremy Parkinson
Finance
MORRISVILLE, N.C., Jan. 05, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Novan, Inc. (“the Company” or “Novan”) (Nasdaq:NOVN) today announced the pricing of the Company’s underwritten offering of 10 million shares of its common stock and accompanying warrants to purchase up to 10 million shares of common stock with an exercise price of $4.66. The shares and warrants […]
December 2017: ECRI’s WLI Growth Index Rate Unchanged
Jan 05, 2018
Jeremy Parkinson
Finance
ECRI’s WLI Growth Index which forecasts economic growth six months forward remains in expansion. ECRI released their inflation index this week and is shown below. Analyst Opinion of the trends of the weekly leading indices This index is indicating modest growth six months from today – but the rate of growth would be little changed […]
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Is Monetary Policy Easing Or Tightening?
Jan 05, 2018
Jeremy Parkinson
Finance
When I was a graduate student in the late 1960s, I had an opportunity to hear a lecture by the legendary Milton Friedman who explained the difference between easy and tight monetary policy. He argued that low-interest rates are a sign of a tight monetary policy, rather than the conventional thinking that low rates mean […]
Low Orders Plunge U.S. Services Sector To 4 Month Low
Jan 05, 2018
Jeremy Parkinson
Finance
U.S. services sector expanded at the weakest pace in four months in December, the Institute for Supply Management reported Friday. The services index declined from 57.4 to 55.9 in December, falling below 57.6 predicted by most economists. A reading above 50 indicates expansion. Also, the gauge of new orders fell from 58.7 to 54.3, making […]
ISM Non-Manufacturing: Continued Growth In December
Jan 05, 2018
Jeremy Parkinson
Finance
The Institute of Supply Management (ISM) has now released the December Non-Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI), also known as the ISM Services PMI. The headline Composite Index is at 55.9 percent, down 1.5 from 57.4 last month. Today’s number came in below the Investing.com forecast of 57.8 percent. Here is the report summary: “The NMI® registered 55.9 percent, […]
Gold Market In 2018 Vs. 2017
Jan 05, 2018
Jeremy Parkinson
Finance
Craig Hemke, Editor at TFMetalsReport.com joins me today to look at the similarities and differences for gold in 2018 vs last year. We discuss the USD and inflation in terms of how they impact the gold market. (Audio length 00:11:39)
Jobs Report Misses Badly, Earnings In Line, Dollar’s Woes Continue
Jan 05, 2018
Jeremy Parkinson
Finance
Ok, here comes payrolls. As usual, the focus will be on average hourly earnings, which have (generally speaking) dictated trading after the last six employment reports. The story is the same as it ever was against a backdrop of (basically) full employment but still subdued inflation: the market is looking for signs that wage growth […]