April Markit PMI Weak - But Decent Q1 GDP Growth
April Markit PMI - 2.2% GDP Growth Q1 initial GDP reading will be released on Friday. To be clear, this reading might be far from where it ends up after revisions. However, there isn’t an obvious bubble, like tech and housing in the past 2 cycles. Also, there are very few indicators signaling a recession is…
50 Day Moving Average - 70% Of S&P 500 Stocks Are Above
50 Day Moving Average - Just Missed Record High The S&P 500 just missed setting a new record high in the week shortened by Good Friday. On Thursday it increased 16 basis points to 2,905.03 which is about 2 points below its high for the year and 25 points below its record closing high. Nasdaq increased…
Jobless Claims Fall To A Cycle Low
Jobless Claims Plummet The labor market is likely healthy as jobless claims plummeted again as both the weekly claims and the 4 week average are at cycle lows. They are at their lowest levels since 1969 when the labor market was half the size it is now. Keep in mind, the number of people applying…
Money Losing IPOs - Percentage Hits A Record High
Money Losing IPOs - Stocks Fall On Wednesday The healthcare sector brought down the overall market on Wednesday. Heading into trading on Wednesday, the market had been up 12 out of the previous 14 days. It didn’t have enough momentum to cross the finish line that is the September all-time high. Therefore, S&P 500 fell…
Industrial Production Growth Falls To A 10 Month Low
Industrial Production Growth - MBA Purchase Applications Rise Again Industrial Production Growth - Despite the slight rise in interest rates, purchase applications increased again in the week of April 12th. Purchase index was 1% from last week when it increased 1%. Composite index fell 3.5% on top of a 5.6% decline because refinancing applications plummeted.…
Healthcare Plummets Because Of Politics As S&P 500 Nears Record High
Healthcare Plummets - As Stocks Creep Higher Even though the stock market is extremely overbought, it managed to inch closer to its record closing high on Tuesday. S&P 500 was up 5 basis points to 2,907.06. It has increased 12 times in 14 days. I still expect it to break its record closing high of 2,930.75…
Fund Managers Buy Equities & Lower Their Cash Positions
Fund Managers Are Buying Stocks Again There is huge career risk in taking a position that is against the grain and being wrong for a few months if you are a fund manager. For example, going underweight tech stocks in the late 1990s would cause fund managers to underperform and be treated like pariahs by…
JP Morgan Beats Estimates, But Citi Misses On Revenues
JP Morgan - Slight Decline In Overall Stocks In the week where the S&P 500 is likely to reach a new record high, the market started with a dud on Monday. S&P 500 fell 6 basis points, Nasdaq fell 0.10% and Russell 2000 fell 0.36%. VIX increased 2.58% to 12.32 which is still extremely low.…
Gas Prices Rise 63 Straight Days
Gas Prices - Very Mixed Empire Fed Survey Before getting into gas prices, we'll review the Empire Fed Survey. Manufacturing sector is the weakest part of the global economy and the American economy. Biggest upcoming positive catalyst for this sector is probably the trade deal with China. That could help growth resume in the 2nd half…
Big Friday Rally Puts The S&P 500’s Total Return At A Record High
Big Friday Rally - Market Inches Towards Record High The stock market rallied hard on Friday as S&P 500 had its 3rd straight weekly gain. S&P 500 increased 0.66% to 2,907.41. On a total return basis, the market hit a record high. The highest close in September was 2,930.75, meaning a record high excluding dividends is…
Recent Comments