February 19, 2019 @ 7:09 pm | Breaking News, Volatility |
The latest round of U.S.-China trade talks resumed today in Washington. The Trump administration’s March 1 deadline continues to walk nearer–although everyone on Wall Street expects that President Trump will decide good progress has been made and will...
February 7, 2019 @ 6:43 pm | Breaking News, Volatility, You May Have Missed |
President Donald Trump has made it clear–repeatedly–that there won’t be an agreement to end the U.S.-China trade war until he has met with China’s President Xi Jinping. And that’s got the market worried. Because the Trump...
December 10, 2018 @ 5:57 pm | Breaking News, Volatility, You May Have Missed |
I dare you to find something global financial markets aren’t worried about. And, moreover, many of the worries are re-enforcing each other today. So, for example, we’ve got U.S. Trade Representative Robert E. Lighthizer, saying on Sunday TV the the 90 day...
December 5, 2018 @ 6:31 pm | Breaking News, Volatility, You May Have Missed |
It had seemed unlikely. China couldn’t officially confirm the details in the trade and tariffs deal struck between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping, Chinese officials said, until President Xi and the Chinese delegation returned from...
December 4, 2018 @ 7:45 pm | Breaking News, Volatility, You May Have Missed |
It’s hard to take a step back on a day when the Dow Jones Industrial average closed down more than 700 points (and 3.10%), but that’s exactly what I’m going to suggest. The huge sell off was driven by three major factors in my opinion. First, the...
November 30, 2018 @ 6:32 pm | Breaking News, Volatility |
China’s purchasing managers index (PMI) for the manufacturing sector continued to slump in November, overnight data showed. The index dropped to 50, the level that marks the divide between expansion (above 50) and contraction (below 50.) The new export orders...
November 26, 2018 @ 7:54 pm | Breaking News, Volatility, You May Have Missed |
Nothing will be as important this week to the financial markets as the meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping during the November 30-December 1 summit of the Group of 20 in Buenos Aires. Ahead of the weekend meeting days when the...
November 14, 2018 @ 7:03 pm | Breaking News |
Oil prices are up today with U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate ahead 2.07% to $56.84 a barrel as of 11:30 a.m. in New York. International benchmark Brent crude has gained 2.23% to $66.93 a barrel. Both prices remain below the psychologically important $60 a...
November 6, 2018 @ 5:53 pm | Breaking News |
Remember last week when markets got all optimistic at the possibility that U.S. President Donald Trump and China’s President Xi Jinping would be able to hammer out an end to the U.S.-China trade deal when they meet at the Group of 20 meeting in Buenos Aires on...
November 1, 2018 @ 7:38 pm | Breaking News, Volatility, You May Have Missed |
This morning at least a tweet from President Donald Trump is the most important factor moving U.S. stocks higher. In his tweet President Trump said he had had a productive conversation with Chinese President Xi Jinping on trade. “Those discussions are moving...
October 29, 2018 @ 7:39 pm | Breaking News, Volatility, You May Have Missed |
Monday, October 29, started off with a technology-led rally. As of 10:04 a.m. New York time the Standard & Poor’s 500 was up 1.81% and the technology-heavy NASDAQ Composite was higher by 1.75%. And then Bloomberg reported that the Trump administration was...
October 29, 2018 @ 6:41 pm | ALV, Breaking News, Jubak Picks Portfolio, Update, You May Have Missed |
Before the market open today, Autoliv (ALV) delivered disappointing earnings for the third quarter. But the stock still climbed on news that China is considering cutting the tax on car purchases to 5% from 10% in an effort to stimulate the country’s auto market...
October 26, 2018 @ 2:34 pm | Breaking News, Volatility, You May Have Missed |
Real GDP (that is GDP discounting any gains from inflation) increased at an annualized rate of 3.5% in the third quarter. Economists surveyed by Briefing.com were looking for 3.3% growth rate. In the second quarter GDP grew at an annualized rate of 4.2%. Big driver in...
October 5, 2018 @ 7:59 pm | Breaking News |
The U.S. trade deficit in goods and services widened in August by 6.4% to $53.2 billion from $50 billion in July. That’s the biggest trade deficit in six months. The trade deficit with China rose to a record $38.6 billion from $36.8 billion in July. The trade...
October 2, 2018 @ 6:46 pm | Breaking News, Volatility, You May Have Missed |
Today Wall Street and trade analysts are saying that they see a grand strategy in the U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade deal announced yesterday, in the trade deal with South Korea, and in negotiations with Japan and the European Union. The goal, this analysis says, is to put...
October 1, 2018 @ 7:26 pm | Breaking News, Update, Volatility, You May Have Missed |
On Saturday the Chinese government and private surveys released more numbers showing that the country’s economy was slowing. In September growth in China’s manufacturing sector stalled after 15 months of expansion, according to the Caixin/Market...
September 21, 2018 @ 7:44 pm | Breaking News, Leading Indicators, Volatility |
A survey by investment companies AmCham China and AmCham Shanghai found that 52.1% of U.S. companies operating in China have seen an increase in non-tariff barriers to their business operations. The biggest problems reported were increased inspections (27.1%), slower...
September 20, 2018 @ 7:01 pm | Breaking News, Leading Indicators, Volatility |
Today the Standard & Poor’s 500 stock index and the Dow Jones Industrial Average both hit record highs. The NASDAQ Composite was up 0.99% as of 2 p.m. New York time. The iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF (EEM) advanced 0.95%. West Texas Intermediate crude...
September 19, 2018 @ 6:48 pm | Breaking News, Volatility, You May Have Missed |
Just hours after the Trump administration announced 10% tariffs on an additional $200 billion in Chinese exports, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said the nation wouldn’t devalue its currency in order to make its exports more competitive. Which, of course, doesn’t...
September 18, 2018 @ 5:32 pm | Breaking News, Volatility |
A day after the Trump administration announced 10% tariffs on an additional $200 billion in Chinese exports to the United States, stocks are up on a “It could have been worse” reaction. At 12:30 p.m. New York time the Standard & Poor’s 500 stock...
September 17, 2018 @ 7:26 pm | Breaking News, Volatility |
Global financial markets spent most of the day waiting for the shoe to drop. And shortly after 6 p.m. Washington time it did. President Donald Trump announced a 10% tariff on an additional $200 billion in Chinese exports to the United States. Those tariffs will go...
September 17, 2018 @ 7:20 pm | Breaking News, Volatility |
For much of today U.S. stocks were locked in a slightly negative range as investors and traders vacillated from fears that the Trump administration would impose a new set of tariffs on $200 billion in Chinese goods and the hope that Chinese leader Xi Jinping would...
September 12, 2018 @ 6:55 pm | Breaking News |
Pay close attention. The Wall Street Journal is reporting that the United States “is said” to propose another round of trade talks with China. Thats not “There will be trade talk” or “China has accepted a U.S. proposal” or even...
September 10, 2018 @ 7:55 pm | Breaking News, Volatility |
China trade hardliners in the Trump administration, such as advisor Peter Navarro, have predicated their tariff campaign against China on the theory that hiking tariffs on more than $500 billion in Chinese exports to the United States (as proposed at the moment) will...
September 7, 2018 @ 7:32 pm | Breaking News, Volatility, You May Have Missed |
Markets started off today as if they were determined to take a breather from a week of worry that the emerging markets crisis was about to spread to developed markets. In morning trading the Standard & Poor’s 500, the NASDAQ Composite, and the iShares MSCI...
September 5, 2018 @ 6:52 pm | Breaking News, Volatility, You May Have Missed |
Today, Wednesday September 5, the Department of Commerce reported that the U.S. trade deficit climbed to $50.1 million in July. (Economists surveyed by Bloomberg had projected a deficit of $50.2 billion.) That was up from $45.7 billion in June and the largest increase...
August 31, 2018 @ 6:43 pm | Breaking News, Volatility |
Just in case you were worried that the days after the Labor Day market holiday might be boring, well, worry no more. Sources in the White House are saying that President Donald Trump plans to move on tariffs on an additional $200 billion in Chinese imports quickly...
August 27, 2018 @ 6:56 pm | ALV, Breaking News, Jubak Picks Portfolio |
If you’re looking for a reason for U.S. stocks to keep climbing from current highs, this morning’s event at the White House is a big deal. President Donald Trump announced that the U.S. and Mexico have reached a bilateral trade agreement that would replace...
August 8, 2018 @ 7:00 pm | Breaking News, Volatility, You May Have Missed |
Today the Chinese Commerce Ministry announced 25% tariffs on an additional $16 billion in U.S. exports. The tariffs will go into effect on August 23 and target cars, crude oil, medical instruments, natural gas, and coal along with hundreds of other items.. The tariffs...
August 6, 2018 @ 7:04 pm | Breaking News |
Still lots of earnings announcements this week but we’re done with the real exciting news from the likes of Amazon (AMZN), Facebook (FB) and Netflix (NFLX). This week the top names are companies like Pioneer Natural Resources (PXD), The Walt Disney Company...