U.S. markets counting on visit from Goldilocks tomorrow
Tomorrow, Friday, June 7, brings the May jobs report. Right now economists surveyed by Bloomberg are looking for the economy to add a robust 175,000 jobs with unemployment holding steady at 3.6% (as 49-year low) and average hourly wages growing at a very positive 3.2%...
Manufacturing sector contracts more than expected in May in ISM survey–but, surprising pundits, market doesn’t fold
Going into Monday, June 3, the consensus on Wall Street was that if the Institute for Supply Management’s Purchasing Managers Index for manufacturing fell more than expected, U.S. stocks would follow in a rout. A lower than expected reading on the index would...
The importance of the 5% tariff that President Trump just slapped on Mexico is way bigger than the number suggests
It’s only 5%, Wall Street is saying today in what clearly sounds like an effort to convince itself when investors really know better. That unconvincing “happy talk” is why the Standard & Poor’s 500 index was down only 1.24% at the close...
Today it’s all trade war news all the time
Sometimes it’s better to just weigh the news rather than try to analyze it. And that certainly seems to fit today’s market action. Even though the major U.S. indexes managed slight gains as of the close today–the Standard & Poor’s 500, for...
No news is good news so far this weekend
U.S. financial markets are closed today for Memorial Day. (Can’t help but think of my Dad who climbed telephone poles to string wire during World War II. “While they shot at me,” he would say with a mixture of surprise and outrage. I’m sure you...
Further lowering China exposure in my portfolios
This morning Wall Street is buzzing with talk that the U.S.-China trade war could stretch on to 2035. I think there’s just about no chance of that. But we aren’t looking at the quick resolution of the dispute that seemed possible just 10 days ago. And we...
The next escalation in the U.S. trade war looks to 5 more Chinese technology companies
The Trump administration is considering applying Huawei-level sanctions to five more Chinese technology companies in the video surveillance sector including Megvii, Zhejiang Dahua Technology, Hangzhou Hikvision Digital Technology, Meiya Pico and Iflytek. The sanctions...
Chipmakers begin to cut supplies for China’s Huawei and lead U.S. stocks down today
Call it a secondary effect of the U.S.-China trade war but it’s still clearly taking a bite out of the shares of U.S. chip makers today. Last week the Trump administration added sanctions on China’s Huawei Technologies that would prevent the company from buying U.S....
Beijing says, If the U.S. won’t play nice, China won’t play at all
The Chinese government is using the country’s official media to signal that it isn’t interested in resuming trade talks with the United States under a threat of higher 25% tariffs on another $320 billion in Chinese exports to the United States. And to make...
China warns that U.S. sanctions against Huawei could endanger trade talks
It’s not even remotely a surprise. A day after the Trump administration declared a national emergency in order to product U.S. telecommunications for foreign antagonists–with a clear eye on China and Chinese companies such as Huawei–the Chinese...Market falls as China retaliates for U.S. tariff hike on Friday
On Friday, the Trump administration raised tariffs on $200 billion in Chinese exports to the United States to 25% from 10%. The move, the administration said, was in response to Chinese efforts to walk back provisions the country had agreed to, according to the White...
Tariffs up, talks end, Chinese retaliation next
Whatever the ultimate end point of the trade talks between the United State and China, the next step is almost certainly the announcement of retaliatory measures by China in the wake of the Trump administration’s decision to raise tariffs on $200 billion of...
U.S. stock market wants to believe U.S.-China talks are “constructive”
The Standard & Poor’s 500 was slightly in the green at the close today at 2881.40. That marked a big turnaround from earlier in the session. As of 11 a.m. New York time the index had dipped to 2826.29. Today it was all about China and the trade/tariff talks...
Who knows what’s real and what’s spin in the U.S.-China trade talks
Today U.S. stocks are moving slightly higher as if they believed that talks Thursday and Friday over will see an agreement between the U.S. and China on trade and tariffs rather than a breakdown in the negotiations. As of 2:30 the Standard & Poor’s 500 is...
What the market fears is what it doesn’t know about the U.S.-China trade wars
The Standard & Poor’s 500 fell another 1.65% to 2,884.05 today on fears that there would be no agreement this week out of the U.S.-China trade talks and that President Donald Trump’s threats to raise tariffs on $200 billion in Chinese exports to the...
How serious was this morning’s stock sell off
Here’s what’s disconcerting about this morning’s stock market drop. First, while we do know what caused the selloff–President Donald Trump’s Sunday tweet threatening China with higher tariffs on even more exports unless it agreed to a...
President’s Sunday Tweet on China tariffs should make Monday “interesting”
On Sunday President Donald Trump’s tweeted that he will raise tariffs on $200 billion in Chinese exports to 25% from 10% on Friday and add $325 billion in new Chinese goods that will face the higher 25% tariffs. The 25% rate was most recently scheduled to go...
Now it’s the European Union on the trade war front lines
Just in case you were worried that global trade wars were in any danger of calming down, today you can relax. Trade hostilities with the European Union are heating up. On Monday the Trump administration said it would impose tariffs on $11 billion in imports from the...
After sliding to April, has Trump-Xi trade meeting slipped to June?
Over the weekend the South China Morning News reported that the proposed meeting between President Donald Trump and President Xi Jinping to sign an agreement ending the U.S.-China trade war may now be pushed back to June. That meeting had originally been scheduled for...
China when? worries financial markets
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...
Indictment of China’s Huawei Technologies comes just days before next round in U.S.-China trade talks
The U.S. Department of Justice filed criminal charges Monday against Huawei Technologies, China’s biggest technology company. The charges include an allegation that the company stole trade secrets from TMobile and that Huawei committed bank fraud by violating...Today it’s a battle between positive earnings and negative China trade sentiment
And, as of 12:30 p.m. New York time, negative trade sentiment was winning. The day started off with positive earnings reports–earnings beats and positive guidance–from IBM (IBM), Procter & Gamble (PG), and United Technologies (UTX). In premarket...
They’re back! Fears of a slowdown in growth in 2019, that is
Remember last week? Markets were running over with optimism that growth in the U.S. and global economies continue strong in 2019, that the U.S.-China trade war was headed to a resolution, that earnings growth in reports for the fourth quarter would be above...
China data nudge to global growth fears
Overnight, China reported as larger than expected December trade surplus ($57.06 billion against an expected $51.53 billion) but a December year over year 7.6% drop in imports that argued for a slowdown in China’s domestic economy. Economists had expected a 5%...
Testing, testing: Bounce, rally, or retreat?
U.S. stocks moved toward a key test today with the Standard & Poor’s 500 approaching the 2550 to 2600 level that signals the top of the recent volatility range and likely technical resistance. If the index breaks above this level, the market could run...
Xi’s tough talk isn’t good news for investors
Hope you weren’t hoping for good news from President Xi Jinping’s speech Tuesday to an audience of party officials, military honchos, and business leaders on the 40th anniversary of Deng Xiaoping’s Reform and Opening Up campaign that unleashed China’s economy. First,...
Markets worry about everything this morning–especially bank and energy stocks
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...
Market looks like it’s trying to force another Federal Reserve bounce
On a day like today–when U.S. stocks have resumed their downward plunge–the Standard & Poor’s 500 was off 1.91% as of 1:30 p.m. New York time and the Dow Jones Industrial Average was lower by 2.08%–it’s important to remember that the...
China confirms some of Trump-Xi deal; global markets steady
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...Jim’s Daily Email Alerts:
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