Dow inched up 9, advancers over decliners 3-2 & NAZ added 4. The MLP index lost 2+ to the 494s & the REIT index was up fractionally to 301. Junk bond funds crawled higher after recent selling & Treasuries rallied on growing unrest in Ukraine. Oil rose & gold jumped the most in almost 3 weeks as signs of escalating tension between Ukraine & Russia fueled demand for precious metals as a haven.
AMJ (Alerian MLP Index tracking fund)
The US trade deficit unexpectedly narrowed in Jun, reflecting the biggest drop in imports in a year as the economy moved closer to energy independence. The gap shrank 7% to $41.5B, the smallest since Jan, from May’s $44.7B, according to the Commerce Dept. The forecast called for a deficit of $44.8B. The drop in purchases of foreign goods included declines in autos & cellular phones, while petroleum imports were the lowest in more than 3 years. Demand for goods made overseas will probably rebound in coming months. Exports were little changed at a record, a sign markets overseas will represent less growth for American factories as Europe’s economy struggles to pick up & geopolitical tensions mount. Imports dropped 1.2%, the biggest decrease in a year, to $237B from $240B in the prior month. Purchases of autos & parts declined $1.07B & demand for cellular phones fell $1.1B from the prior month. Imports of petroleum, at $27.4B, were the lowest since Nov 2010. The nation’s trade deficit on the fuel declined to $14.7B the narrowest since May 2009. Excluding petroleum, the trade shortfall declined to $26.9B in Jun from $29.5B. Exports edged up 0.1% to a record $195.9B. Sales of civilian aircraft, pharmaceuticals & chemicals were among the biggest gainers. After eliminating the influence of prices, which renders the numbers used to calculate GDP, the trade deficit shrank to $48.8B from $52B. The narrowing probably means trade subtracted less from Q2 growth.
Trade Gap Shrinks to Five-Month Low as U.S. Imports Drop
Photo: Bloomberg
NATO said there’s a risk of Russia sending troops into Ukraine under the “pretext” of a humanitarian or peacekeeping mission after pres Putin massed soldiers on his country’s western border. “We’re not going to guess what’s on Russia’s mind, but we can see what Russia is doing on the ground -- and that is of great concern,” a spokesperson for NATO said by e-mail. “The latest Russian military buildup further escalates the situation and undermines efforts aimed at finding a diplomatic solution to the crisis. This is a dangerous situation.” The standoff over Ukraine is escalating in the wake of the US & the EU hitting Russia with the toughest sanctions yet, with Putin ordering economic retaliation. In Ukraine's easternmost regions, gov troops are pressing ahead with an offensive agianst pro-Russian insurgents that’s prompted the gov in Kiev to say yesterday that victory was near. Warnings of the threat of invasion are intensifying after reports that Russia has massed forces on its neighbor’s border in the biggest military buildup since troops were withdrawn from the area in May. Ukraine considers Russia’s proposal of humanitarian aid to be “cynical” & blames its neighbor for not allowing the military conflict to end, a spokesman for the country’s defense said. Ukraine would treat Russia dispatching peacekeepers as “direct aggression,” pres Poroshenko’s office said. The gov in Kiev has estimated that Russia has deployed 45K soldiers, 160 tanks & 192 warplanes among other equipment, including soldiers stationed in Crimea.
NATO Flags Rising Ukraine Incursion Threat
Disney, a Dow stock, fiscal Q3 profit beat the estimate, fueled by box-office hits. EPS rose to $1.28 from $1.01 a year earlier, beating the $1.16-estimate. There were 2 big films, Marvel’s “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” & “Maleficent.” “Guardians of the Galaxy,” also from Marvel, opened last weekend with $94M in US & Canadian theaters, the best ever for an Aug release. “People said it came out of nowhere because those characters were not well known,” CEO Iger said of the latest film. “The title was not well known, but the Marvel brand has become something that, at least in the consumer’s eyes, really means something and should be trusted.” Revenue increased 7.7% to $12.5B, surpassing the $12.1B estimate. Operating income at the film studio more than doubled to $411M, the biggest gain among the company’s 5 divisions. “Frozen,” the hit 2013 movie, continued to deliver profit in home video & intl theaters. The consumer products unit, which also benefits from Marvel-themed products, posted a 25% rise in profit to $273M, while revenue grew 16%. DIS gets the bulk of its profit from its TV division. Operating income at the unit, which includes ESPN, ABC & the Disney Channel, was little changed at $2.3B, as sports programming costs increased. While ABC earnings increased, profit at the much larger cable operation fell 7% because of higher costs at ESPN, the sale of a U.K. unit at ESPN & the shift in the timing of some revenue. Profit at theme parks increased 23% to $848M, with attendance & guest spending up at its domestic resorts. The stock went up 34¢. If you would like to learn more about DIS, click on this link:
club.ino.com/trend/analysis/stock/DIS?a_aid=CD3289&a_bid=6ae5b6f7
Disney Profit Tops Estimates as Feature Films Spark Studio Gains
Earnings reports are coming in better today, but intl tensions remain high. Israel has pulled back from Gaza & unrest remains. The Ukraine is the big story. While nobody knows where that will lead, the future is uncertain & scary. Markets are awaiting developments with frightened money going into gold. Dow continues down YTD.
Dow Jones Industrials
AMJ (Alerian MLP Index tracking fund)
| CLU14.NYM | ...Crude Oil Sep 14 | ...97.49 |  ....0.11 | (0.1%) |
| GCQ14.CMX | ...Gold Aug 14 | ....1,308.60 | ...24.60 | (1.9%) |
The US trade deficit unexpectedly narrowed in Jun, reflecting the biggest drop in imports in a year as the economy moved closer to energy independence. The gap shrank 7% to $41.5B, the smallest since Jan, from May’s $44.7B, according to the Commerce Dept. The forecast called for a deficit of $44.8B. The drop in purchases of foreign goods included declines in autos & cellular phones, while petroleum imports were the lowest in more than 3 years. Demand for goods made overseas will probably rebound in coming months. Exports were little changed at a record, a sign markets overseas will represent less growth for American factories as Europe’s economy struggles to pick up & geopolitical tensions mount. Imports dropped 1.2%, the biggest decrease in a year, to $237B from $240B in the prior month. Purchases of autos & parts declined $1.07B & demand for cellular phones fell $1.1B from the prior month. Imports of petroleum, at $27.4B, were the lowest since Nov 2010. The nation’s trade deficit on the fuel declined to $14.7B the narrowest since May 2009. Excluding petroleum, the trade shortfall declined to $26.9B in Jun from $29.5B. Exports edged up 0.1% to a record $195.9B. Sales of civilian aircraft, pharmaceuticals & chemicals were among the biggest gainers. After eliminating the influence of prices, which renders the numbers used to calculate GDP, the trade deficit shrank to $48.8B from $52B. The narrowing probably means trade subtracted less from Q2 growth.
Trade Gap Shrinks to Five-Month Low as U.S. Imports Drop
NATO said there’s a risk of Russia sending troops into Ukraine under the “pretext” of a humanitarian or peacekeeping mission after pres Putin massed soldiers on his country’s western border. “We’re not going to guess what’s on Russia’s mind, but we can see what Russia is doing on the ground -- and that is of great concern,” a spokesperson for NATO said by e-mail. “The latest Russian military buildup further escalates the situation and undermines efforts aimed at finding a diplomatic solution to the crisis. This is a dangerous situation.” The standoff over Ukraine is escalating in the wake of the US & the EU hitting Russia with the toughest sanctions yet, with Putin ordering economic retaliation. In Ukraine's easternmost regions, gov troops are pressing ahead with an offensive agianst pro-Russian insurgents that’s prompted the gov in Kiev to say yesterday that victory was near. Warnings of the threat of invasion are intensifying after reports that Russia has massed forces on its neighbor’s border in the biggest military buildup since troops were withdrawn from the area in May. Ukraine considers Russia’s proposal of humanitarian aid to be “cynical” & blames its neighbor for not allowing the military conflict to end, a spokesman for the country’s defense said. Ukraine would treat Russia dispatching peacekeepers as “direct aggression,” pres Poroshenko’s office said. The gov in Kiev has estimated that Russia has deployed 45K soldiers, 160 tanks & 192 warplanes among other equipment, including soldiers stationed in Crimea.
NATO Flags Rising Ukraine Incursion Threat
Disney, a Dow stock, fiscal Q3 profit beat the estimate, fueled by box-office hits. EPS rose to $1.28 from $1.01 a year earlier, beating the $1.16-estimate. There were 2 big films, Marvel’s “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” & “Maleficent.” “Guardians of the Galaxy,” also from Marvel, opened last weekend with $94M in US & Canadian theaters, the best ever for an Aug release. “People said it came out of nowhere because those characters were not well known,” CEO Iger said of the latest film. “The title was not well known, but the Marvel brand has become something that, at least in the consumer’s eyes, really means something and should be trusted.” Revenue increased 7.7% to $12.5B, surpassing the $12.1B estimate. Operating income at the film studio more than doubled to $411M, the biggest gain among the company’s 5 divisions. “Frozen,” the hit 2013 movie, continued to deliver profit in home video & intl theaters. The consumer products unit, which also benefits from Marvel-themed products, posted a 25% rise in profit to $273M, while revenue grew 16%. DIS gets the bulk of its profit from its TV division. Operating income at the unit, which includes ESPN, ABC & the Disney Channel, was little changed at $2.3B, as sports programming costs increased. While ABC earnings increased, profit at the much larger cable operation fell 7% because of higher costs at ESPN, the sale of a U.K. unit at ESPN & the shift in the timing of some revenue. Profit at theme parks increased 23% to $848M, with attendance & guest spending up at its domestic resorts. The stock went up 34¢. If you would like to learn more about DIS, click on this link:
club.ino.com/trend/analysis/stock/DIS?a_aid=CD3289&a_bid=6ae5b6f7
Disney Profit Tops Estimates as Feature Films Spark Studio Gains
Walt Disney (DIS)
Earnings reports are coming in better today, but intl tensions remain high. Israel has pulled back from Gaza & unrest remains. The Ukraine is the big story. While nobody knows where that will lead, the future is uncertain & scary. Markets are awaiting developments with frightened money going into gold. Dow continues down YTD.
Dow Jones Industrials
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