Dow rose 52 thanks to buying in the last ½ hour, decliners over advancers 2-1 & NAZ was off 5. The MLP index plunged 12+ to the 254s (off the lows) & the REIT index added 1+ to the 316s. Junk bond funds were lower & Treasuries sold off. Oil tumbled to the 31s (see below) & gold is back under 1100.
AMJ (Alerian MLP Index tracking fund)
![Live 24 hours gold chart [Kitco Inc.]](http://www.kitco.com/images/live/gold.gif?0.4961218132215244)
Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta pres Dennis Lockhart said he favors continued tightening of monetary policy this year, & a global selloff in stock markets is unlikely to affect the US economy. “When such volatility develops, I think it’s helpful to look at the real economy of the United States as opposed to the financial economy and ask if something is fundamentally wrong,” Lockhart said. “Are there serious imbalances that make the broad economy vulnerable to foreign shocks? I don’t see that kind of connection in current circumstances. ” He said the persistence of turmoil such as what occurred starting in Aug might change that view. “If the volatility continues for several weeks, I may have to revise my view that I don’t now see a connection between financial markets abroad and the real economy,” Lockhart said. “It is a matter of how long it lasts.” His “bias” was for no policy change in Janu, adding there may be relatively little new information about inflation by the Mar meeting to influence a policy choice. “March is a live meeting,” he added. “How much will we know about inflation trends or developments going into the mid-March meeting? We will have some new data but not a great deal more.” Lockhart said he continues to see economic growth of 2-2.5% or more, pushing down the unemployment rate & helping raise inflation back toward the central bank’s 2% target. “Recent economic data have been mixed, the fourth quarter may be disappointing, but in the same breath I would say mixed data do not undermine my basic forecast,” he said. “The hiring trend in our economy has been quite encouraging.” He added the exact path of rates would depend on the economic data, & inflation would be a “key factor.” “I’d like to be more definitive in predicting future rates, but the degree of uncertainty -- particularly as regards global influences on our economy -- affirms the wisdom, in my opinion, of letting the economic data do the talking,” Lockhart said.
Fed's Lockhart Says Global Markets Drop Won't Hurt U.S. Outlook
A brutal new year selloff in oil markets deepened today, with prices plunging up to 7% to new 12-year lows as further ructions in the Chinese stock market threatened to knock crude as low as $20 a barrel. China's blue-chip stocks fell another 5% today & overnight interest rates for the yuan outside of China soared to nearly 40%, their highest since the launch of the offshore market. Drillers in the US are focused on keeping their wells running as long as possible, despite the slump. Brent crude fell $2.15 to $31.40 (midday), their lowest since Apr 2004 & it has fallen more than 15% in 6 straight days of losses, the worst such slump in a year ago. West Texas Intermediate dropped $2.05 a barrel to $31.11, the lowest since Dec 2003. The fierce selling triggered a renewed scramble to buy options betting on a further slide, sending the CBOE volatility index, option premiums based on moves in the US oil exchange traded fund, nearly 12% higher to more than 60, close to its highest level since the 2009 financial crisis. The EU said on that the lifting of sanctions on Iran could come soon, following a deal last year to curb the nation's nuclear program. Many market participants say that Iran's return to the oil markets would add more pressure to the global glut that has knocked prices from more than $100 in mid-2014.
Department stores have been under siege for decades, but lately their fortunes have hit a new low that could spark a wave of deal making that could sweep up companies such as Kohl's. Shoppers are flocking to newer types of stores that sell similar brands at deep discounts & buying more online, leaving behind cavernous stores that are difficult to fill productively. KSS, a national department-store chain with roughly 1200 stores, is debating whether to pursue more drastic action, such as taking itself private or breaking up the company. Once among the fastest-growing retailers, it has stumbled in recent years. Despite improvements that include recent sales gains at existing stores, its shares are down 40% from their high last year. Concerned that its depressed share price could make it a target for activist investors, directors are considering whether to hire an investment bank to advise it on alternatives that could include a sale to a private-equity firm, according to a leaker. The stock went up 2.17 on the news. If you would like to learn more about KSS, click on this link:
club.ino.com/trend/analysis/stock/KSS?a_aid=CD3289&a_bid=6ae5b6f7
This is one dreary stock market. It is vastly oversold, but not until late day trading did buyers come out. All considered, this was an unimpressive rally. Earnings season begins tonight when Alcoa (AA) reports. That's a commodity company & earnings are not expected to be good. Next comes the big banks. They report a lot of numbers, but on balance they probably will be unfavorable. Meanwhile an end to the slide in oil prices looks to be nowhere in sight, the Chinese market is a mess & earnings reports can not be counted on to reverse the stock market slide. Dow is down more than 1K in Jan.
Dow Jones Industrials
AMJ (Alerian MLP Index tracking fund)
| CLG16.NYM | ....Crude Oil Feb 16 | ....31.24 |  ...1.92 | (5.8%) |
Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta pres Dennis Lockhart said he favors continued tightening of monetary policy this year, & a global selloff in stock markets is unlikely to affect the US economy. “When such volatility develops, I think it’s helpful to look at the real economy of the United States as opposed to the financial economy and ask if something is fundamentally wrong,” Lockhart said. “Are there serious imbalances that make the broad economy vulnerable to foreign shocks? I don’t see that kind of connection in current circumstances. ” He said the persistence of turmoil such as what occurred starting in Aug might change that view. “If the volatility continues for several weeks, I may have to revise my view that I don’t now see a connection between financial markets abroad and the real economy,” Lockhart said. “It is a matter of how long it lasts.” His “bias” was for no policy change in Janu, adding there may be relatively little new information about inflation by the Mar meeting to influence a policy choice. “March is a live meeting,” he added. “How much will we know about inflation trends or developments going into the mid-March meeting? We will have some new data but not a great deal more.” Lockhart said he continues to see economic growth of 2-2.5% or more, pushing down the unemployment rate & helping raise inflation back toward the central bank’s 2% target. “Recent economic data have been mixed, the fourth quarter may be disappointing, but in the same breath I would say mixed data do not undermine my basic forecast,” he said. “The hiring trend in our economy has been quite encouraging.” He added the exact path of rates would depend on the economic data, & inflation would be a “key factor.” “I’d like to be more definitive in predicting future rates, but the degree of uncertainty -- particularly as regards global influences on our economy -- affirms the wisdom, in my opinion, of letting the economic data do the talking,” Lockhart said.
Fed's Lockhart Says Global Markets Drop Won't Hurt U.S. Outlook
A brutal new year selloff in oil markets deepened today, with prices plunging up to 7% to new 12-year lows as further ructions in the Chinese stock market threatened to knock crude as low as $20 a barrel. China's blue-chip stocks fell another 5% today & overnight interest rates for the yuan outside of China soared to nearly 40%, their highest since the launch of the offshore market. Drillers in the US are focused on keeping their wells running as long as possible, despite the slump. Brent crude fell $2.15 to $31.40 (midday), their lowest since Apr 2004 & it has fallen more than 15% in 6 straight days of losses, the worst such slump in a year ago. West Texas Intermediate dropped $2.05 a barrel to $31.11, the lowest since Dec 2003. The fierce selling triggered a renewed scramble to buy options betting on a further slide, sending the CBOE volatility index, option premiums based on moves in the US oil exchange traded fund, nearly 12% higher to more than 60, close to its highest level since the 2009 financial crisis. The EU said on that the lifting of sanctions on Iran could come soon, following a deal last year to curb the nation's nuclear program. Many market participants say that Iran's return to the oil markets would add more pressure to the global glut that has knocked prices from more than $100 in mid-2014.
Oil Plummets to New 12-Year Low
Department stores have been under siege for decades, but lately their fortunes have hit a new low that could spark a wave of deal making that could sweep up companies such as Kohl's. Shoppers are flocking to newer types of stores that sell similar brands at deep discounts & buying more online, leaving behind cavernous stores that are difficult to fill productively. KSS, a national department-store chain with roughly 1200 stores, is debating whether to pursue more drastic action, such as taking itself private or breaking up the company. Once among the fastest-growing retailers, it has stumbled in recent years. Despite improvements that include recent sales gains at existing stores, its shares are down 40% from their high last year. Concerned that its depressed share price could make it a target for activist investors, directors are considering whether to hire an investment bank to advise it on alternatives that could include a sale to a private-equity firm, according to a leaker. The stock went up 2.17 on the news. If you would like to learn more about KSS, click on this link:
club.ino.com/trend/analysis/stock/KSS?a_aid=CD3289&a_bid=6ae5b6f7
Kohl's Weighs Next Steps As Woes Mount
Kohl's (KSS)
This is one dreary stock market. It is vastly oversold, but not until late day trading did buyers come out. All considered, this was an unimpressive rally. Earnings season begins tonight when Alcoa (AA) reports. That's a commodity company & earnings are not expected to be good. Next comes the big banks. They report a lot of numbers, but on balance they probably will be unfavorable. Meanwhile an end to the slide in oil prices looks to be nowhere in sight, the Chinese market is a mess & earnings reports can not be counted on to reverse the stock market slide. Dow is down more than 1K in Jan.
Dow Jones Industrials
No comments:
Post a Comment