Dow fell 97, decliners over advancers about 5-4 & NAZ was off 41. The MLP index crawled higher in the 279s & the REIT index fell 2+ to the 341s. Junk bond funds fluctuated & Treasuries were lower, bringing higher yields. Oil inched higher in the 74s & gold added 4 to 1206.
AMJ (Alerian MLP Index tracking fund)
Stocks mixed following employment data
Amid an ongoing tariff battle with its global partners, the US saw its trade deficit continue to widen as soybean exports plunged by $1B in Aug. The imbalance increased $3.2B in Aug to $53.2B, a 6.4% increase & part of an ongoing trend in 2018, according to the figures released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics & the US Census. For the calendar year, the trade deficit is up $31B or 8.6% from a year ago. The increase continues the White House's unsuccessful efforts to narrow the balance between imports & exports, a major priority for Pres Trump. The US has slapped China with $200B worth of tariffs on multiple goods, which has triggered retaliation. The US has a $261.1B deficit with China YTD, $38.6B of which came in Aug. In addition, the US has instituted steel & aluminum tariffs across the board and is in negotiations with the EU, India & other major trading partners. One particular contributor to the Aug imbalance was soybeans, a hotly contested point of the trade war. Soybean exports fell $1B for the month. Overall, industrial supplies & materials exports fell $2.4B, food, feeds & beverages declined $1.2B, while consumer goods rose $1.6B. On the import side, auto vehicles, parts & engines rose $1B while consumer goods increased $900M. The Aug rise came amid an increase in the goods deficit of $3.6B & the services surplus of $400M. For the year, exports have increased $129.6B while imports are up $160.6B, both reflecting 8.4% gains.
US trade deficit widens to $53 billion as soybean exports plummet amid China trade battle
A combination of lower corp taxes & slashing of regulations by the Trump administration has manufacturers on pace for their most optimistic year on record, according to the latest National Association of Manufacturers survey. More than 92% of manufacturers surveyed said they had a positive outlook for their businesses in Q3. At that rate, 2018 would be the most optimistic year for manufacturers in the survey's 20-year history. "Tax reform and regulatory relief have spurred strong manufacturing growth, and manufacturers are now investing in our communities, hiring more Americans and raising wages and benefits," Jay Timmons, CEO of the National Association of Manufacturers, said. "Amid all this good news, it is no surprise that manufacturers in 2018 are more optimistic than they have ever been in the history of our survey." Pres Trump signed a bill late last year that slashed the federal corp tax rate to 21% from 34%. His administration has also rolled back several regulations on businesses
Manufacturers on pace for most bullish year ever amid lower taxes and deregulation
The jobs report got a mediocre rating form the traders, good but not great. However this year's Sep & last year's were impacted by major hurricanes which probably muddled the numbers. Economic data along with measures of optimism about economic conditions continue to be strong. For the time being, the rise in interest rates is disturbing investors & selling continues as I write.
Dow Jones Industrials
AMJ (Alerian MLP Index tracking fund)
| CL=F | Crude Oil | 74.71 | +0.38 | +0.5% |
| GC=F | Gold | 1,208.50 | +6.90 | +0.6% |
Stocks drifted lower as traders
reacted to the latest jobs data, which provided another positive report
on the state of the US economy. US
employers added a lower-than-expected number of jobs in Sep, but
the unemployment rate fell to 3.7%, its lowest since
1969. The forecast was for the economy to add 185K jobs in
Sep with the unemployment rate ticking down to 3.8%. The lower number could have been a result of Hurricane
Florence, while the Labor Dept upwardly revised the Aug number. Commodities were mostly higher.
Stocks mixed following employment data
The US economy added 134K jobs in
Sep below expectations while the unemployment rate
fell to 3.7%, the lowest since 1969. The forecast was for the.economy to add 185K jobs in Sep with the unemployment rate
ticking down to 3.8%. In Aug, the unemployment rate was 3.9%. Wages increased 0.3% in Sep, taking the 12-month wage growth to 2.8%. The number of Americans active in the workforce was steady, with the labor participation rate coming in at 62.7%. Manufacturing,
construction & health care sectors added jobs in Sep, while
retail, leisure & hospitality lost jobs. With retail,
leisure & hospitality susceptible to bad weather, it is possible
Hurricane Florence is behind the lower-than-expected number. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note climbed following the jobs report, hovering around a 7-year high.
US unemployment rate hits lowest mark since 1969
Amid an ongoing tariff battle with its global partners, the US saw its trade deficit continue to widen as soybean exports plunged by $1B in Aug. The imbalance increased $3.2B in Aug to $53.2B, a 6.4% increase & part of an ongoing trend in 2018, according to the figures released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics & the US Census. For the calendar year, the trade deficit is up $31B or 8.6% from a year ago. The increase continues the White House's unsuccessful efforts to narrow the balance between imports & exports, a major priority for Pres Trump. The US has slapped China with $200B worth of tariffs on multiple goods, which has triggered retaliation. The US has a $261.1B deficit with China YTD, $38.6B of which came in Aug. In addition, the US has instituted steel & aluminum tariffs across the board and is in negotiations with the EU, India & other major trading partners. One particular contributor to the Aug imbalance was soybeans, a hotly contested point of the trade war. Soybean exports fell $1B for the month. Overall, industrial supplies & materials exports fell $2.4B, food, feeds & beverages declined $1.2B, while consumer goods rose $1.6B. On the import side, auto vehicles, parts & engines rose $1B while consumer goods increased $900M. The Aug rise came amid an increase in the goods deficit of $3.6B & the services surplus of $400M. For the year, exports have increased $129.6B while imports are up $160.6B, both reflecting 8.4% gains.
US trade deficit widens to $53 billion as soybean exports plummet amid China trade battle
A combination of lower corp taxes & slashing of regulations by the Trump administration has manufacturers on pace for their most optimistic year on record, according to the latest National Association of Manufacturers survey. More than 92% of manufacturers surveyed said they had a positive outlook for their businesses in Q3. At that rate, 2018 would be the most optimistic year for manufacturers in the survey's 20-year history. "Tax reform and regulatory relief have spurred strong manufacturing growth, and manufacturers are now investing in our communities, hiring more Americans and raising wages and benefits," Jay Timmons, CEO of the National Association of Manufacturers, said. "Amid all this good news, it is no surprise that manufacturers in 2018 are more optimistic than they have ever been in the history of our survey." Pres Trump signed a bill late last year that slashed the federal corp tax rate to 21% from 34%. His administration has also rolled back several regulations on businesses
Manufacturers on pace for most bullish year ever amid lower taxes and deregulation
The jobs report got a mediocre rating form the traders, good but not great. However this year's Sep & last year's were impacted by major hurricanes which probably muddled the numbers. Economic data along with measures of optimism about economic conditions continue to be strong. For the time being, the rise in interest rates is disturbing investors & selling continues as I write.
Dow Jones Industrials
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