Dow crawled up 4, advancers over decliners about 2-1 & NAZ fell 24 following recent strength. The MLP index was off a fraction to the 252s & the REIT index gained 2 to the 377s. Junk bond funds inched higher & Treasuries rose in price, bringing the yield on the 10 year Treasury down to 2.5%. Oil sank 2 to the 63s on profit taking & gold added 8 to 1288.
AMJ (Alerian MLP Index tracking fund)
Stocks open lower on poor earnings despite good US GDP data
The US economy is off to its best start to a year since 2015 & White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow believes it means the Federal Reserve should cut interest rates. GDP grew by 3.2% in Q1, which Kudlow called “a blow out number.” He added the current economy is in a “prosperity cycle” that “is gaining momentum, not losing momentum” “The inflation rate continues to slip lower and lower,” Kudlow said. “Even according to the Fed’s own spokespeople, from the chairman on down, that could open the door to a target rate reduction,” Kudlow said. Kudlow is the director of Pres Trump's National Economic Council. He added the argument for cutting interest rates was coming by the Fed's own metrics. “We are clicking on all cylinders, the inflation rate is coming down, the Federal Reserve will be looking at that,” Kudlow conitnued. Kudlow has trumpeted this view ever since Fed chairman Jerome Powell said at the central bank's Mar meeting that no rate cuts would be necessary this year. Both Kudlow & Trump have been outspoken that they think the Fed should stop shrinking its balance sheet & cut rates.
White House economic advisor Larry Kudlow says Fed should still cut rates despite 3.2% GDP growth
Exxon Mobil (XOM), a Dow stock & Dividend Aristocrat, reported that Q1 profits fell nearly 50% from a year ago, hit by poor results in its refining & chemicals segments. Shares of the oil giant declined. XOM reported a quarterly loss in its downstream business, which focuses on refining oil into fuels like gasoline & diesel. The company said brimming stockpiles of gasoline led to weak fuel margins during the qtr. It also continued a heavy slate of refinery maintenance. That maintenance has weighed on downstream profits in recent qtrs & the company warned that it will continue in Q2. Profits in the chemicals business also tumbled $219B from a year ago. While XOM sold more chemicals, profit margins came under pressure because the industry has recently added capacity. The oil major's output of crude, natural gas & other fossil fuels reached 4M barrels of oil equivalent, up 2% from last year. Still, income in the upstream exploration & production unit fell $621M from last year. While crude oil prices strengthened, they still remained relatively weak, XOM said. “Solid operating performance in the first quarter helped mitigate the impact of challenging Downstream and Chemical margin environments,” CEO Darren Woods said. EPS came in at 55¢ compared with the 70¢ forecast. Revenues were $63.63B, down 6.7% from a year ago & short of estimates for $64.82B. Capital & exploration expenses increased from $4.87B a year ago to $6.89B this qtr. The results showed XOM continuing to increase its oil & natural gas production after the energy giant broke a streak of declining output last qtr. Production figures were in line with expectations. On Wed, the quarterly div was raised 5¢ to 87¢. The stock dropped 2.02.
If you would like to learn more about XOM, click on this link:
club.ino.com/trend/analysis/stock/XOM?a_aid=CDX3289&a_bid=6ae5b6f7
Exxon Mobil’s quarterly profits tumble on poor refining and chemicals r…
Will wonders never cease? The GDP growth rate was unexpectedly strong, However, 2 revisions are coming In May & Jun. Enthusiasm from investors was tempered by mixed earnings reports. And safe haven gold & Treasuries were bid higher. Some of the biggest companies have been reporting dreary numbers & more of that should be expected. But the popular stock averages continue to be optimistic on the future.
Dow Jones Industrials
AMJ (Alerian MLP Index tracking fund)
| CL=F | Crude Oil | 63.94 | -1.27 | -2.0% |
| GC=F | Gold | 1,287.90 | +8.20 | +0.6% |
Stocks opened slightly lower after poor
earnings reports offset data showing US economic
growth was faster than expected. Nevertheless,
the S&P 500 is up 16% YTD after the Federal
Reserve earlier decided to hold off on further interest rate rises this
year. Q1 GDP grew 3.2% , the Commerce Dept said, beating estimates
for 2.5% growth, compared to a 2.2% increase in Q4. Q1 GDP growth was the fastest in 6 years. Shares were lower in Asia overnight after data showed a fall in Japanese industrial production. Treasury yields fell though after strong Q1 GDP data was offset by weak inflation data. The 10-year
Treasury note yield slipped to 2.52%. The headline inflation
rate fell to a 1.4% annually in Q1, from 1.9% in the previous period. The Federal
Reserve is not expected to change its policy of refraining from further
interest rate rises this year despite the strong GDP data. The central bank meets again next week to discuss the outlook. Oil
prices slipped after rising to 6 month highs earlier in
the wake of Pres Trump's decision to restrict Iranian oil exports
further.
Stocks open lower on poor earnings despite good US GDP data
The US economy grew more quickly than expected during Q1, according to data from the Commerce
Dept. During the 3-month period from
Jan-Mar, the GDP rose at a 3.2% annualized rate, beating
most expectations of 2.5%. It also bested GDPNow, a real-time tracker
monitored by the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, which lowered its
forecast to 2.7% this week because of weakness in existing-home
sales & a drop in residential investment growth. The economy largely shook off the effects of a 5-week long gov shutdown, the longest in US history, that White House officials once warned could result in near-zero growth. The standoff was a result
of a feud between Pres Trump & Dem congressional leaders
over funding for a wall along the US.-Mexico border. Disposable income rose $116B (3%) in the first qtr & 0verall prices 0.8%. Investors
were closely watching the report's release for signs to dismiss fears
of an impending economic recession. Stocks rose on the
better-than-expected results in pre-market trading.
US economic growth rebounds at 3.2 percent pace in first quarter
The US economy is off to its best start to a year since 2015 & White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow believes it means the Federal Reserve should cut interest rates. GDP grew by 3.2% in Q1, which Kudlow called “a blow out number.” He added the current economy is in a “prosperity cycle” that “is gaining momentum, not losing momentum” “The inflation rate continues to slip lower and lower,” Kudlow said. “Even according to the Fed’s own spokespeople, from the chairman on down, that could open the door to a target rate reduction,” Kudlow said. Kudlow is the director of Pres Trump's National Economic Council. He added the argument for cutting interest rates was coming by the Fed's own metrics. “We are clicking on all cylinders, the inflation rate is coming down, the Federal Reserve will be looking at that,” Kudlow conitnued. Kudlow has trumpeted this view ever since Fed chairman Jerome Powell said at the central bank's Mar meeting that no rate cuts would be necessary this year. Both Kudlow & Trump have been outspoken that they think the Fed should stop shrinking its balance sheet & cut rates.
White House economic advisor Larry Kudlow says Fed should still cut rates despite 3.2% GDP growth
Exxon Mobil (XOM), a Dow stock & Dividend Aristocrat, reported that Q1 profits fell nearly 50% from a year ago, hit by poor results in its refining & chemicals segments. Shares of the oil giant declined. XOM reported a quarterly loss in its downstream business, which focuses on refining oil into fuels like gasoline & diesel. The company said brimming stockpiles of gasoline led to weak fuel margins during the qtr. It also continued a heavy slate of refinery maintenance. That maintenance has weighed on downstream profits in recent qtrs & the company warned that it will continue in Q2. Profits in the chemicals business also tumbled $219B from a year ago. While XOM sold more chemicals, profit margins came under pressure because the industry has recently added capacity. The oil major's output of crude, natural gas & other fossil fuels reached 4M barrels of oil equivalent, up 2% from last year. Still, income in the upstream exploration & production unit fell $621M from last year. While crude oil prices strengthened, they still remained relatively weak, XOM said. “Solid operating performance in the first quarter helped mitigate the impact of challenging Downstream and Chemical margin environments,” CEO Darren Woods said. EPS came in at 55¢ compared with the 70¢ forecast. Revenues were $63.63B, down 6.7% from a year ago & short of estimates for $64.82B. Capital & exploration expenses increased from $4.87B a year ago to $6.89B this qtr. The results showed XOM continuing to increase its oil & natural gas production after the energy giant broke a streak of declining output last qtr. Production figures were in line with expectations. On Wed, the quarterly div was raised 5¢ to 87¢. The stock dropped 2.02.
If you would like to learn more about XOM, click on this link:
club.ino.com/trend/analysis/stock/XOM?a_aid=CDX3289&a_bid=6ae5b6f7
Exxon Mobil’s quarterly profits tumble on poor refining and chemicals r…
Will wonders never cease? The GDP growth rate was unexpectedly strong, However, 2 revisions are coming In May & Jun. Enthusiasm from investors was tempered by mixed earnings reports. And safe haven gold & Treasuries were bid higher. Some of the biggest companies have been reporting dreary numbers & more of that should be expected. But the popular stock averages continue to be optimistic on the future.
Dow Jones Industrials
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