Dow retreated 60, decliners over advancers about 2-1 & NAZ gained 72. The MLP index slid 1 to the 185s & the REIT index was flattish near 483. Junk bond funds hardly budged in price & Treasuries continued in demand. Oil climbed to about 79 & gold was off 9 to 1861 on profit taking (more on both below).
AMJ (Alerian MLP Index tracking fund)
![Live 24 hours gold chart [Kitco Inc.]](https://www.kitco.com/images/live/gold.gif?0.2180338269244485)
Many Americans are suffering from sticker shock after seeing prices rise in recent months. A new survey from Country Financial finds that 88% of Americans are highly concerned about inflation. That's as consumer prices soared to a more than 30-year record high in Oct, as measured by a 6.2% year-over-year change to the Consumer Price Index, a gov measurement of how prices change over time. However, retail spending also rose faster than expected in Oct. The poll by Country Financial, conducted Oct 22-25, found that many Americans do plan to cut back their spending. Of the 1031 adults ages 18 & up surveyed, 48% said they plan to reduce their spending on restaurant meals & takeout. Moreover, 30% said they plan to skip upgrading their personal technology devices, 29% said they will purchase less clothing, 20% are delaying or canceling travel plans & 13% plan to drive less. The uptick in consumer spending that has happened thus far can be attributed in part to pent-up demand due to a combination a record level of cash some Americans were able to sock away while certain restrictions limited discretionary spending. Often, the amount people spend also tends to go up with inflation by default as prices rise, said Scott Jensen, manager of the financial planning support department at Country Financial. There are concerns that holiday shoppers will go into debt. A recent survey from CreditCards.com found that most people plan to spend either the same or less this holiday season compared to last year. However, with credit card purchases rising, there are risks that holiday shoppers could go into debt or add to existing balances. Another recent survey from DebtHammer.org found that while more than 78% of Americans plan to set aside money for their holiday purchases, 58% said they plan to take out payday or other short-term loans & 66% plan to use buy now, pay later plans.
88% of Americans are worried about inflation. Where they’re planning to cut back
Pres Biden said the US has bought 10M courses of Pfizer's (PFE)
Covid treatment pill, an oral antiviral medication that was highly
effective in preventing hospitalization among high-risk adults in a
clinical trial. The pill, Paxlovid, could fundamentally change the
fight against the virus, providing physicians with a drug that patients
can at take home after infection. A highly effective at-home treatment
could help reduce the stress that hospitals have faced throughout the
pandemic, particularly during the recent wave of delta infections. “My
administration is making the necessary preparations now to ensure these
treatments will be easily accessible and free,” Biden said. “This is positive news. This treatment could prove to be
another critical tool in our arsenal that will accelerate our path out
of the pandemic.” Biden said delivery of the pills will start at the end of this year & continue thru 2022. PFE
on Tues submitted its application for the Food & Drug
Administration to grant emergency authorization for the pill. Paxlovid
is taken in combination with a widely used HIV drug, ritonavir. In
a clinical trial of adults age 18 & over who were more susceptible to
contracting severe Covid, Paxlovid demonstrated 89% efficacy in
preventing hospitalization & death when taken within 3 days of
symptom onset, according to PFE. Paxlovid is taken in combination
with a widely used HIV drug, ritonavir. The stock rose 55¢.
If you would like to learn more about PFE, click on this link:
club.ino.com/trend/analysis/stock/PFE?a_aid=CD3289&a_bid=6ae5b6f7
Biden administration buys 10 million courses of Pfizer Covid treatment pill
The Biden administration has asked some of the world’s largest oil-consuming nations to consider releasing some of their crude reserves in a coordinated effort to lower prices & stimulate the economic recovery, according to several people familiar with the matter. Global oil prices touched 7-year highs in late Oct, with populations returning to the roads & rails while supply has not kept pace with demand. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries & allied producers including Russia have resisted calls from Pres Biden to speed up the rate of their supply increases. In recent weeks, Biden & top aides have raised the issue with close allies including Japan, as well as with China.
US asks big countries to coordinate releases from oil reserves: sources
Gold futures took a breather, with prices settling with a loss a day after the most-active contract marked its highest settlement Jun. Dec gold fell $8 (0.5%) to settle at $1861 an ounce, following a 0.9% gain yesterday, which took the precious metal to the highest finish since mid Jun. The pullback in the precious metals came even as typical headwinds for bullion, a rising $ & higher yields for gov debt, were receding. A weaker $ can lift the appeal of owning $-priced assets for foreign buyers & lower yields reduce the opportunity costs of buying gold over Treasuries, which are considered risk free. Worries about surging inflation, caused primarily by supply-chain bottlenecks & a rapid increase in demand in the recovery phase of the COVID-19 pandemic, has helped to bolster bullion values in recent weeks. But it is unclear how much further the precious metal can climb as lower-bound bond yields compel investors to dial up risk taking, drawing some appetite away from precious metals. Gold prices pared some of their losses, only briefly, immediately following data showing that new filings for jobless benefit slipped by 1K to 268K last week. Separately, the Philadelphia Fed said today its gauge of regional manufacturing activity rose to 39 in Nov from 28.3 in the previous month.
Gold ends lower, a day after posting the highest settlement since June
Oil finished higher, with prices rebounding after dropping
to their lowest levels in about 6 weeks on reports that China plans a
release of crude from its reserve & the Biden administration has been
pressing other countries to join in. The Biden administration asked China, India & Japan to release
reserves as part of a coordinated effort to push down prices. News reports yesterday said that the issue of releasing reserves
came up earlier this week in a virtual meeting between Pres
Biden & Chinese leader Xi Jinping. A report today said that
China had taken steps to begin releasing some crude from its reserves. After spending part of the trading lower, however, oil prices moved up to end the session higher. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude for Dec rose 65¢
(0.8%) to settle $79.01 a barrel
after touching an intraday low of $77.08. The Dec contract expires
at the end of tomorrow's trading session. Jan Brent crude, the global benchmark, tacked on 96¢ (1.2%) at $81.24 a barrel. The WTI & Brent crude contracts ended yesterday's session at their lowest settlements since early Oct. The market has already see some pretty sizable releases from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve in the last 2 weeks. For last week, the Energy Information Administration showed oil
stocks in the SPR at 606M barrels, down 3.3M from a week
earlier.
The inflation story is the main factor in the minds of investors. Macro economic data has been coming in positive although big gains from 12 months prior are no longer likely. The massive gov spending bill is still stuck in the mud & looks like it is going nowhere. Congress still has to deal with funding gov spending for the rest of the fiscal year & then raising the debt ceiling.
Dow Jones Industrials
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