Dow went up 417 to session highs, advancers over decliners better than 3-1 & NAZ gained 178. The MLP index went up 2+ to the 198s & the REIT index rose 6+ to the 468s. Junk bond funds continued in demand & Treasuries were bid a tad higher. Oil rebounded 8+ to the 103s & gold shot up 32 to 1941 (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)
Average long-term US mortgage rates rose this week as the key 30-year loan vaulted over 4% for the first time since May 2019. The increase came amid expectations that with inflation at a 4-decade high, the Federal Reserve would raise its benchmark short-term interest rate at its policy meeting this week to cool the economy. That action came yesterday, as the Fed increased the key rate — which it had kept near zero since the pandemic recession struck two years ago — by a qtr point. And the central bank signaled potentially up to 7 additional rate hikes this year. The increases mean that mortgage rates likely will continue to rise over the year. Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac reported that the average rate on the 30-year loan this week jumped to 4.16% from 3.85% last week. That's a sharp contrast from last year's record-low mortgage rates of under 3%. A year ago, the 30-year rate stood at 3.09%.
Average U.S. mortgage rates rise; 30-year loan breaches 4%
Russia's war in Ukraine will disrupt commerce & clog up supply chains, slashing economic growth & pushing prices sharply higher around the globe, the Organization for Economic Cooperation & Development (OECD) warned. In a grim new assessment, the 38-country OECD said that over the next year, the conflict would reduce GDP — the broadest measure of economic output — by 1.08% worldwide, by 1.4% in the 19 European countries that share the euro currency & by 0.88% in the US. But gov spending & tax cuts could partially limit the damage. The Russian invasion came at a time when prices were already surging & supply chains were snarled, fallout from an unexpectedly strong recovery from the coronavirus recession. The OECD, which in Dec forecast global inflation of 4.2% this year, predicted that the conflict would drive up prices by 2.47 percentage points worldwide over the next year. “Just as the world economy appeared to be emerging from two years of the COVID-19 crisis, a brutal and devastating war has broken out in Europe,'' said Laurence Boone, the organization's chief economist. “We do not yet know how this will fully play out, but we do know this will hurt the global recovery and push inflation even higher.'' Russia & Ukraine account for less than 2% of global GDP but are heavyweight producers of specific commodities. Together, for instance, they export a 3rd of the world’s wheat, raising concerns that countries like Egypt & Lebanon that rely on those affordable wheat exports for bread & other food staples could face shortages in the months ahead. Russia supplies 27% of the EU's crude oil imports & 41% of its natural gas imports. Energy prices have surged since Jan. “The impact on energy markets and prices is particularly acute," said Mathias Cormann, OECD secretary general. . ‘‘The global economy is now experiencing a massive energy price shock."
War in Ukraine will take global economic toll, group warns
Merck’s
(MRK), a Dow stock, antibody therapy for early stage lung cancer patients who have
previously undergone surgery to have tumors removed reduced the risk of
the disease returning again or the patient dying by 24%, according to
clinical trial data released today. Keytruda is a monoclonal
antibody treatment that helps activate the body's immune system to fight
off non-small cell lung cancer, the most common form of the disease.
The 200-milligram shots are administered once every 3 weeks for a
total of 18 injections over the course of a year. MRK's
head of global clinical development, Dr Roy Baynes, described the
reduced risk of the cancer returning as significant & clinically
meaningful. Baynes also expects Keytruda to improve patients' overall
survival rate, though he said the data is not mature enough yet to draw a
definitive conclusion in that regard. “When you treat a tumor
early, it takes quite a long time for bad outcomes to translate into
death,” Baynes added. “So the trial is too immature at this point to
comment on overall survival, although we would say that the overall
survival is directionally favorable at this time.” MRK plans to submit the data to the Food & Drug Administration as
quickly as possible & the approval
process can take 8-12 months. Keytruda was
first approved by the FDA in 2014 to treat melanoma & has become a
blockbuster drug for MRK that is now used to treat numerous other
types of cancer. The stock rose 82¢.
If you would like to learn more about MRK click on this link:
club.ino.com/trend/analysis/stock/MRK_aid=CD3289&a_bid=6ae5b6f
Merck’s Keytruda reduced risk of recurrence or death by 24% in early lung cancer patients
Gold futures ended 2% higher to post their first gain in 5 sessions, buoyed by a drop in the $. Investors deemed the first Federal Reserve interest-rate hike since 2018 as not much of a headwind to bullion in the near term, given high inflation in the EU & US & the desire for a safe haven due to the war in Ukraine. Apr gold rose $34 (1.8%) to settle at $1943 an ounce, after the contract yesterday posted a 4th consecutive decline, down 1.1%, marking the lowest most-active finish since Feb 28. Yesterday, the Fed said it would raise fed fund futures rates by a qt r percentage point to 0.25-0.5% & it also laid out plans for ongoing increases in the Fed policy rate. Some commodity strategists expect the Fed interest rate hikes to actually be bullish for gold, given that some previous rate-hike cycles supported prices for the precious metal. The rally for precious metal today came as the $ was slumping, down 0.8%, as measured by the ICE US Dollar Index. A weaker $ can make $-pegged commodities more appealing to overseas buyers.
Gold settles nearly 2% higher to end a 4-session streak of declines
Oil prices settled back above the $100 mark, marking a partial rebound from a 3-session decline, amid escalating violence in Ukraine & growing expectations for a significant loss of crude supplies from Russia. West Texas Intermediate crude for Apr climbed $7.94 (8.4%) to settle at $102.98 a barrel. The contract fell nearly 1.5%, to settle at $95.04 a barrel yesterday, the lowest front-month contract settlement since Feb 25. May Brent crude, the global benchmark, jumped $8.62 (8.8%) to $106.64 a barrel after falling 1.9% to $98.02 a barrel yesterday. The rebound for oil comes after both WTI & Brent today closed 22% below nearly 14-year highs set on Mar 8, meeting the technical definition of a bear market. Commodity markets have been volatile following Russia's Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine. Hopes for a negotiated peace were pushed back today, amid reports that Russia denied significant progress had been made in talks with Ukraine officials. Yesterday, the EIA reported that US crude inventories rose by 4.3M barrels for last week.
Oil futures settle back above $100 a barrel after 3-session drop
Dow Jones Industrials
No comments:
Post a Comment