Dow sank 436, decliners over advancers 5-2 & NAZ pulled back 240. The MLP index fell 3 to the 209s & the REIT index dropped 12+ to the 472s. Junk bond funds hardly budged & Treasuries were hit with a little bit of selling. Oil rose 2+ to the 107s & gold advanced 21 to 1912.
AMJ (Alerian MLP index tracking fund)
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A key measure of annual inflation that is closely watched by the Federal Reserve continued to run hot in Mar as the Russian war in Ukraine, widespread supply disruptions, extraordinarily high consumer demand & worker shortages fuel rapidly rising prices. The personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index, which measures costs that consumers pay for a variety of different items, showed that core prices – which exclude the more volatile measurements of food & energy – soared 5.2% in the year thru Mar, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis. That measurement is the Fed's preferred gauge to track inflation; it marks the 12th consecutive month the measure has been above the central bank's target range of 2%. However, it was slightly below the Feb measurement of 5.3%, which was the highest recorded since 1983. In the one-month period between Feb & Mar, core prices soared 0.3% – matching the level recorded in Feb suggesting prices are leveling off, but are not yet falling. Including food & energy, the inflation gauge jumped 6.6% in Mar from the previous year, beating out last month's measurement of 6.3% to become the fastest pace since 1981. On a monthly basis, the headline gain shot up by 0.9%. The inflation spike largely reflected surging energy costs, which rose 33.9% from a year ago & food costs, which were up 9.2% over that same time period. The PCE report was accompanied by data on household spending, which showed that consumers shopped at a rapid pace in Mar, with personal spending climbing by 1.1% before accounting for inflation & 0.2% after adjusting for price increases.
The Fed's favorite inflation gauge rose 5.2% in March
Shares of Exxon Mobil (XOM), a Dow stock & Dividend Aristocrat, slid on after the company took a $3.4B after-tax charge related to its Sakhalin-1 operation in Russia. Earnings were $5.5B during Q1, up from $2.7B in
the same period during 2021. However, results were down from the $8.9B earned during the Q4-2021. Revenue
came in at $90.5 B during the latest period. The forecast called for the company to generate $92.7B in
revenue. During the same qtr in 2021, revenue was $59.1B. “Earnings increased modestly, as strong margin
improvement and underlying growth was offset by weather and timing
impacts,” CEO Darren Woods said. “The absence of these
temporary impacts in March provides strong, positive momentum for the
second quarter.” Results come amid a surge in oil & gas
prices. Prices have seen retreated, but remain above
$100 per barrel, boosting the companies' operations. “First-quarter cash increased by $4.3 billion compared to the fourth
quarter of 2021, as strong cash flow from operations more than funded
capital investment, additional debt reduction, and shareholder
distributions in the quarter. Free cash flow in the quarter was
approximately $11 billion,” the company said. The stock fell 58¢.
If you would like to learn more about XOM click on this link:
club.ino.com/trend/analysis/stock/XOM_aid=CD3289&a_bid=6ae5b6f
Exxon Mobil’s first-quarter profit rises, even after $3.4 billion Russia charge
Chevron (CVX), a Dow stock & Dividend Aristocrat, profit more than quadrupled during Q1 as higher oil & gas prices boosted company results. The oil giant reported $6.3B in earnings during the period up from $1.3B during the same qtr in 2021 & revenue rose to $54.4B, up from $32B during Q1-2021. “Chevron is doing its part to grow domestic supply with U.S. oil and gas
production up 10 percent over first quarter last year,” CEO Michael
Wirth said. The stock dropped 3.08.
If you would like to learn more about CVX click on this link:
club.ino.com/trend/analysis/stock/CVX_aid=CD3289&a_bid=6ae5b6f
Chevron’s profit quadruples in the first quarter as higher oil boosts operations
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