Dow went up 337, advancers over decliners 5-2 & NAZ rose 96. The MLP index added 3+ to the 216s & the REIT index was up 3+ to 356. Junk bond funds remained in demand & Treasuries were essentially even. Oil declined 2+ to the 82s & gold retreated 9 to 1654 (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)
Microsoft (MSFT), a Dow stock, has laid off more employees as the tech giant expects its revenue growth to slow down due to weakness in PC market demand. "Like all companies, we evaluate our business priorities on a regular
basis, and make structural adjustments accordingly," a spokesperson said. "We will continue to invest in our
business and hire in key growth areas in the year ahead." Cuts affected fewer
than 1000 employees across multiple divisions, staff levels & regions
of the world. The move comes after the company let go of a "small number" of employees
in Jul as part of a "strategic alignment." As of Jun 30, MSFT
had a total global workforce of 221K employees, including 122K in
the US & 99K internationally. CFO Amy Hood warned on the company's Q4
earnings call in Jul that it would "slow the rate of hiring to focus
on key growth areas." "Continued weakness in the PC market demand
and advertising spend will impact Windows OEM, Surface, LinkedIn, and
search and news advertising revenue," Hood added at the time. Meanwhile, tech companies that have paused or slowed hiring. The stock rose 97¢.
If you would like to learn more about MSFT, click on this link:
club.ino.com/trend/analysis/stock/MSTT?a_aid=CD3289&a_bid=6ae5b6f7
Tech giant lays off more employees as demand in PC market weakens
As winter inches closer, Dr Fauci is sounding the alarm about a pair of “pretty troublesome” Covid variants. The 2 descendants of omicron’s BA.5 subvariant, called BQ.1 & BQ.1.1, both have dangerous “qualities or characteristics that could evade some of the interventions we have,” Fauci said. The 2 sublineages are responsible for more than 10% of all current US cases, according to the latest Centers for Disease Control & Prevention data — just one week after they weren't even significant enough to list. There’s no guarantee that the 2 strains will eventually overtake BA.5 as the dominant variant in the country. But if they do spread rapidly, they could threaten to reverse a nationwide decline in Covid cases, hospitalizations and deaths, leading Fauci to urge Americans against letting their guard down. “As much as you want to feel good about the fact that cases are down, hospitalizations are down, we don’t want to declare victory too prematurely,” Fauci added. “And that’s the reason why we’ve got to keep our eye out on these emerging variants.” BA.5 still makes up nearly 68% of all current US cases. The new strains are responsible for almost 20% of cases in a region that includes the New York City metropolitan area, which many experts consider the area a bellwether for Covid waves — due to its dense population & high volume of incoming intl travelers. Fauci said the strains have a concerning “doubling time,” referring to how quickly they spread. The UK Health Security Agency reported earlier this month that the strains even demonstrate a growth advantage over BA.5, which was considered the most contagious Covid strain to date. BQ.1.1 is also particularly adept at dodging the protective antibodies you get from prior infection or vaccination, Fauci noted.
Dr. Fauci: These 2 new fast-spreading omicron Covid subvariants are ‘pretty troublesome’
The release of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve would be the latest portion of a 180M-barrel program that started earlier this year. The administration is also expected to provide details this week regarding its plans to restock the emergency oil stockpile. The Energy Dept announced in the spring it was planning a new method of buybacks to permit a "competitive, fixed-price" bid process that would potentially lock prices in prior to crude being delivered. Temporary limits on exports of fuel so more gasoline & diesel will remain in the US is also being considered by the administration. No timeline has been set for a decision on that step, but it will likely not happen before next month's midterm elections. According to data first compiled in 1982, the US has the lowest seasonal inventories of diesel. The suggestion to limit exports has led to disagreements within the administration. Biden energy adviser Amos Hochstein supports new export controls while Deputy Energy Secretary David Turk has outlined concerns. Energy Dept & White House officials have been quietly meeting this week with oil companies to inform them of what they can expect & to urge them to encourage the production of gasoline & diesel. Oil industry representatives & 3rd-party energy analysts have said limiting fuel exports could result in higher prices in some areas of the country, particularly in the Northeast, which relies on imports.
Biden admin reportedly to release millions of barrels from oil reserve
Gold prices finished lower with precious metals prices anchored near their Sep lows despite relative softness in the $ over the past 2 weeks. Gold futures for Dec fell $8 (0.5%) to settle at $1655 per ounce, with prices losing more than ½ of the 0.9% gain they saw a day earlier. The path of least resistance for gold points south with Federal Reserve rate hike expectations & rising Treasury yields capping upside gains. Precious metals strategists pointed out that gold hasn't derived much benefit from a softer $ in recent weeks as traders have shifted their focus to the outlook for interest rates. As a result, gold has weakened many currencies, including the €. But with both the Fed & the ECB hinting at more aggressive interest rate hikes, they expect pressure will continue to mount on gold. The ICE US Dollar Index, a gauge of the greenback's strength against a basket of rivals, was little changed at 112.045, but it had climbed as high as 112.455, putting pressure on $-denominated precious metals prices.
Gold ends lower as traders anticipate more central-bank interest rate hikes
Oil futures settled lower, with US prices down nearly 3%. The White House said Pres Biden will speak about gasoline prices tomorrow. That follows news reports that the administration is moving toward a release of at least another 10-15M barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve - the latest in a 180M-barrel release program that began in the spring. US benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude for Nov fell $2.64 (3.1%) to settle at $82.82 a barrel, the lowest finish for the contract since Sep 30.
Oil futures settle sharply lower on reports that the U.S. may release more oil from the SPR
Early enthusiasm today did not last. MSFT layoffs were not encouraging & yesterday's announcement of lower confidence index for homebuilders are suggesting the recession may have begun. Homebuilding & tech are 2 major sectors in the economy. And the inverted yield curve (short term Treasury yields are higher than long term yields) suggesting a serious recession may be coming. The Altanta Fed: GDPNow model estimate for real GDP growth
(seasonally adjusted annual rate) in the 3rd qtr of 2022 is 2.9 percent on Oct 7, up from 2.7% on Oct 5. The first estimate should be reported next week.
Dow Jones Industrials
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