Dow advanced 268 (near session highs), advancers over decliners 3-1 & NAZ went up 188. The MLP index added 2+ to the 226s & the REIT index soared 12+ to the 391s. Junk bond funds continued in demand & Treasuries rallied, reducing yields. Oil rose 2+ to the 77s & gold gained 5 to 1882 (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)
Global personal computer shipments are expected to rise starting late 2023, with a new cycle of system upgrades likely to accelerate growth next year, according to research firms IDC & Canalys. Inflation-hit & recession-wary customers have so far been delaying system upgrades, but these will be pushed into the latter part of the year and trigger PC market growth, the research firms said. "The commercial segment has several drivers towards growth, including the approaching end of support for Windows 10 & a building refresh cycle," IDC analysts added. The recovery will be bolstered by an education demand bump in major markets as devices deployed during the pandemic peak reach the end of their life cycle, according to Canalys analyst Ishan Dutt. "We expect delayed purchases to begin boosting the market in late 2023, with momentum picking up in 2024." The chip industry, too, is expected to rebound around the end of H1-2023 after a downturn, which was driven by a crash in electronics demand last year as red-hot inflation pushed consumers to be careful with spending. PC shipments fell 16.5% to 292M units in 2022. Q4 shipments declined 28.1%.
Global PC market seen to recover late 2023: reports
Pres Biden called on Reps & Dems in Congress to unite & pass legislation that places new guardrails on the tech industry, writing in an op-ed that the administration's current authority to rein in Big Tech isn't enough. “We need bipartisan action from Congress to hold Big Tech accountable,” Biden wrote. The op-ed is one of the most pointed calls yet from the pres for Congress to take action on topics including digital privacy, competition & online safety. The White House has previously voiced support for legislative efforts tackling these issues & installed progressive enforcers in key agencies. But as the last Congress drew to a close, the most ambitious tech proposals that had gained some momentum earlier in the year remained in limbo. Biden's call for bipartisanship on tech issues is notable since the split Congress will complicate the landscape for passing legislation in any domain. The decision to focus the op-ed on tech suggests it may be a rare area of hope for progress while working across the aisle. Biden focused on 3 key areas of tech legislation he hopes to see this Congress. First, he urged lawmakers to pass federal privacy protections that limit the collection of sensitive data & advocated for banning targeted advertising to children altogether. Next, he reiterated a more tempered version of a call he made on the campaign trail in 2020 to “fundamentally reform Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act,” the law that protects online platforms from being held liable for their users' posts while preserving their ability to moderate such content. He also called for more transparency around the algorithms tech companies use to determine what information users see to ensure they are not pushing unsafe content to kids or discriminating against groups of users. Finally, Biden called for “fairer rules of the road” when it comes to competition in the tech sector. “When tech platforms get big enough, many find ways to promote their own products while excluding or disadvantaging competitors — or charge competitors a fortune to sell on their platform,” he wrote. “My vision for our economy is one in which everyone — small and midsized businesses, mom-and-pop shops, entrepreneurs — can compete on a level playing field with the biggest companies.” Biden emphasized throughout the piece the particular need to protect children on the internet, referencing a line he made in his State of the Union speech last year, writing, “We must hold social-media companies accountable for the experiment they are running on our children for profit.” “There will be many policy issues we disagree on in the new Congress, but bipartisan proposals to protect our privacy and our children; to prevent discrimination, sexual exploitation, and cyberstalking; and to tackle anticompetitive conduct shouldn’t separate us,” Biden wrote. “Let’s unite behind our shared values and show the nation we can work together to get the job done.”
Biden’s plea to lawmakers in rare op-ed: Unite to hold tech accountable
Risk experts predict businesses could face another year of tumult as the US & intl powers jockey for position in a new era of geopolitical shifts. The previous year brought Europe’s largest armed conflict since World War II & broad complications to business in Russia, as well as public displays of tension between the US & China, 2 countries that nonetheless remain deeply intertwined economically. Businesses that have grown used to free, global trade have faced mounting complications, such as proliferating sanctions and export controls. Govs are increasingly using "financial levers" to advance national security goals, said Lindsay Newman, head of geopolitical thought leadership for S&P Global Market Intelligence. That development has clear implications for businesses. "Where geopolitics would have been reserved for dinner-party conversation or a cocktail-party conversation, clients are coming to us and saying, ‘We need a geopolitical risk management function,’" Dr Newman said. "The post-Cold War era is clearly over, and there are major powers out there looking to shape the future." "We see more volatility ahead rather than less," she said. Risk professionals have grown more wary. Geoeconomic confrontation ranks among the top 3 perceived risks over the next 2 years. The only near-term risks perceived as greater were the cost-of-living crisis & natural disasters & extreme weather. Another survey, this time of more than 1300 exes by consulting firm Protiviti, also showed a dramatic jump in the last year in risk experts' concerns about geopolitical shifts, global trade & a potential reshaping of globalization. The geopolitical risks weren’t necessarily top of mind for respondents to that survey—talent challenges, economic conditions& labor costs were the top 3 concerns—but they showed some of the largest jumps compared with what respondents said the previous year.
Impact of geopolitical tumult on businesses to continue in 2023, say risk experts
Gold futures rose to settle at a fresh 8-month high. The market is laser focused on US consumer price index data due out
tomorrow & if CPI comes in lower than anticipated, this could be
supportive for gold. Gold for Feb rose $2 to settle at $1878
an ounce, the highest most-active contract finish since May 6.
Gold Futures Post a Fresh 8-Month High
Oil futures climbed, with US prices up a 5th consecutive session. Hopes of a strong rebound in Chinese oil demand, fears surrounding the coming G-7 price cap on Russian refined product & a weakening $ is providing support to oil prices this week. Meanwhile, the Energy Information Administration report showing a massive 19M barrel build to commercial crude stocks largely reflects the continued slower pace of refinery runs following shut-ins during the recent winter storm, coupled with the passing of the ad valorem tax season, which incentivizes keeping barrels offshore until the new year & helps explain the reported surge in net-imports of crude. The US benchmark WTI crude for Feb rose $2.29 (3.1%) to settle at $77.41 a barrel.
U.S. Oil Futures Tally a 5th Straight Session Gain
After selling in the first hour, buyers returned & took prices higher for the rest of the session. Investors are betting on a strong inflation report tomorrow. Meanwhile negative investors keep buying gold, up more than $200 from its recent lows.
Dow Jones Industrials
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