Dow declined 158, advancers barely ahead of decliners & NAZ crawled up 18. The MLP index fell 1+ to the 247s & the REIT index stayed even in the 338s. Junk bond funds crawled higher & Treasuries had limited buying which lowered yields. Oil was off almost 1 to finish under 91 & gold dropped 13 to 1864 (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)
United Auto Workers (UAW) Pres Shawn Fain told his membership that the union's strike against Detroit's Big Three automakers will expand against Ford (F) & General Motors (GM), but there will be no additional Stellantis (STLA) plants targeted at this time. "Despite our willingness to bargain, Ford and GM have refused to make meaningful progress at the table," Fain said. "To be clear, negotiations haven't broke down. We're still talking with all companies, and I'm still very hopeful that we can reach a deal that reflects the incredible sacrifices and contributions our members made over the last decade." The union boss called on members at Ford's Chicago assembly plant & GM's Lansing, Michigan, assembly plant to walk out today at noon. The 7000 workers at those 2 facilities bring the total striking members at the Big Three to around 25K. In response to Fain's message, GM exec VP of global manufacturing & sustainability, Gerald Johnson, said, "We still have not received a comprehensive counteroffer from UAW leadership to our latest proposal made on September 21. Calling more strikes is just for the headlines, not real progress." "Our current, record proposal that is on the table offers historic wage increases and job security while not jeopardizing our future," Johnson continued. "We’re here to reach an agreement so we can all get back to work, and that remains our 100% focus. Be safe." Ford CEO Jim Farley held a media briefing today, where he said, "We've stayed quiet and worked around the clock in an effort to reach a deal. But with today's strike expansion by the UAW, I think it's time to share some facts and provide an update on the talks before we get into details." STLA also released a statement following Fain's announcement, saying, the company "has been intensely working with the UAW to find solutions to the issues that are of most concern to our employees while ensuring the Company can remain competitive given the market’s fierce competition." The UAW's plan is to ramp up its strike incrementally as negotiations drag on without agreements in place, but has not ruled out a national walkout by all 150K of its members across the Big Three. It's a strategy the union has said enables it more flexibility in the escalation & makes it more difficult for auto companies to predict its next move.
Union expands strikes as negotiations fail to yield 'meaningful progress'
House GOP leaders failed to pass a partisan, short-term spending bill with fewer than 2 days left to fund the federal gov & avoid a shutdown. The final vote was 198 to 232, with more than 20 Reps crossing the aisle to oppose their own party's bill. Speaker Kevin McCarthy pitched the bill as a way for his fellow Reps to buy time to pass a slate of individual agency spending bills. The House Reps who joined Dems to vote against it included several of McCarthy's most outspoken antagonists, like Florida Rep Matt Gaetz & Arizona Reps Andy Biggs & Eli Crane. “We actually need a stop-gap measure to allow the House to continue to finish its work, to make sure our military gets paid, to make sure our border agents get paid as we finish the job that we’re supposed to do,” McCarthy said. The White House blasted the House GOP caucus for engaging in brinksmanship & dismissed McCarthy's suggestion that he would not take a paycheck during a shutdown. “That is theater. The guy who picks up the trash in my office won’t get a paycheck. That’s real,” said Shalanda Young, director of the White House Office of Management & Budget. “We’re doing everything we can to plead, beg, shame House Republicans to do the right thing,” she added. The GOP bill would have funded the gov thru Oct 31. But it had effectively no chance of passing the Senate, which is controlled by Dems, or of being signed by Pres Biden. The White House said Biden would stay “in dialogue with Congress,” over the coming days, but insisted the core elements of any spending bill had been agreed to as part of the debt ceiling deal earlier this year. The Senate easily advanced its own short-term funding bill yesterday by a 76-22 margin. The next vote in that chamber is scheduled for Sat. The Senate bill is likely to be amended ahead of Sat's vote & the next version could contain stronger border security measures that House Rep are demanding. Missing the Senate vote will be Sen Dianne Feinstein, the California Dem who died late yesterday at her home in DC. The gov is scheduled to shut down at 12:01 AM Sun if a funding bill is not approved by Congress & signed into law by Biden. Across DC, gov agencies prepared their employees & the public for the effects of a shutdown.
Republican spending plan fails House vote, fueling federal government shutdown fears
Lower-end consumers have shifted buying patterns to save money as their bank accounts dwindle in size, according to Citigroup (C) CEO Jane Fraser. The 3rd-largest US bank by assets has been monitoring its credit card customers for signs of distress, Fraser said. “We are paying attention to the lower FICO consumer, where there are cracks” forming, Fraser said, referring to the widely used credit-scoring system from Fair Isaac Corp “I think some of the excess savings from the Covid years are getting close to depletion.” The gov injected Ts of $s into households & businesses during the pandemic to avert disaster, money that has helped keep the economy humming for longer than many forecasters expected. At the same time, the Federal Reserve's most aggressive interest rate hiking cycle in 4 decades has made credit card, mortgage & auto debt more expensive, & late payments & defaults have been climbing. Besides comments on artificial intelligence & labor tightness, corp leaders have told her that demand is softening. “Particularly [for] the bottom end of the consumer, that’s the one that we’re starting to see cracks, you’re seeing some shift in the buying patterns to lower categories in the spend,” Fraser added. “It’s a resilient consumer, but it’s a softer one.” Softening demand may help the Fed in its battle with inflation, the CEO noted. While employment & gross domestic product figures suggest the economy will achieve a “soft landing,” if it does tip into recession, it will likely be a “manageable” one, Fraser continued.
Citigroup CEO Jane Fraser sees ‘cracks’ emerging among some consumers as savings dry up
Gold prices fell for a 2nd qtr in a row after losses that began
in Aug & held thru Sep, underscored by the current week's
drop — the worst in more than 2 years. Gold's most-active futures contract, Dec,
settled at $1866 an ounce, down $12 (0.7%) on the day. The
benchmark for US gold futures was down 4% for the week, its biggest
weekly decline since a near 6% plunge during the week to Jun 11, 2021.
For the 3rd qtr, the drop on gold was around 3%, after
declines of 2% in Aug & 5% in Sep that offset Jul's gain of
4%. In Q2, gold futures fell almost 4%.
Gold Tumbles Second Straight Quarter, Worst Week Since 2021
Oil futures declined, but US prices notched a gain of nearly 9% for the month. Oil was solidly on its path to $100, but the trio of inflation, rates & the Fed have come back from the dead & shaken up the confidence. If interest rates do hold higher for longer, then oil is headed higher. For now, the only certainty in the market is volatility. Nov West Texas Intermediate crude declined by 92¢ (1%) to settle at $90.79 a barrel. Prices based on front-month contract ended 0.8% higher for the week, gained 8.6% for the month, & were up 28.5% for the qtr.
Oil Futures End Lower for The Session, Higher for The Month and Quarter
A big strike which shows no sign of ending, a probable gov shutdown & high interest rates not ending anytime soon are what stocks face in Q4. Dow is down 900 in the qtr & over 1200 in Sep. Grrrr!!Dow Jones Industrials
No comments:
Post a Comment