Markets rise as investors look for rate cuts

Dow went up 96, advancers over decliners about 2-1 & NAZ jumped 330 to another record.  The MLP index added 1+ to the 276s & the REIT index fell 1 to the 374s.  Junk bond funds crawled higher & Treasuries were purchased which lowered yields.  Oil bounced back about 1 to the low 74s & gold rose 28 to 2375 (more on both below).

Dow Jones Industrials 

Boeing (BA), a Dow stock, launched its first Starliner flight with astronauts, beginning a crucial final flight test of the long-delayed spacecraft.  The launch took off at from Cape Canaveral, Florida, with 2 NASA astronauts aboard.  Starliner is carried by a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket & is bound for the Intl Space Station.  About 15 minutes after launch, the rocket released the Starliner capsule in orbit as planned, with the flight going as expected, according to mission control.  NASA's broadcast of the launch also noted that although Starliner has cameras onboard to show inside & outside the cabin, BA won't be able to relay video back down to the ground until the spacecraft reaches the ISS.  Starliner will fly in space for about 25 hours before a planned docking with the ISS tomorrow.  The astronauts will then spend about a week on the ISS, focused on testing Starliner, before returning to Earth.  BA's crew flight test aims to certify the Starliner system as capable of carrying NASA astronauts to & from the ISS.  The liftoff comes after a series of attempts to launch the mission.  To date, BA has eaten $1.5B in costs due to Starliner setbacks & nearly $5B of NASA development funds.  The stock rose 1.15.

Boeing Starliner launches for the first time carrying NASA astronauts to the ISS

Dollar Tree (DLTR) is considering a sale of its more grocery-focused Family Dollar brand.  The company had recently shared plans to close almost 1000 Family Dollar stores in an attempt to revamp the struggling business.  The discounter closed more than 500 locations during its fiscal first qtr, it said.  “We are already beginning to see progress in this targeted strategy in the streamlined Family Dollar banner,” the company said.  “The unique needs of each banner at this time – transformation at Family Dollar and growth acceleration at Dollar Tree – lead us to the decision to conduct a thorough review of strategic alternatives for the Family Dollar business.”  DLTR bought Family Dollar in 2015 for almost $9B & the business has been struggling ever since to compete against its major rivals.  The update came alongside DLTR's fiscal first-qtr earnings report, in which Family Dollar lagged.  Same-store sales for the DLTR brand rose 1.7% while Family Dollar sales climbed only 0.1%.  Enterprise sales rose 1%.  Revenue rose to $7.6B, up about 4% from $7.32B a year earlier.  The company expects sales for the 2nd qtr will be $7.3-7.6B, with sales growth for the DLTR banner of 2-4% & sales for the Family Dollar segment approximately flat.  EPS for the 3-month period that ended May 4 was $1.38 compared with $1.35 per share a year earlier.  Adjusting for one-time items, including the cost of store closures, the company reported EPS of $1.43.  The company also mentioned that it incurred losses totaling $117M as of early May, after a tornado destroyed the company's distribution center in Marietta, Oklahoma, on Apr 28.  The facility sustained significant damage & the inventory in the facility as well as the facility itself are not salvageable.  The company expects the incurred losses to be offset by insurance recoveries.  The stock dropped 5.92 (5%).

Dollar Tree is exploring a sale of its Family Dollar brand.

Pres Biden has made the push for broader adoption of electric vehicles a key pillar of his agenda to fight climate change since he entered the White House, but the latest data shows a major chunk of Americans still have no intention of buying an EV in the near future.  A new poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research & the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago found nearly ½ of Americans (47%) said they are not likely to purchase an EV for their next vehicle.  Only 19% of respondents said they were either "very" or "extremely" likely to buy an EV for their next car purchase & another 22% said they were "somewhat likely" to do so.  Despite hefty tax incentives for purchasing all-electric cars, a majority of US adults, 6 in 10, of those surveyed cited high prices as the major reason they would not buy an EV & some 25% cited cost as a minor reason.  The AP noted that the average price of a new EV is out of reach for many Americans' budgets at $58K, according to Kelley Blue Book, while the average vehicle sold in the US is under $46K.  75% of those surveyed in the poll cited too few charging stations as a reason they would not purchase an EV & 70% said EVs take too long to charge.  67% of respondents said they prefer gas-powered cars.  The Biden administration's new emissions rules effectively require that nearly all vehicles must be EVs by 2032 & the AP poll indicates consumers will take a lot more convincing for enough to be willing to buy those vehicles.  Only 8% of US adults surveyed said that they or someone in their household owns or leases an EV.

Poll shows Americans still not sold on EVs despite Biden push

Gold prices edged higher, helped by weakness in the $ & Treasury yields after private payroll data came in lighter than expected.  Spot gold was up 0.6% at $2341 per ounce after a 1% fall in the previous session.  US gold futures rose 0.6% to $2361.  The $ inched up after hitting a near 2-month low in the last session, while benchmark 10-year Treasury yields lingered near their lowest level in almost 3 weeks, making bullion more attractive to investors.  The ADP said that private companies added 152K jobs in May, lower than the 188K seen in the prior month & below the forecast of 175K.  That's the lowest monthly number since Jan.  Higher interest rates increase the opportunity cost of holding the non-yielding asset.

Gold Rises Following Light Private Employment Report

West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil rose, rebounding from a 4-month low following 5 losing sessions despite a surprise rise in US inventories.  West Texas Intermediate crude for Jul closed up 82¢ to settle at $74.07 per barrel, while Jul Brent crude, the global benchmark, was last seen up 82¢ to $78.34.  The rise comes despite signals of soft demand, with the Energy Information Administration's weekly survey showing a 1.2M barrel rise in US oil inventories last week, while the estimate called for a 2.3M drop in stocks.  Gasoline & distillate inventories also rose despite the beginning of the normally high-demand US summer driving season.  Still, it appears prices reached a bottom following dismay over OPEC+ saying this weekend said it plans to roll back 2.2M barrels of voluntary production cuts in the 4th qtr.

WTI Crude Oil Rises Off a Four-Month Low Despite an Unexpected Rise in U.S. Inventories

The stock market rose, buoyed by hope for interest rate cuts with signs of a slowing slowing economy.  Stocks have had a bumpy ride as the market wavers over whether to interpret a softening in economic readings as a positive sign for the chances of rate cuts from the Federal Reserve or a negative sign signaling the start of a broader slowdown.  Meanwhile NAZ with the sexy tech stocks keeps roaring ahead, setting new records.  Next week is the Fed meeting, but little drama is expected to come  from it.