The Investor Guide to Fidelity Funds for June 2018 is AVAILABLE NOW! Links to the June Data Files have been posted below. Market Perspective: The U.S. Economy Keeps Improving U.S. […]
Equities opened higher on Monday following last week’s strong economic data. Technology, consumer discretionary and consumer staples led the market higher, while rising interest rates weighed on utilities.
This will be a light week for economic data. Factory orders dipped 0.8 percent in April, slightly below forecasts of a 0.5 percent contraction. Services PMIs and the April Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey will be released on Tuesday, and the April trade deficit on Wednesday. It will gain more attention than usual with potential tariffs on Chinese imports looming. Chinese trade data for May will be out on Friday. The G-7 will meet at the end of the week.
The Atlanta Federal Reserve lifted its forecast for second quarter GDP growth to 4.8 percent on Friday following the employment report. In addition to strong labor markets, the Atlanta Fed anticipates stronger consumer spending and fixed-asset investment this quarter.
The European Central Bank reduced purchases of Italian bonds as the new government was forming in May. Italian bonds tumbled during this process. The ECB purchased less Italian and French debt last month to offset a rise in maturing German debt. Officials from each side in the Italian coalition government have criticized the ECB’s decision.
Crude oil prices opened the week below $65 a barrel. The 10-year Treasury yield climbed to 2.93 percent. The U.S. Dollar Index opened the day lower, but recovered nearly all of its losses by the end of trading.
Palo Alto Networks (PANW), Dell Technologies (DVMT), Brown Forman (BF.A), Okta (OKTA), Broadcom (BRCM), J.M. Smucker (SJM) and Vail Resorts (MTN) will headline a light week for earnings.
Click Here to view today’s Global Momentum Guide WEEKLY SECTOR MOVERS The Nasdaq advanced 1.62 percent last week, the Russell 2000 Index 1.29 percent, the S&P 500 Index 0.49 […]
The Russell 2000 Index hit a new all-time high this week and the Nasdaq closed within 0.5 percent of its all-time high. The Nasdaq led major indexes with a gain of 1.78 percent. Technology was the best performing sector. SPDR Technology rallied 2.41 percent. SPDR Energy (XLE) rose 1.92 percent.
May’s employment report beat expectations with 223,000 net new jobs. The unemployment rate fell to 3.8 percent. There were 905,000 new full-time jobs created, a record for this Millennium. Wage growth beat expectations, hitting 0.3 percent in May and 2.7 percent in the past year. Education, healthcare, retail and construction were among the sectors with the most job creation.
Strong employment data lifted the 10-year Treasury bond yield to 2.90 percent. The 30-year finished at 3.05 percent. Both yields were down on the week.
Home prices increased 6.5 percent on the year (through March 2018) according to the Case-Schiller index. Consumer confidence rose in May according to the Conference Board’s survey. Current confidence hit a 17-year high. Consumer spending increased 0.6 percent in April.
The government revised first-quarter GDP growth down 0.1 percentage point, to 2.2 percent. The economist consensus and both the New York and Atlanta GDP models all forecast growth of at least 3 percent in the current quarter.
Core inflation was 0.2 percent in April, in line with estimates. Over the past 12 months, it has increased 2.0 percent, at the bottom of the Fed’s target range for inflation. Construction spending increased 1.8 percent in April, a reversal from March’s 1.7 percent drop and ahead of estimates of 1.0 percent.
The manufacturing PMIs for May showed a resilient manufacturing sector. The Markit survey was down very slightly, while the ISM survey rose. Both showed solid growth in new orders and production. Auto sales were strong as well. Car buyers shrugged off higher gas prices, with sales of pick-up trucks, SUVs and crossovers strong across domestic and foreign automakers.
While domestic markets remained strong, the European manufacturing sector weakened in May. Political turmoil dinged European markets this week. The euro ended up flat on the week, but iShares MSCI Italy (EWI) finished lower. Deutsche Bank (DB) fell 8.38 percent on the week after the Federal Reserve put its U.S. operations on its watch list.
The S&P 500 Index increased 0.54 percent this week and the U.S. Dollar Index was flat. iShares MSCI EAFE fell 0.34 and iShares MSCI Emerging Markets (EEM) slid 0.22 percent. WisdomTree Emerging Currency (CEW) declined 0.37 percent as Brazil’s currency became a new source of emerging market weakness. Nationwide strikes by truckers and oil workers forced the CEO of Petrobras (PBR) to step down. iShares MSCI Brazil (EWZ) dropped 3.87 percent this week. Petrobras tumbled 20.22 percent.
The May Issue of the ETF Investor Guide is AVAILABLE NOW! Links to the May Data Files have been posted below Market Perspective: Earnings Growth Appears Strong Index trailed with […]
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