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Dow Jones Industrial Average Falling Today Ahead Of Fed Statement
Stock Futures Today Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average today (Wednesday) forecast an 81-point decline ahead of today’s monetary policy statement by the Fed Open Market Committee. The Dow’s decline comes as oil prices slipped again and shares of Apple Inc. (Nasdaq:AAPL) fell nearly 3% after the tech giant announced yesterday its iPhone sales grew at the slowest pace since its product introduction in 2007. The firm also provided forward guidance that failed to meet analyst expectations. Yesterday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 282 points as oil prices surged on renewed optimism that OPEC and non-OPEC prod... -
Finance 0
Central Bank Credibility: What Does It Mean?
For at least a couple of years before the Great Financial Crisis, policymakers often cautioned that investors were mispricing risk. Through the crisis, investors became painfully aware of many risks, including counterparty risk and reputation risk. Now many observers are highlighting a new risk, what they call the credibility of central banks. The issue is that many central banks are nowhere close to reaching their inflation targets. ECB President Draghi seems to agree. The ECB has a 2% inflation target. The Survey of Professional Forecasters and the ECB’s own staff has been revising their forecasts lows. Draghi has argued that if ... -
Finance 0
Fiat Chrysler’s Q4 Earnings Drops Significantly Y/Y
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles N.V. is an international automotive company. It designs, manufactures, distributes and sells vehicles, components and production systems. The company owns the Abarth, Alfa Romeo, Chrysler, Dodge, Fiat, Fiat Professional, Jeep, Lancia and Ram brands. Fiat Chrysler will benefit from rising sales in the U.S and Europe. The company intends to expand vehicle sales in key markets throughout the world. The company also focuses on maintaining cost efficiency. However, Fiat Chrysler is going through a challenging period due to product recalls and warranty obligations. Product recalls increase the company’s cost burden. In ... -
Finance 0
Will Trump Debate In Iowa? This S&P Debate Is More Important
While many today are discussing the possibility that Donald Trump will not be present at the debate in Iowa, I humbly feel a bigger debate is at hand with the S&P 500. See below why I feel this way. For the past 2,005 days, the S&P 500 has created a series of higher lows and higher highs (Green channel above) For the past 180 days, the S&P 500 has created a series of lower highs and lower lows (Pink channel above) Which trend do you feel is more important per making portfolio allocation decisions at this time? I suspect that many can create a solid debate on either side. Is this the only trend in play? What about the sideways tren... -
Finance 0
Fed Interest Rate Hike Wednesday Unlikely
The Federal Reserve is expected to leave interest rates unchanged on Wednesday and with the U.S. economy moving towards negative territory, chances of a March rate hike are slowly waning. Analysts predict that the central bank will keep its key overnight lending rate in a range of 0.25 percent to 0.50 percent when it issues its policy statement following this week’s two-day meeting. The decision is due at 2 p.m. EST (1900 GMT). The central bank is expected to say in its policy statement that it is following global economic and financial events closely in the same manner it did during last summer’s market instability. And according to Gold... -
Finance 0
A Dangerous Moment For Social Security
Social Security funds are drying up…will there be any money left when you retire? Social Security is America’s largest federal program. In 2015, it paid out $870 billion to more than 59 million Americans. Most Americans see Social Security as a retirement savings program. During your working life, you pay 6.2% of every paycheck to Social Security. In return, the government sends you a check every month after you retire. However, unlike a retirement plan like a 401(k), the money you pay into Social Security doesn’t land in your own personal account. Instead, it goes into one big pot called the “Social Security Trust Fund.” The Social... -
Finance 0
Is Apple Stepping Off The Innovation Gravy Train?
Apple is in trouble. At least based on the high expectations Wall Street has developed for the company. The company was able to beat analysts’ quarterly earnings expectations in its record first quarter results, bringing in $3.28 per share versus the consensus of $3.23. Revenue of $75.9 billion missed the estimate of $76.54 billion. The biggest concern, however, is that revenue growth is lacking for Apple’s heavy hitters. Take a look at those highlights: Revenue growth was a paltry 1.7%. The company sold 74.8 million iPhones, missing expectations of 75.46 million. The iPad sold 16.1 million units, compared with the consensus estimate of... -
Finance 0
Crude Oil Is Not Going Out Of Business
Crude oil has of course gone on a wild ride for more than a year and lately, as its volatility has been increasing, the correlation to equities has also increased. When the volatility characteristics of an important market change dramatically it is a signal that something is going on regardless of whether we can figure it out. The commodity super cycle from the 2000’s was a real phenomenon and it built upon the foundation of China’s growth and modernization. To a lesser extent other emerging markets also contributed to the commodity super cycle. The more than 2/3rd decline in the price in the last couple of years is in part a deflation s... -
Finance 0
New Home Sales Spike To 8 Year Highs, Prices Tumble To 7-Month Lows
Following existing home sales post-regs change spike, new home sales (after 9 months of missed expectations) soared 10.8% in December to a seasonally-adjusted annualized rate of 544k (smashing expectations of just 500k). This is 1k short of the February 545k highs going back to Feb 2008. Median home prices dropped however (a good thing for affordability but not so much for The Fed’s wealth illusion machine) to the lowest since May. Home Sales (SAAR) soar.. And the good news (for affordability) is prices tumbled… One wonders where these two lines will converge. The question is – with all this exuberant bounce back in ... -
Finance 0
Bear Of The Day: CSX
CSX Corporation (CSX – Analyst Report) recently warned about 2016 as the railroads struggle. This Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell) is expected to see earnings decline this year. CSX connects nearly every major metropolitan area in the eastern United States by rail and links 240 short-line railroads and 70 ocean, river and lake ports in its network. It customers are in diverse industries, including energy, industrials, construction, agriculture and consumer products. Beat Again In the Fourth Quarter But… On Jan 12, CSX beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 2 cents. Earnings were $0.48 compared to the Consensus of $0.46. It was the 8th...
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