Category Archives for Coffee With Greta
Coffee With Greta: Tesla Wants to Split
Editor’s Note: Coffee With Greta is a FREE morning update from our newest contributor Greta Wall. Want to get it by email every day? Click here. ******** DJIA Futures: -24 (-0.1%) SPX Futures: -2 (-0.1%) NASDAQ Futures: -4 (-0.03%) Good morning friends! Futures are flat as the market gears up for a big week of economic data. Let’s get right to it! Tesla Wants to Split the Stock Tesla (TSLA) shares are up 5.8% ahead of the open after a new SEC filing shows the electric automaker wants to split its stock. That filing said the automaker will ask at the annual shareholders meeting “for an increase in the number of authorized shares of common stock… in order to enable a stock split of the Company’s common stock in the form of a stock dividend”. Tesla split its stock 5-for-1 in August 2020 and shares have more than doubled since then. Recession Fears Spike as Treasury Yields Invert The 5-year and 30-year Treasury yields inverted today for the first time since 2006, spiking fears of a recession. The yield on the 5-year Treasury note rose to 2.6361% while the 30-year yield dipped to 2.6004%. But the spread between the 2-year and 10-year yields is still positive. The 10-year Treasury yield is down about 2 basis points to 2.46% after spiking above 2.5% at the end of last week. Traders Continue to Hike Fed Expectations As the Fed is laser-focused on inflation over the labor market, traders are hiking their expectations for the next meeting. CME Group’s FedWatch Tool shows 68.8% of traders believe the central bank will hike rates by 0.5% at the May 4 meeting. 63.2% also expect a 0.5% rate hike at the June meeting, while 13.2% now expect a 0.75% hike. Oil Falls as China Locks Down Shanghai Oil prices are down falling as new lockdowns in China prompt fears of weaker demand. West Texas Intermediate crude futures are down 4.9% to $108 per barrel with Brent crude futures falling 4.7% to $115 per barrel. The drop comes as Shanghai launched a two-stage lockdown of the city Monday amid a new Covid outbreak. China is the largest imported of crude in in the world. Experts say the oil market will likely turn bullish again later this week as OPEC is set to meet on Thursday. The group is not expected to approve a faster output increase despite the drop in Russian supply. Biden Budget Proposal President Biden is set to release his 2023 budget proposal today. The plan is expected to include a 20% “Billionaire Minimum Income Tax”. That tax would impose a 20% minimum tax rate on U.S. households worth more than $100 million. The White House says the plan would reduce the federal deficit by $360 billion over the next decade. Households that already pay at least 20% would not owe any additional taxes but those paying less would owe a “top-up payment” to meet the minimum. It’s unclear whether the tax plan would be able to pass in Congress. A fact sheet from the White House says Biden’s budget proposal would trim $1.3 trillion off the deficit over the next 10 years. The U.S. had a $2.8 trillion deficit in 2021. Big Week of Economic Data Wall Street is prepping for the release of key economic data for the Fed this week. The Labor Department releases its Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) on Tuesday. Then ADP’s private March payrolls report will be released Wednesday. The Bureau of Economic Analysis releases the Personal Consumption Expenditures Index Thursday morning. That includes the Fed’s preferred inflation measure, the Core PCE Price Index. And the official March jobs report will be released Friday morning. This week of data will give the market a better gauge of the economy and the Fed’s plans to tackle inflation at future meetings. Economists expect the jobs data to show the labor market is near full employment with inflation continuing to rise. In Case You Missed It Cannabis stocks rallied at the end of last week as the House gets ready to consider a legalization bill. Tilray (TLRY) shares ended the week 55% higher. The House Rules Committee is set to hold a hearing today on the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act. The bill is then expected to be voted on by the full House later this week.
Continue Reading -->Coffee With Greta: U.S. to Provide Natural Gas to Europe
Editor’s Note: Coffee With Greta is a FREE morning update from our newest contributor Greta Wall. Want to get it by email every day? Click here. ******** DJIA Futures: +91 (+0.3%) SPX Futures: +15 (+0.3%) NASDAQ Futures: +50 (+0.3%) Good morning friends! Futures are higher as the market looks for its second straight winning week. Let’s get right to it! Europe Strikes Natural Gas Deal with U.S. The U.S. announces a deal to provide Europe with more liquefied natural gas. The U.S. and EU agreed to form a joint task force aimed at boosting energy security for Ukraine and Europe for the next two winters. The “Task Force For Energy Security” will be chaired by a representative from the White House and a representative from the European Commission. The U.S. will work with international partners to provide at least 15 billion cubic meters more of LNG to the EU this year. Under the deal, the EU must work toward ensuring demand for 50 billion cubic meters per year of extra LNG from the U.S., until at least 2030. Oil Prices Slip Oil prices are continuing to slip as supply concerns ease. West Texas Intermediate crude futures are down nearly 3% and under $109 per barrel while Brent crude futures are down 3% to $115 per barrel. But both are still on track for the first weekly gain in three weeks. Today’s drop comes as oil exports are expected to resume on the Caspian Pipeline Consortium terminal on Russia’s Black Sea Coast. That terminal was shutdown due to storm damage this week and it was expected to take a month to fix. But Kazakhstan’s Energy Minister said exports will resume from one of three mooring points today. The EU also remains split on whether to impose a ban on Russian oil. OPEC sources say the group warned Europe that would hurt consumers in the bloc. Bed Bath & Beyond Jumps on Deal with Ryan Cohen Bed Bath & Beyond (BBBY) shares are up 10.7% ahead of the open after reaching a deal with activist investor and GameStop (GME) Chairman Ryan Cohen. In a press release, the company announced three people from Cohen’s investment firm RC Ventures will join the Bed Bath & Beyond board of directors. Two of those people will join a strategy committee to explore alternatives for the Buybuy Baby chain. This comes after Cohen revealed a nearly 10% stake in the company earlier this month and called on the board to restructure the business. NIO Slips on Weak Guidance NIO (NIO) shares are down 6.1% after Q1 guidance came in short. The Chinese electric automaker reported an adjusted Q4 loss of $0.16 per share on $1.55 billion in revenue. The loss was in-line with analysts’ expectations and revenue beat estimates for $1.52 billion. NIO said it delivered 25,034 vehicles last quarter vs 24,945 expected. But the company forecast Q1 revenue between $1.51 billion and $1.57 billion vs analysts’ expectations for $1.66 billion. NIO expects to deliver between 25,000 to 26,000 vehicles in Q1. Wall Street was looking for delivery guidance of 27,958 vehicles. Honest Shares Tumble on Weak Q4 Honest Co (HNST) shares are tumbling 18.2% ahead of the open after missing Q4 expectations. The consumer-goods company reported a loss of $0.10 per share on $80.4 million in revenue. That was worse than analysts’ expectations for a loss of $0.07 per share on $84.7 million in revenue. Sales in Honest’s household and wellness business tumbled 68%. The company blamed that drop on “reduced COVID-19-related consumer demand for sanitizing and disinfecting products and face masks”. Honest forecast a 15% year-over-year decline in Q1 sales and said it expects full-year sales growth to be flat. Cannabis Stocks Rally Cannabis stocks are rallying after the House announced it will consider the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act next week. Tilray Brands (TLRY) shares are up 14.9% ahead of the open after rallying 21.9% on Thursday. Shares of the ETFMG Alternative Harvest ETF (MJ), which tracks the cannabis sector, are up 6.9% after jumping 7.9% Thursday. The House Rules Committee will hold a hearing on the MORE Act Monday. The full House could then vote on it as early as next week. The bill would remove marijuana from the federal controlled substances list, eliminate all criminal penalties associated with it. It would also impose a federal tax on marijuana sales. A similar bill was approved by the House in December 2020 but was never considered by the Republican-controlled Senate at the time. How Are Consumers Feeling? The University of Michigan releases its final March consumer sentiment index at 10:00 a.m. ET. That index is expected to be unchanged from the flash reading of 59.7 earlier this month. That reading was the lowest since September 2011, as consumers worried about the impact of the Ukraine war and inflation. The survey also includes consumers’ 5-year and 1-year inflation expectations. Pending Home Sales Preview The National Association of Realtors reports pending home sales for February at 10:00 a.m. ET. That report is expected to show the number of contracts signed to purchase a home rose 1.0% last month after tumbling 5.7% in January. Pending sales represent home sales that are expected to close in 30 to 60 days. In Case You Missed It Weekly jobless claims tumbled to a 53-year low last week. The Labor Department reported 187,000 Americans filed initial claims, the lowest total since 1969. Continuing claims also fell to 1.35 million, the lowest since 1970. Chip stocks led Thursday’s market rally. The iShares Semiconductor ETF (SOXX) jumped 5.1% while the VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH) rose 4.9%. Nvidia (NVDA) led those gains, rallying 9.8% for its best day since November. And Intel’s (INTC) 6.9% gain marked its best day in more than a year. The rally comes after Nvidia unveiled new products this week and Intel’s CEO testified in Congress in support of expanding chip manufacturing in the U.S.
Continue Reading -->Coffee With Greta: An Extraordinary NATO Summit Is Underway
Editor’s Note: Coffee With Greta is a FREE morning update from our newest contributor Greta Wall. Want to get it by email every day? Click here. ******** DJIA Futures: +117 (+0.3%) SPX Futures: +21 (+0.5%) NASDAQ Futures: +77 (+0.5%) Good morning friends! Futures are higher as the NATO summit kicks off in Brussels. Let’s get right to it! Extraordinary NATO Summit Kicks Off The extraordinary NATO summit is underway in Brussels. Leaders from the alliance, including President Biden, are meeting in person today and are expected to ramp-up their actions against Russia. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg called the emergency meeting in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Stoltenberg said he expects the group to increase its troop presence along the eastern flank. That includes establishing four new battle groups in Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania, and Slovakia. The group is also expected to announce additional sanctions against Moscow. There will also be a G7 meeting at the summit. This comes after the U.S. officially accused Russia of war crimes in Ukraine on Wednesday. In a statement, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said, “Russia’s forces have destroyed apartment buildings, schools, hospitals, critical infrastructure, civilian vehicles, shopping centers, and ambulances, leaving thousands of innocent civilians killed or wounded”. Biden will travel to Poland Friday but will not visit Ukraine. Russian Market Reopens The Moscow Exchange resumed limited trading today for the first time since February 25. Trading was permitted in 33 Russian equities between the hours of 10:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. local time. Short-selling was banned and foreign investors are not able to sell stocks until April 1. The MOEX Russia Index closed 4.4% higher. Russian oil giant Rosneft soared 17% while Lukoil jumped 12.4 Oil Prices Slip on Iran Deal Hopes Oil prices are slipping today on optimism for a revived Iran nuclear deal. West Texas Intermediate crude futures are down 0.4% to $114.50 per barrel with Brent crude futures falling 0.2% to $121.30 per barrel. The White House said Wednesday the U.S. and Iran had made progress in nuclear talks. Part of that deal would lift export restrictions on Iran, which would help ease supply concerns in the oil market. The Energy Information Administration reported a drop in U.S. crude inventories last week. That stockpile declined by 2.5 million barrels for the week ending March 18 vs expectations for inventory to be unchanged. The EIA report also showed gasoline inventory declined by 2.9 million barrels. Weekly Jobless Claims Fall to 53-Year Low Weekly jobless claims tumbled to the lowest level since 1969. The Labor Department reported 187,000 Americans filed initial claims for unemployment benefits last week. That was down 28,000 from the previous week and sharply beat economists’ expectations for 210,000. Continuing claims fell to 1.35 million in the week ending March 12, the lowest since 1970. Nikola Begins Production of Electric Semi Nikola (NKLA) shares are soaring 18.2% ahead of the open after beginning production of its fully-electric semitruck. The automaker announced Wednesday production of its battery-electric Tre semitruck started at its factory in Coolidge, Arizona on Monday. Nikola said it plans to begin deliveries of the truck in Q2 and set a goal of 300 to 500 total deliveries this year. The battery-electric version of the Tre semitruck has an estimated range of 350 miles. Nikola plans to make a hydrogen fuel cell semi next, which would have a 500 mile range. That truck is expected to begin shipping in late 2023. KB Home Slips After Earnings Miss KB Home (KBH) shares are down 2.5%in premarket trade after missing fiscal Q1 expectations. The homebuilder reported earnings of $1.02 per share on $1.4 billion in revenue. That missed analysts’ expectations for EPS of $1.54 on $1.5 billion in revenue. KB Home delivered 2,868 homes in the quarter vs Wall Street’s expectations for 3,180. The CEO said supply-chain and labor issues got worse last quarter, causing a delay in building. KB Home maintained its full-year guidance for home-building revenue between $7.2 billion and $7.6 billion. The company raised its average selling price forecast by $10,000. In Case You Missed It New home sales fell 2% in February to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 772,000 units vs 805,000 expected. The drop came despite the number of listings rising 2.3% from January to 407,000 units. That represents a 6.3 month supply at the current sales pace. The median price of a new home sold in February jumped 10.7% year-over-year to $400,600 while the average sales price was $511,000. GameStop (GME) shares surged 14.5% on Wednesday after chairman Ryan Cohen bought more of the stock. Cohen purchased 100,000 additional GME shares Tuesday through his investment firm RC Ventures. That brought his ownership stake to 11.9%. Fellow meme stock AMC Entertainment (AMC) rallied alongside GameStop, closing 13.6% higher on Wednesday.
Continue Reading -->Coffee With Greta: U.S. Crude Supply Shrinks
Editor’s Note: Coffee With Greta is a FREE morning update from our newest contributor Greta Wall. Want to get it by email every day? Click here. ******** DJIA Futures: -141 (-0.4%) SPX Futures: -23 (-0.5%) NASDAQ Futures: -113 (-0.8%) Good morning friends! Futures are slipping as oil prices rise following an unexpected drop in U.S. crude supplies. Let’s get right to it! U.S. Crude Inventory Shrinks Oil prices are up today after a new report showed crude inventories in the U.S. declined last week. West Texas Intermediate crude futures are up 3.1% to over $112 per barrel while Brent crude futures are up 3.2% to over $119 per barrel. This comes after the American Petroleum Institute’s supply report showed crude stockpiles in the U.S. fell by 4.3 million barrels in the week ending March 18. The Energy Information Administration is set to release its latest inventory data today. Consensus estimates are for that report to show U.S. crude supplies were unchanged last week. Traders Hike Fed Expectations Traders are expecting the Fed to get more aggressive on inflation this year than the latest dot plot shows. CME Group’s FedWatch Tool shows 66.1% of traders believe the bank will hike rates by 0.5% at the next meeting in May. More than 64% of traders also believe the bank will implement a 0.5% rate hike at the June meeting. That would put rates in a range of 1.25% to 1.5% after the June 15 meeting. That’s higher than the Fed’s plans for 6 more 0.25% rate hikes this year, putting rates at 1.9% by year-end. More hawkish Fed officials, like St Louis President James Bullard, have said rates should be above 3% by the end of this year. In a Bloomberg interview Tuesday, Bullard said, “faster is better” when it comes to rate hikes. More Fed officials are set to speak today including Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester at 10:00 a.m. ET and San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly at 11:45 a.m. ET. GameStop Spikes as Chairman Buys More Stock GameStop (GME) shares are rallying 7.5% in premarket trade after chairman Ryan Cohen upped his stake in the company. Regulatory filings show Cohen bought another 100,000 GME shares on Tuesday. He now owns 9,101,000 GameStop shares, bringing his stake to 11.9%. The stock purchases were made through Cohen’s investment company RC Ventures. General Mills Rallies After Raising Guidance General Mills (GIS) shares are up 3.2% ahead of the open after beating fiscal Q3 profit expectations and raising its guidance. The food company reported adjusted earnings of $0.84 per share on $4.538 billion in revenue. That topped analysts’ expectations for adjusted EPS of $0.78 on $4.545 billion in revenue. General Mills also hiked its full-year guidance, expecting sales growth of 5% vs the previous 4% to 5%. Wall Street was only expecting 3.7% growth this year. Adobe Slips Despite Earnings Beat Adobe (ADBE) shares are slipping 3.4% in premarket trade despite beating fiscal Q1 expectations. The company reported adjusted earnings of $3.37 per share on $4.26 billion in revenue. That topped analysts’ expectations for adjusted EPS of $3.34 on $4.24 billion in revenue. That was a new record-high for quarterly revenue at Adobe and was up 9% year-over-year. Adobe’s executive vice president and CFO said the results “reflect the company’s strong execution and resilience through unprecedented circumstances”. The company forecast fiscal Q2 revenue of $4.34 billion and earnings of $3.30 per share. The guidance was short of analysts’ expectations on the top and bottom line. Adobe said it expects a $75 million revenue reduction this year after halting sales of its products in Russia and Belarus. The company still maintained its full-year forecast. Refinance Demand Plunges as Mortgage Rates Spike Mortgage rates are continuing to surge as Treasury yields spike. New data from the Mortgage Bankers Association shows the average 30-year contract rate jumped to 4.5% last week from 4.27% the previous week. Mortgage applications to purchase a home fell 2% for the week and tumbled 12% compared to a year ago. Refinance applications dropped 14% weekly and plunged 54% annually. FHA and VA loans saw the largest drop in demand, signaling lower-income homebuyers are dropping out of the market. Most economists previously forecast rates would be at just 4.5% by the end of this year. Mortgage rates closely track the movement of the 10-year Treasury yield, which spiked to the highest level since May of 2019 Tuesday. The yield is down slightly this morning to 2.37%. February New Home Sales Preview The Census Bureau releases its February new home sales report at 10:00 a.m. ET. That’s expected to show sales rose to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 805,000 units last month from 801,000 in January. But data from the Mortgage Bankers Association last week showed the number of new home purchase applications fell 1% from January to February. On an annual basis, those applications tumbled 3.9% compared to February 2021. In Case You Missed It Tesla (TSLA) shares rallied 7.9% Tuesday as the electric automaker opened its new gigafactory in Germany. CEO Elon Musk hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony at Giga-Berlin. Tesla company delivered its first German-made vehicles to 30 customers at the event. The company expects to produce more than 500,000 vehicles at the factory every year. Nvidia (NVDA) shares slipped 0.8% Tuesday despite the chipmaker unveiling new products. The company said its new H100 graphics chip can significantly speed up the computing time for some AI training models. The new GPU will be available in Q3 and will also be used to build Nvidia’s new “Eos” supercomputer. The company also unveiled a new processor chip, called the Grace CPU Superchip, that will be available in the first half of 2023.
Continue Reading -->Coffee With Greta: EU Split on Russian Oil Ban
Editor’s Note: Coffee With Greta is a FREE morning update from our newest contributor Greta Wall. Want to get it by email every day? Click here. ******** DJIA Futures: +143, (+0.4%) SPX Futures: +11 (+0.2%) NASDAQ Futures: +7 (+0.1%) Good morning friends! Futures are higher as the market weighs hawkish comments from the Fed Chair. Meanwhile, the European Union is split on a Russian oil ban. Let’s get right to it! EU Leaders Split on Russian Oil Ban Oil prices are up slightly as officials in the European Union have been unable to agree on a potential oil embargo against Russia. West Texas Intermediate crude futures are up just 0.5% at $112.65 per barrel with Brent crude futures rising 0.9% to $116.71 per barrel. Some EU countries say the bloc is too dependent on Russian energy to withstand a ban. The American Petroleum Institute is set to release its supply report later today which is not expected to show any change in crude inventory in the U.S. Tesla to Open German Gigafactory Tesla (TSLA) shares are up 0.6% ahead of the open as the electric automaker prepares to open its new gigafactory in Germany. CEO Elon Musk will cut the red ribbon at Giga Berlin today. In a tweet, he said he was “excited to hand over the first production cars” made at the factory. Excited to hand over the first production cars made by Giga Berlin-Brandenburg tomorrow! — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 21, 2022 The automaker sees the factory producing up to 500,000 vehicles annually. Alibaba Pops After Upping Buyback Program Alibaba (BABA) shares are surging 9.6% in premarket trade after increasing the size of its share buyback program. The company will now buyback $25 billion worth of shares by March 2024. That’s up from the previous $15 billion. In a statement, Alibaba’s Deputy Chief Financial Officer said, “Alibaba’s stock price does not fairly reflect the company’s value given our robust financial health and expansion plans”. Nike Jumps on Earnings Beat Nike (NKE) shares are up 5% ahead of the open after beating fiscal Q3 expectations. The sportswear company reported earnings of $0.87 per share on $10.87 billion in revenue. That topped analysts’ expectations for EPS of $0.71 on $10.59 billion in revenue. Sales rose 9% year-over-year in North America amid strong demand from consumers returning to stores. Nike’s CEO said, “Marketplace demand continues to significantly exceed available inventory supply”. Powell Says Inflation is Too High Fed Chair Jerome Powell vowed to be tough on inflation Monday, admitting the Central Bank “widely underestimated” how long it would last. In a speech at the National Association for Business Economics Conference, Powell said, “The labor market is very strong, and inflation is much too high”. He said the Central Bank will continue on its path of interest rate hikes to combat those inflation pressures and they’re willing to be aggressive if needed. Powell said the Fed is open to larger rate hikes than 25 basis points and is willing to move rates past neutral and “into a more restrictive stance” if needed. The Dow snapped a 5-day winning streak Monday following those hawkish comments from Powell. In Case You Missed It Boeing (BA) shares fell 3.6% Monday after a 737-800 crash in China. China’s aviation authority confirmed the plane, operated by China Eastern Airlines, crashed with 132 people on board in the mountains of southern China Monday. Officials say there are no signs of any survivors. Boeing said it is ready to assist in the investigation. Alleghany (Y) shares surged 24.8% Monday after Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) announced it’s buying the insurance company. Berkshire will buy the company in an all-cash $11.6 billion deal. This is Warren Buffett’s biggest acquisition since 2016. Alleghany will still operate independently after the acquisition.
Continue Reading -->Coffee With Greta: EU Considers Russian Oil Ban
Editor’s Note: Coffee With Greta is a FREE morning update from our newest contributor Greta Wall. Want to get it by email every day? Click here. ******** DJIA Futures: -86 (-0.3%) SPX Futures: -4 (-0.1%) NASDAQ Futures: -43 (-0.3%) Good morning friends! Futures are slipping after the market’s best week since 2020. Let’s get right to it! Oil Prices Rally as EU Considers Russian Ban Oil prices are up as some the European Union considers a ban on Russian oil imports. West Texas Intermediate crude futures are up 3.8% at nearly $109 per barrel with Brent crude futures rising 4.2% to over $112 per barrel. Houthi rebels in Yemen also attacked a Saudi Aramco refinery over the weekend, prompting more concerns about supply. Nickel Continues to Plummet Nickel prices plunged in trading on the London Metal Exchange today. The three-month contract hit its new limit-down level of 15% at the open of trade, tumbling to $31,380 per metric ton. Nickel has been in a freefall since trading resumed last week after being halted on March 8 when prices more than doubled to over $100,000. Prices have been higher on the LME than on the Shanghai Futures Exchange. Reuters reported that difference has caused trading volume to be low with few buyers willing to pay the higher price. Zelenskyy Warns of WWIII Ukrainian President Volodmyr Zelenskyy warned Sunday that the war in his country may lead to World War III. In an interview with CNN, he said if peace talks fail between Kyiv and Moscow “that would mean that this is a third world war”. Negotiations are ongoing between the two sides as fighting continues in Ukraine. Civilians were escorted out of the eastern port city of Mariupol by pro-Russian separatists over the weekend. Russia has demanded Ukrainian forces surrender in the city. Data from the UN shows more than 3.3 million people have fled Ukraine since Russia invaded on February 24. President Biden will visit Brussels Thursday for an in-person NATO summit. The White House announced he will then visit Poland Friday but he will not travel to Ukraine. Boeing Falls After Plane Crash in China Boeing (BA) shares are down 6.4% ahead of the open after a 737-800 crash in China. China’s aviation authority confirmed the plane, operated by China Eastern Airlines, crashed with 132 people on board. Officials say contact was lost with the flight over Wuzhou, in the Guangxi mountains. The number of casualties and cause of the crash is still unknown. The FAA and Boeing are expected to assist Chinese regulators in the investigation. The 737 that crashed was not a MAX, which has not yet returned to flight in China. Insurance Company Alleghany Pops on Berkshire Deal Alleghany (Y) is surging 24.9% in premarket trade after Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) announced it is buying the insurance company. Berkshire will buy the company for $11.6 billion, or $848.02 per share. This is Warren Buffett’s biggest deal since 2016. Buffett said, “Berkshire will be the perfect permanent home for Alleghany, a company that I have closely observed for 60 years.” Alleghany’s CEO also praised the deal, calling it a “terrific transaction for Alleghany’s owners, businesses, customers, and employees.” Alleghany will still operate independently after the acquisition. In Case You Missed It Last week was the best for the S&P 500 since November 2020. From Monday to Friday, the index surged 6.1%. The Dow rose 5.5% for the week while the Nasdaq jumped 8.1%. The rally came as growth stocks rebounded after the Fed provided more clarity on its future plans. The bank expects 6 more rate hikes this year. U.S. health officials are monitoring the spread of the Covid Omicron subvariant known as BA.2. Officials say it will likely cause an uptick in cases in the U.S. The subvariant is said to be 50% to 60% more contagious than Omicron but no more severe. The new variant reportedly accounts for 25% to 30% of Covid cases in the U.S.
Continue Reading -->Coffee With Greta: Futures Slip to End a Strong Week
Editor’s Note: Coffee With Greta is a FREE morning update from our newest contributor Greta Wall. Want to get it by email every day? Click here. ******** DJIA Futures: -171 (-0.5%) SPX Futures: -27 (-0.6%) NASDAQ Futures: -94 (-0.7%) Good morning friends! Futures are lower as the market digests the latest news on the war in Ukraine. Let’s get right to it! St. Louis Fed President Calls for More Aggressive Rate Hikes St. Louis Fed President James Bullard is calling for the Central Bank to be more aggressive on inflation than currently planned. Bullard released a statement today explaining his dissent vote on Wednesday’s rate hike. He was the only FOMC member to vote no on the 0.25% hike, preferring a 0.5% hike instead. Bullard believes the Fed should hike rates to over 3% by the end of this year, which is double the bank’s current plan. He emphasized inflation is hurting lower-income households the most. “The burden of excessive inflation is particularly heavy for people with modest incomes and wealth and for those with limited ability to adjust to a rising cost of living,” said Bullard. Oil Prices Fall Flat Oil prices are down slightly this morning as the market monitors talks between Russia and Ukraine. West Texas Intermediate crude futures are down 0.4% to $102 per barrel with Brent crude futures slipping 0.6% to $106 per barrel. The Kremlin said an agreement still has not been reached in peace talks with Ukraine. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is reportedly planning to visit Saudi Arabia and the UAE soon to ask them to help offset the expected supply loss from Russian oil. Russian missile strikes hit an aircraft repair center on the outskirts of the western Ukrainian city of Lviv today. The attack shows Russia expanding its attacks to new parts of Ukraine. Ukraine’s State Emergency Services also announced one civilian was killed in an airstrike in Kyiv that hit an apartment building. Congress Moves to Revoke Russia’s Protected Trading Status The House voted Thursday to revoke Russia of its status as a “most favored nation” trading partner. That measure passed in a 424-8 vote in the lower chamber. It will now be sent to the Senate, where it’s expected to pass. Stripping Russia of the status will allow the U.S. to impose tariffs on Russian exports. The U.S. also accused Moscow of war crimes in Ukraine after Moscow reportedly bombed a theater with civilians inside in the city of Mariupol. Nickel Prices Plummet Nickel prices continued to fall in trading on the London Metal Exchange. Prices tumbled 12% right at the open of trading toda to $36,915 per metric ton, hitting limit down. The LME has imposed price limits this week in an effort to stabilize trading after nickel prices more than double last week to over $100,000 per metric ton. Russia is the world’s third largest producer of nickel. GameStop Tumbles After Surprise Q4 Loss GameStop (GME) shares are tumbling 8.5% ahead of the open after the video game retailer reported an unexpected loss in Q4. The company reported an adjusted loss of $1.86 per share on $2.25 billion in revenue. That sharply missed analysts’ expectations for a profit of $0.85 per share and is a decline from $1.19 EPS a year ago. But revenue topped expectations for $2.16 billion. GameStop confirmed its plans to launch an NFT marketplace by the end of Q2. The company did not provide full-year guidance. FedEx Profits Fall Short FedEx (FDX) shares are down 2.8% in premarket trade after missing fiscal Q3 profit expectations. The shipping giant reported adjusted earnings of $4.59 per share on $23.6 billion in revenue. Analysts were expecting adjusted EPS of $4.65 on $23.5 billion in revenue. FedEx blamed the miss on higher costs for transportation and wages. The company maintained its fiscal 2022 guidance, forecasting full-year earnings of $21 per share. Existing Home Sales Preview The National Association of Realtors releases its existing home sales report at 10:00 a.m. ET. Economists expect that to show sales dropped to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 6.13 million units in February. The existing home market has been tight with buyer demand surging while supply remains at a record low. That imbalance has pushed prices to record highs and priced some buyers out of the market. In Case You Missed It Weekly jobless claims beat expectations last week as the labor market nears full employment. The Labor Department reported 214,000 Americans filed initial unemployment claims vs 215,000 expected. It’s the lowest total since January 1. Continuing claims fell by 7,000 to 1.42 million vs 1.48 million expected. Berkshire Hathaway Class A (BRK.A) surged to a fresh record Thursday, closing 2.9% higher at $518,438 per share. The stock rallied as Warren Buffett upped his stake in the energy sector. A new filing shows Berkshire purchased more than 18 million shares of Occidental Petroleum (OXY) in seven separate transactions between Monday and Wednesday this week. The conglomerate now holds more than 136 million OXY shares or 14.6% of the company. OXY jumped 9.5% on Thursday.
Continue Reading -->Coffee With Greta: Stocks Slip After Big Rally
Editor’s Note: Coffee With Greta is a FREE morning update from our newest contributor Greta Wall. Want to get it by email every day? Click here. ******** DJIA Futures: -123 (-0.4%) SPX Futures: -18 (-0.4%) NASDAQ Futures: -84 (-0.6%) Good morning friends! Futures are lower as the market gives up its two-day rally and focus turns back to the war in Ukraine. Let’s get right to it! Oil Prices Jump on Supply Warning Oil prices are surging today after the International Energy Agency sent out a supply warning. West Texas Intermediate crude futures are up about 6% and back above $100 per barrel. Brent crude futures are also 6% higher, topping $104 per barrel. The IEA is expecting a loss of three million barrels per day of Russian oil and products next month, which outweighs the expected demand drop of 600,000 barrels per day. Russia denied a Financial Times report that there had been “substantial progress” in peace talks with Ukraine. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, “On the whole, that’s wrong… When there’s progress, we’ll tell you.” The two sides are expected to meet again today. Weekly Jobless Claims Beat Expectations Weekly jobless claims fell to the lowest level since the beginning of 2022. The Labor Department reported 214,000 Americans filed initial unemployment claims last week. That’s down 15,000 from the previous week and better than expectations for 215,000. It’s the lowest total since January 1 and shows the economy nearing full employment. Continuing claims fell by seven million to 1.42 million vs 1.48 million expected. Housing Starts, Building Permits U.S. home construction rose more than expected last month. The Census Bureau reports housing starts rose 6.8% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.77 million units in February. That was better than economists’ expectations for a SAAR of 1.70 million units. Building permits for future projects meantime fell 1.9% to a SAAR of 1.86 million units vs 1.85 million units expected. This comes a day after the National Association of Homebuilders sentiment index fell to a 6-month low at 79. Confidence in current sales conditions fell 3 points to 86 while sentiment about sales conditions over the next 6 months plummeted 10 points to 70. Builders have struggled with high material costs, supply shortages, and labor shortages amid record-high buyer demand. Nickel Trading Resumes Nickel trading was once again resumed on the London Metal Exchange today after being halted Wednesday. The exchange placed an 8% up or down limit on the metal. The three-month contract hit limit-down right at the open, falling to $41,945 per metric ton. Trading was halted last week as nickel prices more than doubled and topped $100,000 per metric ton. Fed Turns Hawkish The Federal Reserve raised the federal funds rate by 25 basis points to a range of 0.25% to 0.5% as expected on Wednesday. St Louis Fed President James Bullard was the only FOMC member to vote against the 0.25% rate hike and in favor of a 0.5% hike instead. The Central Bank also penciled in 6 more rate hikes this year, three in 2023, and zero in 2024. Treasury yields popped on the news with the 10-year yield jumping 8 basis points to a high of 2.24%, the highest level since 2019. Currently that rate is _______. Fed Chair Jerome Powell told reporters they could begin their balance sheet reduction as early as May and that process will move faster this time than last. It took the Fed 2 years between 2017 and 2019 to reduce the size of its $4.5 trillion balance sheet following the 2008 recession. The bank currently holds nearly $9 trillion of Treasury and mortgage-back securities on its balance sheet. Berkshire Hathaway Soars to $500,000 Berkshire Hathaway Class A (BRK.A) shares topped $500,000 for the first time Wednesday. The stock closed 1.3% higher at $504,036 per share. The rally pushed Berkshire Hathaway’s market cap to $737 billion, making it the sixth most valuable company in the U.S. BRK.A is up 11.8% YTD as it’s benefited from the market rotation back into value stocks. The company also owns 90% of Berkshire Hathaway Energy which has a portfolio of 11 energy companies across the U.S. Those businesses have benefited from surging energy prices in recent months. In Case You Missed It U.S. retail sales slowed more than expected in February as inflation squeezes consumers. The Census Bureau reported retail sales rose 0.3% last month to $658.1 billion vs 0.4% expected. Retail sales excluding autos rose 0.2% vs 0.8% expected. The data is not adjusted for inflation and the CPI rose 0.8% in February. January’s retail sales were revised higher to 4.9% from 3.8%. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy addressed Congress virtually Wednesday morning. He called for the U.S. to implement a no-fly zone over Ukraine, asked for more weapons to be sent to Ukraine, and for more sanctions on Russia. Zelenskyy compared the Russian invasion to Pearl Harbor and 9/11 saying, “Just like nobody else expected it, you could not stop it. Our country experienced the same every day, right now at this moment, every night, for three weeks now.”
Continue Reading -->Coffee With Greta: Fed Decision Day
Editor’s Note: Coffee With Greta is a FREE morning update from our newest contributor Greta Wall. Want to get it by email every day? Click here. ******** DJIA Futures: +340 (+1%) SPX Futures: +45 (+1.1%) NASDAQ Futures: +203 (+1.5%) Good morning friends! Futures are higher as the market gears up for today’s Fed decision. Let’s get right to it! Fed Decision Day The market is laser focused on the Fed as the Central Bank is set to announce its rate hike decision at 2:00 p.m. ET. This will be the bank’s first rate hike since 2018 after lowering rates to near zero in March 2020. CME Group’s FedWatch Tool shows more than 98% of traders believe this will be a 0.25% rate hike. The market is also hoping for more clarity on the bank’s plans to reduce the size of its balance sheet. Chairman Jerome Powell told Congress in early March that process will start after rate hikes have begun. Consumer inflation pressures hit a fresh 40-year high in February as the CPI surged 7.9% year-over-year. And wholesale inflation hit a record high as the PPI skyrocketed 10% annually. Retail Sales Slow U.S. retail sales slowed more than expected in February as consumers were dragged down by inflation. The Census Bureau reported retail sales rose 0.3% last month to $658.1 billion. That was weaker than economists’ expectations for 0.4%. January’s retail sales were revised higher to show a gain of 4.9% vs the previous 3.8%. Core retail sales, which exclude gas auto sales, rose 0.2% vs expectations for a 0.9% increase. Import Prices Surge U.S. import prices jumped 1.4% in February, continuing to fuel inflation. That was better than economists’ expectations for a 1.6% increase and lower than 1.9% in January. January and February combined marked the largest increase in 11 years. Oil made up most of February’s gain, rising 8.1%. Excluding fuel, import prices rose just 0.8% last month. Export prices meantime jumped 3%, the largest increase on record, and surged 16.6% year-over-year. Oil Falls Below $100 Oil prices are rising slightly today after tumbling below $100 on Tuesday. West Texas Intermediate crude futures are up 0.6% to just over $97 per barrel while Brent crude futures are up 0.2% to just over $100 per barrel. The oil market has cooled amid ongoing peace talks between Ukraine and Russia. Ukraine’s President said today those talks were sounding “more realistic” but more time is needed. Russia’s Foreign Minister said some deals are close. Nickel Trading Shut Down Again Nickel trading resumed on the London Metal Exchange today after a week-long halt. The LME halted trading March 8 after Nickel prices more than doubled and topped $100,000 per tonne for the first time in history. Price moves today were limited to 5% above or below the last closing price before trading was suspended. But LME was forced to halt trading again after an error allowed trades to go through below the daily price limit. The exchange said it is investigating the glitch and will try to reopen the market ASAP. The trades executed below the limit will be canceled. LME also imposed 15% limits on aluminum, copper, lead, tin, and zinc. This is the first time the exchange has ever placed limits on physical contracts. Metals trading has been volatile amid the war in Ukraine as both Russia and Ukraine are key global suppliers of several metals. Starbucks CEO Retiring Starbucks (SBUX) shares are up 5.7% ahead of the open after CEO Kevin Johnson announced his retirement. In a statement, Johnson said, “A year ago, I signaled to the Board that as the global pandemic neared an end, I would be considering retirement from Starbucks. I feel this is a natural bookend to my 13 years with the company.” Founder and former CEO Howard Schultz will take over as interim CEO. Starbucks plans to find a permanent replacement by the fall. Chair of the board, Mellody Hobson said, “We have a great slate of candidates. People want this job, and we’re fully confident we’ll have a new leader in the fall.” Raskin Withdraws Fed Nomination In other Fed related news, Sarah Bloom Raskin withdrew her nomination to serve on the Federal Reserve board Tuesday. Raskin had been nominated by President Biden to be the Central Bank’s next vice chair for supervision. But she faced an uphill battle for confirmation in the Senate over her views on climate policy. All 50 Senate Republicans were opposed to her confirmation. Then West Virginia Democrat Senator Joe Manchin confirmed this week he would not confirm her. That made it virtually impossible for her nomination to move forward in the 50-50 Senate. Homebuilder Sentiment Preview The National Association of Homebuilders releases its sentiment index at 10:00 a.m. ET. The survey is expected to show confidence among builders slipped two points this month to 80. Builders have seen their business boom due to low supply of existing homes on the market. But they’ve faced severe supply chain and labor shortages as they struggle to keep up with record high demand. In Case You Missed It U.S. airline stocks rallied Tuesday after three major airlines hiked their 2022 revenue forecasts. Delta (DAL) shares jumped 8.7%, while United (UAL) surged 9.2%, and Southwest (LUV) rose 4.9%. All three companies raised their revenue forecasts, predicting a strong rebound in travel demand this year. Delta said its bookings are already outpacing 2019 levels. Tesla raised prices for the second time in a week amid high inflation pressures. The automaker hiked prices on all of its models in the U.S. as well as the Model Y and Model 3 in China. TSLA shares rose 4.6% Tuesday. The price hikes range from $2,000 to $10,000 depending on model. Tesla did not specify the reason for the price hikes but the decision comes days after CEO Elon Musk said they were “seeing significant recent inflation pressure in raw materials & logistics”.
Continue Reading -->Coffee With Greta: Wholesale Inflation Surges 10%
Editor’s Note: Coffee With Greta is a FREE morning update from our newest contributor Greta Wall. Want to get it by email every day? Click here. ******** DJIA Futures: +172 (+0.5%) SPX Futures: +28 (+0.7%) NASDAQ Futures: +130 (+1%) Good morning friends! Futures are higher on day one of the Fed’s two-day policy meeting. Let’s get right to it! Wholesale Inflation Hits Double Digits The Bureau of Labor Statistics Producer Price Index shows prices surged 10% year-over-year in February. That was in line with expectations and is the second straight month of double digit wholesale inflation after January was revised higher. On a monthly basis, prices rose 0.8% vs 0.9% expected. Nearly 40% of that gain was due to the gasoline index, which jumped 14.8% year-over-year. The Core PPI, which excludes food, energy, and trade services, jumped 0.2% monthly and 6.6% annually. PPI is a forward indicator for consumer prices as manufacturers and service providers pass-down higher costs. This new inflation data comes on day one of the Fed’s two-day policy meeting. The central bank is expected to announce its first rate hike since 2018 on Wednesday and provide more clarity on its plans to reduce the size of its balance sheet. Oil Prices Slide to 2-Week Low Oil prices are continuing to tumble, hitting a new two-week low. West Texas Intermediate crude futures are down more than 8% to just under $95 per barrel with Brent crude futures falling nearly 8% to under $99 per barrel. The two-day drop in prices comes amid continued talks between Russia and Ukraine and as new Covid lockdowns in China threaten to weaken global demand. China is the largest importer of crude oil in the world. Russia, Ukraine Continue Ceasefire Negotiations Ukraine’s capital city of Kyiv announced a 35-hour curfew will begin tonight after several missile strikes on residential buildings in the city. A fifth round of talks between Ukrainian and Russian officials is set to take place today after the fourth round failed on Monday. Several NATO prime ministers are now heading to Ukraine to meet with the president and prime minister. The PMs of Poland, Slovenia, and the Czech Republic will visit Kyiv today. The group said, “The purpose of the visit is to confirm the unequivocal support of the entire European Union for the sovereignty and independence of Ukraine.” The EU and U.K. both rejected Russia’s “most favored nation” trading status today, allowing harsh tariffs to be imposed on Russian goods. Britain is also set to ban exports of high-end luxury goods to Russia. The EU approved new sanctions today banning transactions with state-owned businesses, a ban of Russian steel imports, a ban on new investments in Russia’s energy security, and a ban on luxury goods exports to Russia. Traders Sell Risk, Treasury Yields Spike Tech stocks sold off sharply on Monday as traders reevaluate their risk positions with the impending Fed rate hike. The Nasdaq was the largest loser of the session, closing 2% lower on Monday. High-growth tech stocks took the brunt of that drop. Cathie Wood’s Ark Innovation ETF (ARKK) plunged 6% and is now down nearly 45% YTD. ARKK shares are up 1.3% ahead of the open. Netflix (NFLX) shares have officially given up all of their pandemic gains. The streaming giant closed 2.7% lower Monday at $331.01 after notching out a new 52-week low at $329.82 earlier in the session. But NFLX shares are rebounding in premarket trade, up 1.7%. On the other side of that tech sell-off, Treasury yields popped. The 10-year yield hit a high of 2.145% Monday, its highest since July 2019. Currently the yield on the 10-year note is down 3 basis points to 2.11%. Airlines Raise Outlook Shares of the major airlines are rallying ahead of the open after hiking their revenue outlooks. Delta (DAL) shares are up 5.9%, United (UAL) is rallying 4.9%, and Southwest (LUV) shares are rising 4%. All three companies said air travel is rebounding from the Omicron slump and they expect travel demand to be stronger than previously forecast this year. Tesla Hikes Car Prices Tesla (TSLA) shares are flat in premarket trade after the electric automaker announced a price hike for its cars. The company raised prices on all models in the U.S. and the Model 3 and Model Y in China. This is the second increase in just a week. Tesla did not give a reason for the price hike but the decision comes after CEO Elon Musk warned about inflation pressures over the weekend. Tesla & SpaceX are seeing significant recent inflation pressure in raw materials & logistics — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 14, 2022 In a tweet Sunday he said, “Tesla & SPaceX are seeing significant recent inflation pressure in raw materials & logistics”. In Case You Missed It Lyft (LYFT) followed Uber’s (UBER) lead in adding a fuel surcharge for riders as gas prices remain at record highs. Lyft did not disclose how much that temporary charge will be but Uber’s fee will range between $0.45 to $0.55 per ride. The companies say that extra charge will go directly to drivers. Shares of the major vaccine makers popped on news of renewed Covid lockdowns in China Monday. Pfizer (PFE) shares jumped 3.9%, while BioNTech (BNTX) surged 12%, and Moderna (MRNA) rallied 8.6%. Shenzhen became the first city in China to be placed under a full lockdown with only essential businesses able to be open. That closure is prompting fears of more supply chain issues and worsening inflation as the city is a global tech hub and the fourth largest port in the world.
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