Reads
- China, Its Economy Flagging, Prods Consumers to Save Less and Spend More
- China’s Inflation Problem? It Has None
- It’s Time to Buy Japan
- Erdogan Names First Republic’s Ex-Exec as Central Bank Head
- UBS, Swiss Government Seal $10 Billion Loss Guarantee Deal
- Credit Suisse Puts Up China Brokerage Venture for Sale
- Bidenomics and Its Contradictions
- Fed Seen Ending Its 15-Month Hiking Campaign in Economist Survey
- Wall Street Economists Are Increasingly Less Worried About a 2023 Recession
- Binance Halts Trading in Dollars on Its U.S. Exchange
- A New Crypto Banking System Arises Under the Shadow of a Regulatory Crackdown
- Middle-Income Buyers Face the Most Severe Housing Shortage
- What All the Single Ladies (and Men) Say About the Economy
- More Startups Throw in the Towel, Unable to Raise Money for Their Ideas
- America Is Going Through an Oil Boom – and This Time It’s Different
- GM Will Join Tesla’s EV Charging Network in Step Closer to US Industry Standard
- Humans Are Biased. Generative AI Is Even Worse
- Meta Reveals Twitter Competitor It Plans to Launch as Stand-Alone App
- How Hasbro Plans to Revive Its Toy Business
- Energy Drinks Are Surging. So Are Their Caffeine Levels
- Eurozone Economy Into Recession
- One of Europe’s Poorest Nations Weighs Tax Revamp to Exit Crisis
- Russia, Oman Sign Agreement to Avoid Double Taxation
- Bank of Canada Lifts Rates to 22-Year High, Ending Four-Month Pause
- Treasury’s $1 Trillion Debt Deluge Threatens Market Calm
- Bonds Everywhere Suffer as Rate-Hike Fears Swamp Traders
- A $1 Trillion Borrowing Binge Looms After Debt Limit Standoff
- Binance Money Trail Reveals $70 Billion Flowing Through Silvergate, Signature
- Vessel Buildup Grows at West Coast Ports as Maritime Supply Chain Begins to Break, Echoing Covid Chaos
- Soaring EV Sales Could Still Leave World Short on Emissions Goal
- America’s Long, Tortured Journey to Build EV Batteries
- U.S. Struggles to Turn Steel Imports ‘Green’ With Tariffs
- New A.I. Chatbot Tutors Could Upend Student Learning
- GameStop Shares Fall as It Terminates CEO and Ryan Cohen Becomes Executive Chairman
- Google Ramps Up Return-to-Office Push by Using In-Person Attendance as Part of Employee Performance Reviews
- Does CNN’s Turmoil Mean There’s No Room on Cable for Independent News?
- Billionaires’ Row Was Built for the World’s Wealthiest. Has It Lived Up to Its Name?
- The Great Billionaire Takeover of European Soccer
- All About the Deep-Pocketed Saudi Wealth Fund That Rocked Golf
- How the PGA Tour and LIV Golf Fought Each Other Into a Merger
Todays Open Interest Change
PREMIUM
It's official! The S&P 500's (SP500) longest bear market since the 1940s has come to an end. The benchmark index closed up 0.6% to 4,294 on Thursday, vaulting it back into bull territory with a 20% advance from its October low. The rally has been powered, in large part, because of a handful of companies posting outsized gains, like Big Tech, Tesla (TSLA) and AI darling Nvidia (NVDA). There has also been somewhat of a resurgence in economic optimism, compared to the sentiment that plagued the market in 2022.
Snapshot: Going into the year, recession talk had been everywhere, though much of the hard landing fears have failed (so far) to materialize. The economy may be cooling down just enough, and despite the uncertainty out there, inflation remains far from its peak last summer and jobs numbers continuously surprise to the upside. A debt ceiling showdown has also been moved off the table, while things are looking brighter at the Federal Reserve in terms of less-restrictive monetary policy.
Speaking of the Fed, the central bank has been in a blackout period this week ahead of the FOMC meeting scheduled for June 13-14. Surprise hikes by the Australian and Canadian central banks have led to some slight revisions, but there is still a 77% probability the Fed will hold rates next week, according to the CME FedWatch Tool. Rate increases might resume again in July, though there is an overall feeling that the FOMC is near the end of its hiking agenda.
SA commentary: "It took weeks for the Bulls to finally make a run above 4,200, but it may only prove to be nothing more than a trap," writes Mott Capital Management, cautioning that the stock market has "made a big mistake." Investing Group Leader Lawrence Fuller counters by saying that while the "bull market has been led by the largest technology names so far, the breadth is starting to improve." The S&P 500 had been in bear market territory for a total of 248 trading days, which is the longest run since the cycle that finished on May 15, 1948 (which lasted 484 days). (20 comments)
Adding to the latest drama surrounding the 2024 presidential race, Donald Trump has been indicted on seven counts in a criminal case brought by the U.S. Justice Department, marking the first time a former president has faced federal charges. Trump was already indicted in a separate case back in April, though he has withstood many other controversies and probes, and could still run for president while indicted (and likely even if convicted). Digital World Acquisition Corp. (DWAC), the blank-check firm seeking to merge with Trump's media company - that owns the TRUTH Social app - will be on watch today. Any big headlines surrounding Trump has generally led to movement, though the SPAC did receive a delisting notice last month from Nasdaq. (22 comments)
Speaking of Twitter alternatives, Meta Platforms (META) has reportedly previewed its standalone app to employees that will directly compete with Elon Musk-owned platform. The new app, internally codenamed "Project 92," will be launched through Instagram as soon as possible. "We've been hearing from creators and public figures who are interested in having a platform that is sanely run, that they believe they can trust and rely on for distribution," said Chief Product Officer Chris Cox. Some celebrities have already committed to using the app, including DJ Slime, while Meta is also in talks with other public figures including Oprah Winfrey and the Dalai Lama. (17 comments)
EVs made by General Motors (GM) will be able to use Tesla's (TSLA) charging network from next year, expanding the Detroit automaker's access to 12,000 Superchargers. While the deal will initially require the use of an adapter, GM will integrate Tesla's North American Charging Standard connector design into its vehicles in 2025. The development follows a similar deal last month between Ford (F) and Tesla, and will likely see the latter's design become the industry standard in the U.S. SA analyst Dair Sansyzbayev still raised concerns over GM's market presence, saying the carmaker "is weakly positioned to face the unfavorable secular trend of rapid EV adoption." (59 comments)
Today's Markets
In Asia, Japan +2%. Hong Kong +0.5%. China +0.6%. India -0.4%.
In Europe, at midday, London -0.4%. Paris -0.3%. Frankfurt -0.3%.
Futures at 7:00, Dow -0.2%. S&P -0.2%. Nasdaq -0.1%. Crude +0.1% to $71.35. Gold flat at $1,978.10. Bitcoin +0.7% to $26,636.
Ten-year Treasury Yield +4 bps to 3.75%.
Today's Economic Calendar
10:00 Quarterly Services Survey
1:00 PM Baker Hughes Rig Count
Companies reporting earnings today »
What else is happening...
Meta's (META) Zuckerberg unfazed by Apple's (AAPL) AR/VR headset.
Google (GOOG, GOOGL) sets News Showcase U.S. launch for summer.
Why did Carvana (CVNA) surge? Optimistic outlook sparks a squeeze.
Moody's revises Coinbase (COIN) outlook to negative after SEC charges.
Tesla (TSLA) rallies again as Spain joins the Gigafactory target list.
DocuSign (DOCU) rises on double-digit revenue gain, boosted cash flows.
Goldman initiates five utilities at Buy, calls them 'decarbonization enablers'.
Signet Jewelers (SIG) slides after slashing its guidance for the year ahead.
White House mulls options for potential loss on student loan forgiveness.
AstraZeneca (AZN), Sanofi (SNY) get FDA panel nod for RSV therapy.