Baltic
Dry Index. 2291 -06 Brent Crude 82.31
Spot Gold 2126 US 2 Year Yield 4.54 -0.07
If you put the federal government in charge of the Sahara Desert, in 5 years there'd be a shortage of sand.
Milton Friedman.
In the stock casinos it’s still bubble on. But did Wall Street just send a different signal?
In USA politics, a Biden Joe Biden v Trump
Mulligan. Powell Day One. I’ll bet no
one mentions US Federal debt rising by an unsustainable trillion dollars every
hundred days!
Dow Jones ends down
over 400 points and Nasdaq suffers worst day in 3 weeks as Apple shares slump
U.S. stocks tumbled for a
second day on Tuesday as technology shares came under pressure, dragged down by
Apple’s continued slump, while investors remained cautious ahead of closely
watched remarks by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell and labor-market data,
both of which should offer more clues on the central bank’s interest-rate path
and the health of the economy.
More
Asia markets
mostly rise and reverse earlier losses; Hong Kong gains 2%
UPDATED WED, MAR 6 2024 12:27 AM EST
Asia-Pacific
markets reversed early declines to mostly rise Wednesday, with Hong Kong stocks
leading gains in the region.
The Hang Seng index
rose more than 2%, while mainland Chinese stocks slid, sending the CSI 300 down
0.6%.
This comes after a tech slide on
Wall Street led by Apple,
following a report that iPhone sales dropped in China.
Apple shares slipped almost 3% in
U.S. trading after a report from Counterpoint Research found iPhone
sales plunged in China in the first six weeks of 2024.
Investors monitored shares of Apple suppliers in Taiwan and South Korea.
The
Taiwan weighted index gained
0.63%, extending a record high in the previous session, with shares of Taiwan
Semiconductor Manufacturing Company trading
close to the flatline.
Shares of Samsung Electronics
fell 1.22%, while South Korea’s broader Kospi slid
0.44%. The small-cap Kosdaq was up 0.49%.
The news arrives after China’s
CSI 300 index hit over three-month highs Tuesday after the
country set its economic growth target at “around
5%” for 2024 during its “Two Sessions” meeting.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 dipped
marginally, while the broad-based Topix edged 0.27% higher.
In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 gained
marginally, closing at 7,730.9 even as its economy grew more than expected in
the fourth quarter, with gross domestic product up 1.5% year on year, compared
with the 1.4% rise estimated in a Reuters poll.
U.S. stocks slipped for a second session
Tuesday, dragged by steep declines in major tech names such as Apple.
The indexes slipped from record high territory.
The Nasdaq Composite fell
1.65% as technology stocks fell the most. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost
1.04% while the S&P 500 fell
1.02%.
Live
updates: Asia markets, Apple suppliers, Australia GDP (cnbc.com)
European markets
set for higher open ahead of UK budget statement
UPDATED WED, MAR 6 2024 12:48 AM EST
European
markets are heading for a higher open Tuesday as investors in the U.K. prepare
for the 2024 budget statement.
The budget, which will be
presented to the British Parliament by Chancellor Jeremy Hunt, outlines the
government’s plans for taxation and spending. He’s widely expected to announce
a cut to National Insurance tax.
In other news, futures linked
to the Nasdaq 100 rose on Tuesday night, following a sharp selloff for all
three major averages.
Investors will be watching Fed
Chair Jerome Powell’s testimony before the House Financial
Services Committee on Wednesday. They will be seeking more clarity on where the
central bank stands on monetary policy and looking for clues on the pace and
timing of anticipated interest rate cuts this year. The central bank leader
will speak before the Senate Banking Committee on Thursday.
Asia-Pacific
markets were mixed Wednesday, with Hong Kong stocks leading
gains in the region and up over 2%. Mainland Chinese stocks slid, sending the
CSI 300 down 0.6%, after a tech slide on Wall Street led by Apple, following a
report that iPhone sales dropped in China.
European
markets live updates: stocks, UK budget, data and earnings (cnbc.com)
Fed's Powell to set
election year stage with testimony on rate cuts, inflation
By Howard Schneider March 6, 2024 6:05 AM GMT
WASHINGTON, March 6 (Reuters) - With asset values
from stocks to crypto to homes piling higher, inflation still considered too
high, and worries of "exuberance" creeping into the conversation,
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Wednesday will update U.S. lawmakers on
the economy and prospects for interest rate cuts in a politically charged
election year.
The landscape he'll lay out is in many ways
encouraging, with the unemployment rate a low 3.7%, inflation by some measures
within striking distance of the Fed's 2% target, and the economy still growing
despite the tight credit conditions imposed by the central bank.
But the next steps remain uncertain, with recent
inflation readings stickier than expected in key ways, and some Fed officials
and outside analysts concerned the U.S. economy remains too strong for price
pressures to fully recede - an argument for rate cuts to be delayed further
than anticipated.
Powell kicks off two days of testimony with a 10
a.m. ET (1500 GMT) hearing before the House Financial Services Committee,
explaining to lawmakers who face inflation-weary voters this November why he is
confident price pressures will keep easing without upending the job market or
conversely why the window for a "soft landing" may be narrowing.
The best-case outcome
"is hardly assured," Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic said on Monday in the
last policymaker comments before Powell's House testimony. Bostic fretted
"pent-up exuberance" among businesses could lead to a spending surge
and renewed inflation if the Fed cuts rates too soon.
The comment somewhat echoed Alan Greenspan, the former Fed chair
who three decades ago called out the "irrational exuberance" driving
a developing bubble in technology stocks.
More
Fed's
Powell to set election year stage with testimony on rate cuts, inflation |
Reuters
Finally, more on so you really, really, really, want to own and drive an EV. Well maybe not a Chinese made EV. Approx. 16 minutes.
Explodes
While Charging, Driving, Parking, Even in Tunnels - China's EVs Are Deadly
Explodes
While Charging, Driving, Parking, Even in Tunnels - China's EVs Are Deadly
(youtube.com)
Milton Friedman.
Global Inflation/Stagflation/Recession
Watch.
Given
our Magic Money Tree central banksters and our spendthrift politicians,
inflation now needs an entire section of its own.
Corporate greed is pushing prices up even as the main drivers of inflation keep falling, Fundstrat's Tom Lee says
Mon, 4 March 2024 at 11:28 pm GMT
Corporate greed is the reason why
inflation was hotter than expected to start the year, according to Fundstrat's
head of research Tom Lee.
Speaking to CNBC on Friday, Lee pointed to the slight uptick
in January consumer inflation, with prices rising 3.1% year-over-year. PCE inflation, the Fed's preferred inflation measure, rose 2.4%, in
line with economists' estimates.
That's fueled some fear
that inflation could be poised for a
resurgence, which would prompt
the Federal Reserve to push back its timeline for rate cuts. But the main
drivers of inflation have been dropping, Lee said. Core inflation is
"basically" already at the Fed's 2% price target, he noted.
That suggests the
hotter-than-expected inflation reading to start 2024 was likely due to
corporate "greedflation," or simply, businesses hiking prices because
they're able to.
"The arching reality is that
inflation is falling ... A lot of companies raise prices in the month of
January and it doesn't get captured," Lee said. "January and February
tend to have that high, what they call residual seasonality," he added.
The underlying message is that
investors can still breathe easy, as inflation is still on the decline and the
Fed is still on track to lower interest rates this year. Despite rising talk
of no rate cuts in 2024, markets see a 50% chance rates are lowered by at least
100 basis points by December, according to the CME FedWatch tool.
"I think if there are no
cuts this year, the stock market has to reassess what it's thinking in terms of
the trajectory of inflation, the probability of a soft-landing, and of course,
all these things would weigh on what would happen to multiples," Lee
warned.
Lee though, who nailed his stock
market outlook in 2023, is forecasting another positive year for stocks.
Previously, he said the S&P 500 could soar as high as
5,500 by year-end, implying a
gain of about 16% for the year.
Covid-19 Corner
This section will continue until it becomes unneeded.
COVID-19
'pandemic babies' developed 'fascinating' protection against common condition
March 3, 2024
Lockdowns imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic saw changes in newborn babies that may have protected them against allergies, according to a study.
Infants raised when coronavirus social distancing restrictions were in place were found
by Irish researchers to have more of the beneficial microbes acquired after
birth from their mother, which could act as a defence against disease.
The scientists believe this
led "pandemic babies" to have lower than expected rates of allergic
conditions, such as to food, compared to pre-COVID babies.
The
findings, published in the journal Allergy, highlighted the gut health benefits
for the youngsters as a result of the COVID-19 lockdowns,
including lower rates of infection and consequent antibiotic use, and increased
duration of breastfeeding.
The ecosystem of naturally-occurring
bacteria in the gut, known as the microbiome, plays an essential role in human
health.
The researchers analysed faecal
samples from 351 babies born in the first three months of the pandemic,
comparing these with a pre-pandemic group.
Online questionnaires were used to
collect information on diet, home environment and health.
Stool samples were collected at six,
12 and 24 months and allergy testing was performed at 12 and 24 months.
The study highlighted significant
differences in the microbiome development of babies born during lockdown
periods when compared to pre-pandemic babies.
It revealed only about 5% of the
lockdown babies had developed a food allergy at age one, compared to 22.8% in
the pre-COVID group.
Fewer infections through not being
exposed to germs also reduced the need for antibiotics, which kill good
bacteria.
Of the lockdown babies only 17%
needed an antibiotic by the age of one.
In the pre-pandemic group, 80% of
infants had taken antibiotics by 12 months.
COVID-19 'pandemic babies' developed 'fascinating' protection against common condition (msn.com)
Technology
Update.
With events happening fast in the
development of solar power and graphene, among other things, I’ve added this
section. Updates as they get reported.
Graphjet Technology
Accelerates Production Timeline at State-of-the-Art Manufacturing Plant in
Malaysia
Mon, 4 March 2024 at 4:11 pm GMT
Kuala Lumpur,
Malaysia, March 04, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Graphjet Technology
(“Graphjet” or “the Company”), a leading developer of patented technologies to
produce graphite and graphene directly from agricultural waste, today announced
it has accelerated the timeline for its planned manufacturing plant in Malaysia.
Graphjet is advancing construction of
its first manufacturing plant in the Kuantan district of Pahang State in
Malaysia, which is expected to be commissioned by the second quarter of 2024.
The completion of the facility will enable the Company to begin producing
graphite to supply its customer Toyoda and generate revenues in 2024.
The facility is expected to recycle
up to 9,000 tonnes of palm kernels, which is agricultural waste, to produce up
to 3,000 tonnes of graphite per year. Over time, the Company expects to scale
the facility to 13,000 tonnes of annual graphite production by second half of
2026. Graphjet’s green technology uses an environmentally friendly methods in a
completely circular solution using waste and its processes eliminate emissions
and pollutions.
“We are excited to accelerate our
plans for our manufacturing capabilities and production at our plant in the
Kuantan district of Pahang State to address the growing demand for graphite and
graphene outside of China,” said Aiden Lee, Graphjet’s CEO. “There is
incredible whitespace opportunity for the use of palm oil waste in Malaysia to
be leveraged to produce graphite and graphene, which Graphjet is capitalizing
on. This expedited construction and commissioning timeline for our facility
will enable us to support our customer Toyoda and generate revenues in the near
term. We look forward to establishing ourselves as a leading supplier of
graphite as our current and prospective customers seek alternatives to navigate
China’s restrictions.”
More
You
cannot simultaneously have free immigration and a welfare state.
Milton Friedman.
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