Baltic
Dry Index. 2176 +75 Brent Crude 83.45
Spot
Gold 2158 US 2 Year Yield 4.50 -0.05
John Maynard Keynes.
In the global stock casinos, the Fed Chairman Powell rate cutting boom.
What’s not to like. After all it’s a US
Presidential election year, so in addition to the Biden Joe Biden
boosting interest rate cuts, the Dems and Reps will be promising for free cash
to bribe the voters.
Besides, President Biden Joe Biden
just said that the US economy “is the envy of the world”. More on that below.
Get long Nvidia we’re all going to become
billionaires, right?
Asia markets rise
as Fed’s Powell signals rate cuts are on the horizon
UPDATED FRI, MAR 8 2024 12:01 AM EST
Asia-Pacific markets rose after comments from
U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell hinted that interest rate cuts may not
be too distant if inflation signals support.
Speaking to the
Senate Banking Committee, Powell didn’t offer an exact timeline for rate cuts,
but noted they would go down soon.
“We’re waiting to
become more confident that inflation is moving sustainably at 2%. When we do
get that confidence, and we’re not far from it, it’ll be appropriate to begin
to dial back the level of restriction,” Powell said in response to a question
about rates and inflation.
In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 was
on pace for a third straight day of gains, up 0.8% to hit a record high.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 traded
0.67% higher, while the Topix slid 0.30% as January household spending fell
more than expected, dropping 6.3% year on year compared with the 4.3% expected
by economists polled by Reuters.
The metric gives
a clue to whether inflation is outpacing wage gains, which is being closely
watched by the Bank of Japan.
South Korea’s Kospi climbed
1.3%, while the small cap Kosdaq was up 0.49%.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index rose
1.15%, while China’s CSI 300 rose 0.14%.
More
Asia
markets live updates: Powell testimony; SOTU, Japan household spending
(cnbc.com)
S&P 500 jumps
1% for fresh closing record, Nasdaq pops 1.5% to touch all-time high: Live
updates
UPDATED THU, MAR 7 2024 5:51 PM EST
Stocks rose
Thursday, pushing the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite back
to record highs, as hope over easing inflation and gains in tech aided Wall
Street’s midweek bounce.
The broad S&P 500 advanced
1.03% to 5,157.36, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite climbed 1.51% to
16,273.38. Both notched all-time highs during the session, while the S&P
500 also clinched a closing record. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained
130.30 points, or 0.34%, to close at 38,791.35.
Information technology and
communication services stocks led the S&P 500 to that record. Intel was
the best performer in the Dow with a gain of more than 3%.
Investor optimism was boosted
after the European Central Bank lowered forecasts for annual inflation and
growth on Thursday, though the bank also held
key interest rates steady. That can be taken as a positive signal on
the international inflation front.
The ECB’s announcement comes
after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell told Congress on Wednesday that he
expects interest rates to come down this year. While Powell said that the Fed
was not immediately ready to begin cutting, he told the Senate Banking
Committee on Thursday that the central bank isn’t
far from having the confidence it needs on inflation to start.
“The market was expecting it —
and they’re finally hearing it from Fed officials,” said Adam Turnquist, chief
technical strategist at LPL Financial, of Powell’s commentary around interest
levels. “It just adds to the confidence that rate cuts are coming.”
The S&P 500 was now up 0.4% this week
despite the rough start for stocks. The Nasdaq was near flat on the week, while
the Dow was still down around 0.8%.
The Nasdaq was helped by a gain
of about 4.5% in Nvidia,
the artificial intelligence darling whose shares have climbed more than 12%
this week. But Apple ended
the day slightly lower for its seventh straight losing session.
Investors are awaiting Friday’s
U.S. jobs report for insights into the state of the labor market, which has
shown resilience despite higher interest rates.
Stock
market today: Live updates (cnbc.com)
Morning Bid: Cracks
show in dollar's reign
Reuters March 8, 2024 5:32 AM GMT
A look at the day ahead in
European and global markets from Rae Wee
The dollar's 1% fall for the week thus far is set to be its
steepest in nearly three months, and tonight's U.S. jobs data is the next test
for the greenback.
It would take a very, very strong number to change the outlook
for U.S. rates, given how Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has already
opened the door to cutting rates even if unemployment stays low, as long as
inflation continues to slow.
Forecasts are for nonfarm
payrolls to have increased by 200,000 in February, down from January's blowout 353,000 gain.
"We believe fewer end-of-year layoffs produced (the)
temporary spike, and with the seasonal layoff period now behind us, we assume a
return towards a more normal pace of job gains," analysts at Goldman Sachs
said.
So for now, the first of the Fed's rate cut seems to be within
sight - unless next week's U.S. inflation report proves otherwise.
The dollar has thus far been
the clearest reflection of the easing expectations, with its recent move lower
and buoyant risk sentiment hoisting the Aussie back above the $0.6600 level.
Record peaks for gold and bitcoin this week also show
the dollar's vulnerability.
The euro , too, is at a two-month high and eyeing its best week
against the dollar in months, even as the European Central Bank (ECB) on
Thursday laid the ground for a rate cut in June and lowered its inflation
forecast.
Bank of Japan (BOJ) officials have begun ramping up their hawkish rhetoric and shown
increasing confidence that the Japanese economy was moving towards the BOJ's 2%
inflation target, just ahead of the central bank's March 18-19 policy meeting.
Wage talks from large Japanese companies also
look set to yield hefty pay hikes, paving the way for the BOJ to exit negative
interest rates, which some say could happen this month.
---- Key developments
that could influence markets on Friday:
- Germany industrial output (January)
- Germany industrial production (January)
- Euro zone revised Q4 GDP
- U.S. nonfarm payrolls (February)
Morning
Bid: Cracks show in dollar's reign | Reuters
Far
be it for me to rain on the Biden Joe Biden economic bragging rights
parade, but no Mr. President, the US economy is not “the envy of the world”.
Very
few in the world wish to turn their economies into another version of Argentina,
yet that is what the US economy is now setting out to achieve.
US
federal debt is 34.3 trillion, as of early January, and now rising by another
trillion of new debt every 100 days. US
GDP is roughly 27.3 trillion.
In
less than 5 years at a rate of 1 trillion of new debt every 100 days, US
federal debt will be over 52 trillion dollars, while the US GDP, assuming no
recession for 5 years, will likely be 33-35 trillion.
Argentina
or Bust, is not an economic policy the rest of the world wants to copy.
The boom, not the slump, is the right time for austerity at the Treasury.
John Maynard Keynes.
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.
Fed's Powell still expects rate cuts, but inflation
progress "not assured"
March 6, 2024
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, avoiding disputes over fiscal policy, energy, housing, Ukraine and other tangled issues, told U.S. lawmakers on Wednesday he and his colleagues would “keep our heads down” in a charged presidential election year, with interest rate cuts still likely in coming months but only if warranted by further evidence of falling inflation.
Rate cuts "really will depend on the path of the economy. Our focus is on maximum employment and price stability, and the incoming data as they affect the outlook, and those are the things we'll be looking at," Powell told the House Financial Services Committee. "We are just going to keep our heads down and do our jobs and try to deliver what the public is expecting from us."
"That's
the economy that we're trying to achieve. We're on a good path so far to be
able to get there," Powell said.
But the coming
decision of when and how far to reduce the benchmark interest rate is both
complex in an economy that is showing signs of continued disinflation but also
unexpected strength, and consequential in the upcoming rematch between
incumbent President Joe Biden, a Democrat, and Republican former President
Donald Trump.
More
Fed's Powell still expects rate cuts, but inflation progress "not assured" (msn.com)
Government machinery has been described as a marvelous labor saving device which enables ten men to do the work of one.
John Maynard Keynes.
Covid-19 Corner
This section will continue until it becomes unneeded.
New £450m vaccine hub announced in Budget
March 6, 2024
A £450m
vaccine manufacturing hub is set to be built in the north west of England, the
chancellor has announced.
Jeremy Hunt
said in his Budget speech that AstraZeneca planned to invest the £450m in Speke
in Liverpool as part of a total investment of £650m in the UK.
The Treasury
said the investment was dependent on "mutual agreement with the UK
government and third parties".
AstraZeneca it
demonstrated their "ongoing confidence in UK life sciences".
As part of the
£650m total investment the pharmaceutical company said it would also expand its
footprint on the Cambridge Biomedical Campus.
Mr Hunt said:
"AstraZeneca's investment plans are a vote of confidence in the
attractiveness of UK as a life sciences superpower and strengthen our
resilience for future health emergencies."
The investment
in Liverpool was said by the government to be for the research, development,
and manufacture of vaccines, "building on the site's current role in
supplying the world leading childhood vaccination programme".
The new
facility would be designed and built to be operationally net zero with power
supplied from renewable energy sources.
AstraZeneca's
chief executive officer, Sir Pascal Soriot, said the planned investment would
"enhance the UK's pandemic preparedness and demonstrates our ongoing
confidence in UK life sciences".
He added:
"We will continue to support the UK in driving innovation and patient
access, building on the strong foundations which have been put in place."
Dr Isabel
Oliver, chief scientific officer at the UK Health Security Agency, said:
"This investment will bolster the development of the UK's vaccine
capabilities and life sciences sector - critical components of the country's
resilience to future health threats."
In a statement
to announce the plans, the Treasury said the investment needed the agreement of
the UK Government and "third parties" and depended on
"successful completion of regulatory processes".
New £450m vaccine hub announced in Budget (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.
The report cited is not available to
readers located in the EEC. Approx. 5 minutes.
Electrifying
the US truck fleet is PHYSICALLY IMPOSSIBLE | MGUY Australia
Electrifying the US truck fleet is PHYSICALLY IMPOSSIBLE
| MGUY Australia (youtube.com)
Another weekend and yet another war
weekend. Whatever happened to the peace makers of planet Earth? Have a good
weekend everyone.
Lenin
is said to have declared that the best way to destroy the Capitalistic System
was to debauch the currency. . . Lenin was certainly right. There is no
subtler, no surer means of overturning the existing basis of society than to
debauch the currency. The process engages all the hidden forces of economic law
on the side of destruction, and does it in a manner which not one man in a
million can diagnose.
John Maynard Keynes.
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