Day: July 24, 2024

Ether ETFs Launch in U.S., Signaling Major Crypto Market Expansion

Posted on by Arslan Butt

This Tuesday marks a significant milestone in the cryptocurrency world with the launch of the first U.S. exchange-traded funds (ETFs) tied to ether, the second-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization after bitcoin.

Several prominent financial firms, including VanEck, Franklin Templeton, Fidelity, 21Shares, Invesco, and BlackRock, are introducing their ether ETFs on major U.S. exchanges like Cboe, Nasdaq, and the New York Stock Exchange.

These launches follow the successful rollout of nine U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs earlier in the year, highlighting the growing integration of digital assets into the mainstream financial landscape.

Continue reading “Ether ETFs Launch in U.S., Signaling Major Crypto Market Expansion” →

Nasdaq Futures Drop as Major Tech Earnings Disappoint

Posted on by Arslan Butt

Nasdaq futures took a downturn following underwhelming earnings reports from tech giants Alphabet and Tesla, stirring volatility in the U.S. stock market. This response came as Wall Street had previously closed with minimal losses, with the S&P 500 down by 0.16% and the Nasdaq Composite by 0.06%.

These shifts occur amid global economic adjustments, where even a minor fluctuation in tech giants’ earnings sends ripples across financial indices. The 10-year Treasury yield remained stable, while U.S. oil prices saw a decline, hitting a six-week low.

Continue reading “Nasdaq Futures Drop as Major Tech Earnings Disappoint” →

Navigating Economic Turbulence: Argentina Faces Unprecedented Challenges

Posted on by Arslan Butt

As Argentina confronts one of its gravest economic crises in decades under President Javier Milei, its citizens are finding innovative ways to adapt amidst soaring inflation and stringent austerity measures.

In Buenos Aires, the epicentre of anti-government protests and public discontent, ingenuity emerges even in the streets.

Alejandra, a street vendor, capitalized on the lack of public restrooms during protests by setting up a makeshift facility, turning it into her primary source of income as she navigates the nation’s skyrocketing inflation.

Continue reading “Navigating Economic Turbulence: Argentina Faces Unprecedented Challenges” →

AUDUSD Tests the Bottom of Range After losing 2 Cents

Posted on by Skerdian Meta

AUDUSD has been falling hard for two weeks, but last night the decline stalled ahead of the Australian manufacturing and services PMI numbers. AUD/USD turned bullish in the first half of this month, breaking above its previous range and gaining 2 cents to approach 0.68. However, sellers reemerged last week, making the Australian dollar the first to turn negative against the US dollar at the beginning of the week.

The Aussie has been crashing hard these past 2 weeks

Continue reading “AUDUSD Tests the Bottom of Range After losing 2 Cents” →

CAC Drops 1% – Weaker Manufacturing PMI & LVMH Earnings

Posted on by Gino Bruno D'Alessio

cac drops on worse than expected manufacturing pmi

French stocks followed a broader Eurozone selloff today, the CAC was particularly hit by a slowdown in sales from Europe’s second largest company, LVMH.

To add to the bearish sentiment, today’s Manufacturing PMI data showed a reduction in activity compared to forecasts. The Manufacturing PMI released showed activity fell to 44.1, while analysts had expected a small increase to 48.9 from 48.8 last month.

A decline in LVMH sales growth from China, the world’s second largest economy, gave way to weaker than expected earnings. Last night’s report showed an EPS of 14.57 compared to forecasts of 15.128, a miss of 4.63%.

To complete the negative picture, the company reported revenue for the last quarter at €41.7 billion compared to a forecast of €42.3 billion, or a miss of €601.5 million. MC stocks opened down 4.3% on the day, while the [[CAC]] is down 0.92%.

Yesterday’s earnings reports misses from Alphabet and Tesla also added to a bearish sentiment carryover. The main U.S. stock indices dropped overnight, with the [[NAS100]] down 1% and the [[SP500]] down 0.75% on the day.

French stocks are still beleaguered by a stalled political situation, with what looks like splintered National Assembly lacking an outright winner from the general election.

Technical View

The day chart below for the CAC shows a market still trading within a wide range (blue area). The sideways trend’s range is well established by multiple touches to the upper and lower boundaries.

lvmh leads cac lower after weak earnings report

Today’s candle has tested the low boundary of the sideways range, having opened with a gap on yesterday’s close. It’s likely to stall on this level, or even rebound towards the higher boundary of the range.

However, a close below the sideways range should lead to lower prices. The next support if the range breaks, would be at 7,317, which corresponds to the low of a previous retracement that gave way to the rally of the all-time high at 8,259.87 (green line).

[[CAC-graph]]

Major Averages Finish Choppy Trading Session Modestly Lower

Posted on by RTT Staff Writer

Stocks showed a lack of direction over the course of the trading session on Tuesday, with the major averages bouncing back and forth across the unchanged line following the strong upward move seen in the previous session.

The major averages eventually ended the day modestly lower. The Dow slipped 57.35 points or 0.1 percent to 40,358.09, the Nasdaq edged down 10.22 points or 0.1 percent to 17,997.35 and the S&P 500 dipped 8.67 points or 0.2 percent to 5,555.74.

The choppy trading on Wall Street came as traders expressed some uncertainty about the outlook for the markets following recent volatility.

Stocks moved sharply higher over the course of the trading session on Monday, with technology stocks seeing a significant rebound following last week’s sell-off.

Traders may also have been reluctant to make significant moves ahead of the release of key earnings and economic news in the coming days.

On the earnings front, Google parent Alphabet (GOOGL) and electric vehicle maker Tesla (TSLA) are among the companies due to release their quarterly results after the close of today’s trading.

Later in the week, focus is likely to shift to a report on personal income and spending in June, which includes readings on inflation said to be preferred by the Federal Reserve.

The data could have a significant impact on the outlook for interest rates, with the Fed currently widely expected to lower interest rates by a quarter point in September.

Sector News

Most of the major sectors ended the day showing only modest moves on the day, contributing to the lackluster close by the broader markets.

Oil producer stocks showed a significant move to the downside, however, with the NYSE Arca Oil Index falling by 1.9 percent. The weakness among oil producer stocks came amid a steep drop by the price of crude oil.

Considerable weakness was also visible among transportation stocks, as reflected by the 1.5 percent loss posted by the Dow Jones Transportation Average.

Semiconductor and natural gas stocks also moved to the downside, while networking stocks showed a strong move to the upside.

Other Markets

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in a mixed performance during trading on Tuesday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index closed just below the unchanged and China’s Shanghai Composite Index slumped by 1.7 percent, while South Korea’s Kospi rose by 0.4 percent.

The major European markets also ended the day mixed. While the German DAX Index advanced by 0.8 percent, the French CAC 40 Index and the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index fell by 0.4 percent and 0.3 percent, respectively.

In the bond market, treasuries moved higher after trending lower over the past few sessions. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, dipped by 2.1 basis points to 4.239 percent.

European Economic News Preview: Eurozone Flash PMI Data Due

Posted on by RTT Staff Writer

Flash Purchasing Managers’ survey results from the euro area and the UK are the top economic news due on Wednesday.

At 2.00 am ET, the market research group GfK is scheduled to issue Germany’s consumer sentiment survey data. The forward-looking consumer confidence index is forecast to rise to -21 in August from -21.8 in July.

At 3.15 am ET, France’s flash composite PMI survey results are due. The composite output index is seen at 48.9 in July, up from 48.8 in the previous month.

At 3.30 am ET, S&P Global is set to publish Germany’s flash PMI data. Economists forecast the composite indicator to climb to 50.7 in July from 50.4 in the prior month.

At 4.00 am ET, Eurozone HCOB flash PMI data is due. The composite output index is expected to climb to 51.1 in July from 50.9 in June.

Half an hour later, UK S&P Global composite PMI data is due. Economists forecast the composite indicator to advance to 52.6 in July from 52.3 in the previous month.

Sri Lanka Central Bank Cuts Rates Unexpectedly

Posted on by RTT Staff Writer

Sri Lanka central bank lowered its policy rates unexpectedly by 25 basis points on Wednesday as inflation is expected to remain below the target over coming months.

The Central Bank of Sri Lanka decided to reduce the Standing Deposit Facility Rate by 25 basis points to 8.25 percent and the Standing Lending Facility Rate to 9.25 percent.

The bank had reduced rates by a cumulative 625 basis points since 2023.

“The Board underscored the need to signal its desire to continue eased monetary conditions to sustain the revival of economic activity towards the full potential, in the absence of significant inflationary pressures,” the bank said in a statement.

The central bank said financial institutions are expected to transmit the benefits of easing by adjusting lending rates.

The board expects inflation to remain below the target of 5 percent by a ‘sizeable margin’ for the next several months before aligning with the targeted level over the medium-term.

Due to the downward revisions to the electricity tariffs and fuel and gas prices and weaker demand, headline inflation fell to 1.7 percent in June.

Last month, the International Monetary Fund released $336 million tranche to Sri Lanka to support its economic policies and reforms.

The executive board on completion of Article IV consultation said monetary policy should continue prioritizing price stability, supported by a sustained commitment to refrain from monetary financing and safeguard central bank independence.

German Consumer Confidence To Improve In August

Posted on by RTT Staff Writer

German consumer confidence is set to improve moderately in August on improving income prospects and willingness to buy, a survey showed on Wednesday.

The consumer confidence index improved to -18.4 in August from revised -21.6 in July, the survey published jointly by GfK and the Nuremberg Institute for Market Decisions showed.

The European Football Championship helped to boost consumer climate in July, consumer expert at NIM Rolf Burkl said. However, it remains to be seen whether this effect is sustainable or just a short-term flare-up, Burkl added.

Among sub-indicators of consumer climate, income expectations hit the highest since October 2021 and economic expectations strengthened in July to offset the previous month’s decline.

The income expectations index surged 11.5 points to 19.7 in July after a small setback in June. The slight fall in inflation together with noticeable increases in wages and salaries lifted income optimism.

The propensity to buy indicator increased 4.6 points to -8.4 in July. A better value was last reported in March 2022. At the same time, the propensity to save remained unchanged.

The economic expectations index rose 7.3 points to 9.8 in July. The same value was last seen in May 2024.

For 2024, economic growth is forecast to remain weak. Experts expect economic recovery to accelerate only in the coming year.

Last week, the International Monetary Fund projected the German economy to grow 0.2 percent this year and 1.3 percent in 2025.

Forex Signals Brief July 24: BOC Expected to Cut Rates Again by 25 bps

Posted on by Skerdian Meta

With the exception of the JPY, the USD continued its upward trajectory against all major currencies yesterday as safe havens gained traction amid a general decline in risk appetite. The USDJPY is still trending lower and is set to challenge its key 100-day moving average, as well as its low from last Friday at 155.350. Despite trading up for most of the day, the market closed slightly lower. The S&P, Nasdaq, and Dow all experienced declines of -0.15%, -0.15%, and -0.06%, respectively.

The BOC is expected to lower rates by 25 bps again today

Continue reading “Forex Signals Brief July 24: BOC Expected to Cut Rates Again by 25 bps” →