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☆ Microsoft puts out gloomy guidance on revenue in another sign of pain for techs
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-25 | by ( Ryan Hogg | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Sign up for our newsletter to get the inside scoop on what traders are talking about — delivered daily to your inbox. Microsoft shares initially rose 4.6% after the tech giant released its second-quarter earnings report after the market closed Tuesday, after its cloud computing division Azure posted better-than expected results. It expects between $50.5 billion to $51.5 billion in revenue in the third quarter, compared with expectations for over $52 billion, as growth in its Azure cloud-computing unit falters. Its outlook for revenues in its Azure division was also cut, after growth in the cloud-computing division slowed to 31%. "But overall revenue growth lower than expectations, companies and consumers are clearly belt tightening and Microsoft is cautious about the quarter ahead with sales momentum slowing."

☆ European shares slip as business activity data underwhelms
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( Sruthi Shankar | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The pan-European STOXX 600 index (.STOXX) dropped 0.1% despite a strong finish on Wall Street where battered technology stocks continued their rebound. European stocks hit a nine-month peak last week on hopes of a milder recession in Europe and smaller interest rate increases from the Federal Reserve. However, hawkish comments from ECB policymakers have helped cement bets of two 50 basis point interest rate rises at each of its next two meetings, with one scheduled next week. Shares of Norwegian salmon farmers SalMar (SALM.OL) and Mowi (MOWI.OL) jumped 6.2% and 2.8%, respectively, to top the STOXX 600. Traders pointed to a media report suggesting adjustments to the centre-left government's salmon tax hike proposal, which has weighed on the sector.

☆ Miners, energy firms drag FTSE 100 lower; Dr Martens hits record low
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Johann M Cherian | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SummarySummary Companies FTSE 100 sheds 0.6%, FTSE 250 off 1.0%Deliveroo achieves breakeven in second halfBoohoo's Christmas revenue drops 11%Dr Martens sinks to FTSE 250 bottom on annual profit warningJan 19 (Reuters) - UK's commodity-heavy FTSE 100 fell on Thursday, with energy firms and material stocks dragging the benchmark index lower, while shares of bootmaker Dr Martens slumped to a record low after its annual profit warning. The FTSE 100 (.FTSE) slid 0.6%, while the domestically-oriented FTSE 250 (.FTMC) shed 1.0%. Energy heavyweights Shell (SHEL.L) and BP (BP.L) fell below 1.7%, while industrial miners (.FTNMX551020) shed 1.8% as crude and copper prices declined after disappointing U.S. economic data and on worries about a hawkish Federal Reserve. Dr Martens (DOCS.L) sank 23.6%, after it warned of a lower annual profit and revenue due to operational issues at its new U.S. distribution centre. Reporting by Johann M Cherian in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D'Souza and Shailesh KuberOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Madagascar solar firm secures funding to connect 50,000 households
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( Duncan Miriri | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

NAIROBI, Jan 17 (Reuters) - Madagascar's WeLight, an off-grid solar company, has secured 19 million euros ($20.57 million) to connect 50,000 households to electricity in the next two years, it said on Tuesday. Off-grid solar power, spearheaded by a variety of start-ups, has gained in popularity in Africa because it can affordably connect millions of homes which are left off mainstream electricity grids to clean power. The project is being financed by the European Investment Bank (EBI), EDFI ElectriFI and Triodos Investment Management, WeLight said in a joint statement. WeLight, which is owned by Madagascar's Axian Group, Norwegian investment fund Norfund and Sagemcon, already provides solar power to 9,000 rural Malagasy households. WeLight builds small solar power plants, storage units, distribution lines and installs a meter at each customer's premises, offering round the clock electricity, it said.

☆ European shares edge up on pharma boost, UK's FTSE 100 nears record-high
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-16 | by ( Bansari Mayur Kamdar | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The pan-European STOXX 600 (.STOXX) gained 0.1% in early trading, boosted by a 0.8% rise in healthcare stocks (.SXDP). UK's FTSE 100 (.FTSE) rose 0.1% to 7,852.84, inching closer to a record 7,903.50. "Investors appear to have fallen back in love with UK assets, after a difficult period when FTSE 100 was the wallflower among global indices," said Susannah Streeter, senior investment and markets analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown. Weakness in luxury heavyweights such as LVMH (LVMH.PA) and Hermes International (HRMS.PA) weighed on Europe's STOXX 600 on Monday. German arms maker Rheinmetall (RHMG.DE) gained 2.9% on acquiring a stake in Dutch IT hardware specialist Incooling B.V.

The FTSE 100 (.FTSE) ended up 0.2% at 7,860.07, not far off its all-time high of 7,903.50 points hit in May 2018, while the mid-cap FTSE 250 (.FTMC) added 0.7%. "Investors appear to have fallen back in love with UK assets," said Susannah Streeter, senior investment and markets analyst, Hargreaves Lansdown. Money markets are pricing in a 64.3% chance of a 50-basis point hike by the BoE in February to curtail inflation. Oil majors BP (BP.L) and Shell (SHEL.L) slipped close to 0.4% each as crude prices fell. ITM Power (ITM.L) slumped 12% after the energy storage and clean fuel company forecast a wider full-year loss.

ET (1505 GMT), the Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index (.GSPTSE) was up 38.76 points, or 0.19%, at 20,398.86 - a six-week high. Investors will focus on December inflation data due on Tuesday, with economists polled by Reuters forecasting a 6.4% rise on an annual basis. "We're going to have the CPI report, so that'll be crucial, giving us an indication how the fight against inflation is going," said Allan Small, senior investment advisor at Allan Small Financial Group. The energy sector (.SPTTEN), financial (.SPTTFS) and technology stocks (.SPTTTK) gained between 0.2% and 0.4%. Investment management company Colliers International Group (CIGI.TO) gained 3.3% after Scotiabank upgraded the stock to "outperform".

☆ Wall St Week Ahead U.S. investors hunt for gains in foreign stocks
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-13 | by ( Lewis Krauskopf | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Europe's STOXX 600 index (.STOXX) has gained some 17% since the end of the third quarter, versus 11% for the U.S. benchmark S&P 500. MSCI's gauge of global stocks excluding the U.S. has risen more than 20% over that time. The firm last month rotated more into international equities as it increased its overall stock exposure, de Longis said. US vs European stock performanceInternational stocks were recently touted by investor Jeffrey Gundlach of DoubleLine Capital and BofA Global Research, which projected global stocks would "crush" their U.S peers in 2023. Buying international stocks could be a "complement" to the opportunity domestically, said Mona Mahajan, senior investment strategist at Edward Jones.

☆ Debt bomb, biotech bump and a bond rally: 2023 money predictions
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( Chris Taylor | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

What does 2023 hold for investors? Prediction: Debt bombSarah NewcombSarah Newcomb, director of financial psychology at Morningstar“I’m concerned about the lack of saving in America as a whole. We had a moment of higher savings rates when the pandemic first hit, and people realized they needed to be prepared for anything. The optimism of these entrepreneurs for continued growth in the new year points to resilience amid some tough financial decisions they’ll likely make in 2023. “For instance, we expect to see a rise in debt consolidation as business owners look to combat the rate environment.

☆ Futures muted ahead of key inflation data
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SummarySummary Companies Futures muted: Dow, S&P flat; Nasdaq down 0.1%Jan 12 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures were subdued on Thursday ahead of the keenly awaited December inflation data that would offer more clues on the Federal Reserve's path of monetary tightening. ET (1330 GMT), is expected to show U.S. consumer prices grew 6.5% year-on-year in December, moderating from a 7.1% rise in November. Wall Street's main indexes ended sharply higher on Wednesday, led by major technology stocks, with the S&P 500 (.SPX) and Nasdaq (.IXIC) gaining more than 1% each. This week marks the start of the quarterly earnings season, with big banks expected to report lower profits, while overall S&P 500 earnings are expected to decline year-over-year, according to Refinitiv. ET, Dow e-minis were up 1 point, S&P 500 e-minis were down 0.5 point, or 0.01%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were down 11 points, or 0.1%.

[1/3] A trader works on the trading floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., January 5, 2023. The U.S. consumer price index (CPI) is expected to show December's headline inflation at 6.5% versus 7.1% in November. "Inflation and what the Fed's response to it is still remains the number one focus and anxiety for the market," said Manulife's Theoret. "The risk going into Thursday is really that the market is more vulnerable to an upside surprise in inflation. U.S. crude settled up 0.66% at $75.12 per barrel and Brent finished at $80.10, up 0.56% on the day.

☆ Futures edge lower ahead of Powell's speech
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The highly awaited U.S. Labor Department's inflation report on Thursday is expected to show some moderation in year-on-year consumer prices in December. Money market bets pointed to a 77% chance of a 25-bps hike to 4.50%-4.75% in the Fed's upcoming policy meeting, with the terminal rate seen slightly below 5% by June. This is in contrast to the 5%-5.25% peak policy rate expected by San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly and Atlanta President Raphael Bostic. Along with economic data and comments from Fed officials, investors are also awaiting corporate earnings reports, with big U.S. banks expected to report lower fourth-quarter profits this week. Bed Bath & Beyond Inc (BBBY.O) was up 4.9% in premarket trading, ahead of its quarterly earnings report due later in the day.

☆ Stock futures are little changed after Nasdaq's third-straight winning day
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Stock futures were quiet on Tuesday evening as Wall Street looked to build on what has been a positive start to 2023 so far. Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average ticked up 19 points, or less than 0.1%. S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq 100 futures were little changed. The moves come after the Nasdaq Composite rose 1.01% on Tuesday to clinch its first three-day winning streak since November. There is some evidence that when rates start to decline from the Federal Reserve, better markets are ahead.

☆ Futures edge higher ahead of Fed meeting minutes
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SummarySummary Companies Futures up: Dow 0.20%, S&P 0.31%, Nasdaq 0.46%Jan 4 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures edged higher on Wednesday as hopes of an economic recovery in China lifted sentiment, while focus was also on minutes from the Federal Reserve's December policy meeting for clues on the outlook for interest rate hikes. Minutes from the Fed's previous meeting, when it raised interest rates by half a percentage point and cautioned rates may need to remain higher for longer, are due to be released at 2 p.m. "The minutes of the latest Fed meeting will be devoured later, in a search for clues about how much higher rates will go before policymakers consider pressing the pause button," said Susannah Streeter, senior investment and markets analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown. ET, Dow e-minis were up 65 points, or 0.2%, S&P 500 e-minis were up 11.75 points, or 0.31%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were up 50.25 points, or 0.46%. Reporting by Shubham Batra and Amruta Khandekar in Bengaluru; Editing by Shounak DasguptaOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

A majority of the 10 global asset and hedge fund managers surveyed by Reuters said commodities are undervalued and should thrive as global inflation stays elevated in 2023. Preqin said just 915 hedge funds were launched in 2022, the lowest in 10 years. "It's the perfect environment for macro hedge funds: central bank policy divergence, interest rate differentials, geopolitical tension, bottlenecks and each country on its own. Macro hedge funds led the industry performance through November, according to financial data firm HFR, up roughly 8%. Lyons is keen to allot more to macro hedge funds and also thinks there are good opportunities in corporate credit.

☆ The Fed could signal rate cuts in the back half of 2023, says Edward Jones' Mona Mahajan
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-28 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailThe Fed could signal rate cuts in the back half of 2023, says Edward Jones' Mona MahajanMona Mahajan, senior investment strategist at Edward Jones, joins CNBC's 'Squawk Box'' to break down her outlook for the U.S. economy and markets in 2023.

☆ Analysis: Wood’s ARK slammed by higher interest rates in 2022 along with other growth funds
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-27 | by ( David Randall | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The ARK Innovation Fund has lost around 67% year to date, more than tripling the decline of the S&P 500 index (.SPX). With the S&P 500 on pace for its biggest annual decline since the Great Financial Crisis, few funds are likely to escape 2022 unscathed. Wood's fund ranked 3,544 among all 3552 actively-managed U.S. equity mutual funds tracked by Morningstar. The worst performing fund of the year, by comparison, was the Voya Russia fund, which is down 92% for the year to date. CRASH LANDINGOther funds that soared in recent years on the backs of large bets on technology stocks fell on hard times in 2022.

News of the loosening lifted stock markets worldwide, with luxury shares in particular benefiting. Shares in LVMH (LVMH.PA), the world's biggest luxury group and Europe's number 1 company by market capitalisation, were up 2.7% while Cartier-owner Richemont (CFR.S) rose almost 4%. Before the current slowdown, it had for years been the fastest growing region, with young, urban, middle class professionals powering the luxury market by splashing out on Hermes' 10,000 euro-plus ($10,633) Birkin handbags and Gucci's 1,000 euro fur-lined loafers. According to a recent report by the McKinsey consultancy, while non-luxury fashion sales are expected to rise between 2% and 7% in 2023, luxury sales should climb 9% to 14% over the same period. ($1 = 0.9405 euros)Reporting by Silvia Aloisi; Editing by Louise Heavens Editing by Robert BirselOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ These ETF strategies can help investors navigate a murky 2023 for markets
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-27 | by ( Jesse Pound | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Here's how some ETF experts are viewing the year and what types of funds could be winners in 2023. … In 2023, investors should be a lot more selective," said Pedro Palandrani, director of research at Global X ETFs. While those areas would be negatively affected by a recession, infrastructure spending approved earlier in the Biden administration could help create solid demand even if the U.S. consumer weakens. Similarly, iShares highlighted the U.S. Infrastructure ETF (IFRA) and the MSCI Global Agriculture ETF (VEGI) in its 2023 outlook as potential winners, in part due to their inflation-hedging properties . In iShares' 2023 outlook, the firm identified its MSCI USA Value Factor ETF (VLUE) and Core S & P Small-Cap ETF (IJR) as two funds that could benefit from a low-growth environment.

☆ 10 money managers who quietly control the vast fortunes of Jeff Bezos, Sergey Brin, the Waltons, and other big-name billionaires
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-27 | by ( Hayley Cuccinello | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +24 min

Many über-rich people don't outsource their wealth — they hire their own chief investment officers. He left SAC in 2005 for Dune Capital Management, but stayed in touch with Steve during his five-year term at the investment firm. Andrew oversees CPV's portfolio, which primarily comprises direct private investments such as Collectors Universe, a collectibles-authentication company, and the New York Mets. In 2011, Wildcat Capital Management was launched with Potter as president and chief investment officer. Since November 2021, Carland has also served as the interim chief investment officer for Builders Vision's asset arm.

☆ Analysis: U.S. stock investors face recession fears as they bid good riddance to 2022
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-23 | by ( Lewis Krauskopf | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

"The issue is how much has the market already discounted a recession, and that’s where it gets a little bit thornier." Concerns that the Fed will maintain its hawkish stance helped drive the S&P 500 down 1.45% on Thursday. The S&P 500 marked a 2022 closing low of 3,577.03 in October, just over 6% below its current level. Yet earnings fall by an average annual rate of 24% during recessions, according to Clissold, leaving plenty of downside for profits if a slowdown hits. Bear markets on average have bottomed four months before the end of a recession, according to Clissold, of Ned Davis.

Last year, the industry handed out the biggest awards since 2006 as the economy roared back from the pandemic. It's a head-spinning reversal for dealmakers who racked up record profits for their firms last year and clinched eye-watering payouts for themselves. Compensation for FICC traders will probably rise slightly or stay flat, said Bell at Sheffield Haworth, while stock traders could see a small drop. Worsening economic conditions have already prompted firms including Morgan Stanley (MS.N) and Citigroup Inc (C.N), to trim their workforces. In the United Kingdom, most big firms are discussing and allocating bonuses now, with decisions not usually announced until early next year.

☆ The Dow's yearly performance is beating the S&P 500 by the most in decades. Here's why
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-21 | by ( Carmen Reinicke | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

The S & P 500 has shed more than 18% on the same basis, and the Nasdaq Composite is down more than 32% . It's rare that the Dow would beat out the S & P 500 on a total-return basis at all. "Over time, the Dow correlates with the S & P 500," said Howard Silverblatt, senior index analyst for S & P Dow Jones Indices. On the flipside, large tech names in the S & P 500 have done much worse. In addition, Wall Street analysts say it is unlikely that the Dow will again outperform the S & P 500 in 2023.

☆ 2023 should be a brighter year for the traditional 60/40 portfolio
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-21 | by ( Carmen Reinicke | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Investors who stuck to the traditional portfolio breakdown of 60% allocated to stocks and 40% allocated to bonds were hit hard this year as both asset classes shed value. Bonds also lost value for investors this year, going against the traditional correlation where they act as a hedge to stock market volatility. Still, most analysts don't expect the year to yield a worse performance than 2022 for the standard 60/40 portfolio. That bodes well for investors who still have a traditional portfolio balance. And even though the traditional 60/40 portfolio had a dismal 2022, investors shouldn't write it off.

☆ Futures subdued after BOJ's policy surprise
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SummarySummary Companies Futures: Dow climbs 0.12%, S&P up 0.01%, Nasdaq off 0.13%Dec 20 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures came under pressure on Tuesday after the Bank of Japan surprised global investors with a policy shift that would allow long-term interest rates to rise more. The BOJ decided to allow the 10-year bond yield to move 50 basis points either side of its 0% target, bigger than the previous 25 basis point band, against expectations of no change at its policy meeting. Treasuries fell following BoJ's shock move, with benchmark 10-year Treasury yield rising more than 8 basis points to a three-week high of 3.6676%. A slew of other economic data due this week including consumer confidence, existing home sales and core inflation will provide more clues to investors on future interest rate hikes. ET, Dow e-minis were up 41 points, or 0.12%, S&P 500 e-minis were up 0.25 points, or 0.01%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were down 14.25 points, or 0.13%.

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