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☆ Maybe millennials didn't get screwed by the economy after all
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( Matt Turner | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

There's a common perception that millennials have gotten screwed by the economy. But a recent article makes a convincing case for why the common idea of broke millennials is a myth. By 2019, households headed by Millennials were making considerably more money than those headed by the Silent Generation, Baby Boomers, and Generation X at the same age, after adjusting for inflation." While 69% of baby boomers owned their own home at 40, the same is true for 62% of millennials, a seven-percentage-point gap. Per data from the St Louis Fed, the Millennial/Gen Z wealth is currently tracking with Gen X after initially getting off to a tough start.

The MSCI All-World index (.MIWD00000PUS) fell 0.2%, thanks to a broad-based decline in equities around the world. S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 futures , fell between 0.3-0.5%, suggesting a touch of weakness at the opening bell. The Fed's "beige book" of economic conditions is published on Wednesday and appearances are due from Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee and New York Fed President John Williams. In an interview with Reuters on Tuesday, St Louis Fed President James Bullard said that, far from pausing, the central bank should keep raising interest rates, based on how persistent inflation has proven to be. UK inflation fell to 10.1% in March, from February's 10.4% - above expectations for a decline to 9.8% and the highest in western Europe, according to data on Wednesday.

☆ Stocks slip as focus falls back on Fed
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Tom Westbrook | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The Fed's "beige book" of economic conditions is published later on Wednesday and appearances are due from Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee and New York Fed President John Williams. Markets are pricing an 86% chance the Fed raises rates by 25 basis points at the May meeting, and that wasn't swayed terribly much by conflicting outlooks from two non-voting Fed officials on Tuesday. St Louis Fed President James Bullard told Reuters the Fed ought to keep raising rates to subdue persistent inflation. Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic told CNBC he thinks the Fed should hike one more time then pause to consider the next move. The prospect of peak rates has been applying downward pressure on the U.S. dollar.

☆ Morning Bid: Crowded bonds unnerved
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

This has some wondering if the recent dash for cash and top-rated bonds has become a bit crowded and how much more tightening central banks have to do. As we move into the weeds of the first-quarter U.S. earnings season, it's been a mixed bag so far. That clearly unnerved UK government bonds - where 10 year yields jumped 10bps - but it also jarred sovereign bonds around the world. Elsewhere, further signs of healing were evident in the global bank funding market. Japan's Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group (8316.T) sold $1 billion of additional tier-1 debt, the first major global bank to sell the risky securities since similar bonds issued by Credit Suisse were wiped out last month.

LONDON, April 19 (Reuters) - If a mega Western recession is coming down the pike in the second half of this year, someone should point it out to the junk bond market. The investment herd seems more convinced than ever that recession is on the way amid tightening bank credit after the March bank stress - even if not all the incoming evidence supports that take. More than a third now see the biggest risk ahead as a bank credit crunch and global recession. And that's with junk spreads more than three times higher than quality corporates. U.S. and European junk bond spreads historicallyBank of America survey on investment grade bonds vs junkCOURAGE AND DECOMPRESSIONThere's little doubt than many investors want to steer well clear, for now at least.

Unlike a growing number of central banks in Asia who have pressed the pause button or are close to doing so, the BoE and ECB are both expected to continue raising rates in their battle to get inflation back down towards target. St Louis Fed president James Bullard is much more hawkish though, as he confirmed in an interview with Reuters. The central banks of Australia, Indonesia, India, Singapore and South Korea have all paused, and the Philippine central bank governor signaled a pause in May. Research from the Bank for International Settlements shows that the global tightening cycle since the start of last year is the most synchronized and strongest over the past 50 years, with more than 95% of central banks raising their policy rates. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

Unlike a growing number of central banks in Asia who have pressed the pause button or are close to doing so, the BoE and ECB are both expected to continue raising rates in their battle to get inflation back down towards target. St Louis Fed president James Bullard is much more hawkish though, as he confirmed in an interview with Reuters. The central banks of Australia, Indonesia, India, Singapore and South Korea have all paused, and the Philippine central bank governor signaled a pause in May. But the road ahead looks bumpy, and other indicators for March were mixed - retail sales smashed forecasts, but investment fell short. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

☆ Emerson Electric to buy NI for $8.2 bln to deepen automation push
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

April 12 (Reuters) - U.S. industrial conglomerate Emerson Electric Co (EMR.N) on Wednesday said it would buy measurement tools maker NI Corp (NATI.O) for $8.2 billion in an effort to boost its automation capabilities. Emerson has executed a string of deals over the last few years to streamline itself into an industrial automation provider. The NI deal is expected to close in the first half of Emerson's fiscal 2024. Shares of Emerson, which already owns an about 2% stake in NI, fell more than 2% to $82.55 in premarket trade. NI launched a formal sale process in January after Emerson threatened to challenge its board if it did not engage in deal negotiations.

[1/3] The Gateway Arch is seen across from snow covered banks of the Mississippi River during cold weather in St Louis, Missouri, U.S. February 11, 2021. "Big corporations like Kia and Hyundai must be held accountable for endangering our residents and putting profit over people,” said St. Louis Mayor Tishaura Jones. Many Hyundai and Kia vehicles have no electronic immobilizers, which prevent break-ins and bypassing the ignition. Since May 2022, St. Louis police received more than 4,500 reports of thefts of Kia or Hyundai vehicles. Sixty-one percent of vehicles stolen in St. Louis have been Kias and Hyundais, St. Louis said.

At its latest meeting, the Fed laced its statement and minutes with a rider about cumulative tightening and uncertain lags. The gist of the argument is that the Fed doesn't deliver credit directly to the wider economy - banks and financial markets do. But few seem to doubt that these policy lags have shortened considerably over the decades. Showcasing the study in December, San Francisco Fed chief Mary Daly adopted a more dovish slant on the gap between the funds rate and tightening financial markets. "But investors should remain attentive to the occasional episodic disconnects observed between Fed guidance and some prominent indices of financial conditions," Clarida told clients.

Wall Street's major indexes had lost ground immediately after the Fed announced its rate hike decision. After the press conference, money markets were betting on a terminal rate of 4.892% in June compared with bets for 4.92% just before the Fed's statement. U.S. futures were still pricing in rate cuts this year with the fed funds rate seen at 4.403% by the end of December, the same as before the meeting. The S&P 500 posted 24 new 52-week highs and no new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 136 new highs and 23 new lows. About 13.7 billion shares changed hands in U.S. exchanges, compared with the 11.5 billion daily average over the last 20 sessions.

☆ Morning Bid: Japan hesitates
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Judging by Wednesday's reaction, world markets reckon Japan will eventually abandon its ultra-loose monetary policy despite a stubborn doubling down this week - and overseas ructions may be less than feared. But after some wild gyrations on the initial announcement, the market reaction was rather muted on balance. Japan's Nikkei (.N225) ended 2.5% higher, but it closed before the yen rebound in European hours. The release of December U.S. producer price, retail sales and industrial production numbers later on Wednesday now takes centre stage. U.S. Treasury auctions 20-year bonds* Bank of Japan policy decision.

☆ A crypto crash for big stablecoins is likely to send shudders through other financial markets too, a Cornell professor warns
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( George Glover | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A crashed stablecoin could pose a threat to the wider financial system, a Cornell professor warned. The companies that issue stablecoins would have to redeem their government bond holdings if the digital tokens fail, Eswar Prasad said Thursday. "A large volume of redemptions, even in a fairly liquid market, can create turmoil in the underlying securities market," Prasad said. The turmoil hasn't yet spilt over into traditional financial markets, but financial watchdogs are worried that stablecoin issuers' government bond holdings pose that risk, according to Prasad. "The fact that we haven't had spillovers from this part of the financial ecosystem into traditional financial markets or into the real economy certainly seems to be suggestive of the fact that there is a firewall," he added.

☆ Morning Bid: Disinflation elation
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Whether the Federal Reserve policymakers will publicly chime with the disinflation narrative or not, many acknowledge their policy stance is now 'data dependent' from here. And unless disavowed of it by hard evidence, markets already assume the inflation battle is as good as won. The dollar and U.S. Treasury yields were slightly lower. China's inflation rate crept back up last month too but it remains below 2% and annual producer price inflation is still in negative territory. Although UK bond yields and sterling skidded lower on Wednesday in mix of recession concerns and energy price disinflation hopes, there was better news on the retail front today.

Millions of people in the South and the Southeast are at risk of severe thunderstorms, tornadoes and flash floods Tuesday and Wednesday, while a messy winter storm is expected to hit the Midwest and a separate storm slams California later this week. Threats of severe thunderstorms, flash floodsAs many as 20 million people from southeast Louisiana to south-central Alabama are at risk for severe thunderstorms Tuesday that could bring damaging wind gusts, large hail and some strong tornadoes, classified as having winds of more than 111 mph. The thunderstorms are expected to continue through the day and last into the overnight hours. In addition to the severe thunderstorms, flash flooding will also be a threat. St. Louis could see a high in the early 70s Tuesday before expected highs plunge to the high-30s and the mid-40s the rest of the week.

FedEx Corp (FDX.N), which sparked a market selloff in September after pulling financial forecasts, provided financial guidance and announced plans for $1 billion cost cuts. U.S. consumer confidence rose to an eight-month high in December as inflation retreated and the labor market remained strong while 12-month inflation expectations fell to 6.7%, the lowest since September 2021. It's been helped by upbeat corporate commentary and an improvement in consumer confidence," said Angelo Kourkafas, investment strategist at Edward Jones in St Louis referring to Nike and FedEx. The smallest gainer among the sectors was consumer staples (.SPLRCS) but it was still up 1%. The S&P 500 posted 5 new 52-week highs and 3 new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 49 new highs and 211 new lows.

☆ A second chance: How Messi's Argentina reached the World Cup final again
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-14 | by ( Rohith Nair | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Messi scored a 10th minute penalty in the first half where Argentina had three goals disallowed for offside before the Saudis struck twice in the second half to stun the South American champions. If Argentina could take any solace from the result, it was that when they lost their group opener to Cameroon in 1990 they still reached the final. Substitute Enzo Fernandez scored with another sublime strike to seal the points and set Argentina on their way amid an electric atmosphere at Lusail Stadium, the biggest arena in Qatar. "Today starts another World Cup for Argentina," Messi had said after admitting they were poor in the first half. LAST 16: ARGENTINA 2-1 AUSTRALIAThe stars seemed to align for Messi in a physical last-16 clash with Australia as he scored in his 1,000th match to move past Maradona's World Cup tally.

☆ Bernard Arnault just became the world’s richest person. So who is he?
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-14 | by ( Hanna Ziady | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

London CNN —Bernard Arnault, the chairman of French luxury goods giant LVMH (LVMHF), has just become the first European to top Bloomberg’s list of the world’s richest people, relegating Elon Musk to second place. Arnault had already ousted Musk from the top spot on Forbes’ list of “Real Time Billionaires” last week. Arnault bought control of the group, returning it to profitability and embarking on a strategy to develop the world’s leading luxury goods company. Arnault has long held the title of Europe’s richest person, but the 73-year old keeps a much lower profile than Musk and isn’t personally active on any major social media platforms. Arnault is married and has five children, all of whom currently work at LVMH or one of its brands, according to Bloomberg.

☆ Tornadoes reported as storms cause flooding, damage across the South
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( The Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +5 min

The National Weather Service confirmed that tornadoes hit the ground in Mississippi on Tuesday evening and Alabama was in the forecast path of the storms during the overnight hours. The national Storm Prediction Center said in its storm outlook that affected cities could include New Orleans; Memphis and Nashville in Tennessee; and Birmingham, Alabama. Additional reports of property damage near Columbus were received by the Weather Service, according to Lance Perrilloux, a forecaster with the agency. Craig Ceecee, a meteorologist at Mississippi State University, peered out at “incredibly black” skies through the door of a tornado shelter in Starkville. The National Weather Service reported nearly 4 inches of snow on the ground at the airport by noon.

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Nov 20 (Reuters) - Canada has sanctioned former Haitian President Michel Martelly and two former prime ministers for financing gangs, Canadian authorities said on Sunday, the latest in a series of measures targeting alleged backers of Haitian criminal groups. In September, Haitian gangs created a humanitarian crisis by blocking a fuel terminal for nearly six weeks, halting most economic activity and triggering U.N. discussion of a possible foreign strike force to open the terminal. Canada and the United States have sanctioned political leaders who allegedly finance the gangs, which according to policy makers are backed by Haitian elites. Radio-Canada journalist Louis Blouin wrote on Twitter that the sanctions targeted Martelly, as well as former Haitian Prime Ministers Laurent Lamothe and Jean Henry Ceant. Ceant served as prime minister from 2018 to 2019.

☆ Dollar on track for weekly gain as Fed pushes back on pivot
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-18 | by ( Tom Westbrook | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The dollar rose modestly on the yen following Bullard's comments and is up about 1.2% for the week to 140.36 yen . It also rose 0.9% on the Australian dollar overnight to $0.6690 per Aussie, and is on course for its first weekly gain on the Aussie since mid-October. Fed funds futures pricing currently implies a peak rate just below 5% and for rates to start falling by late 2023. Earlier this week, stronger-than-expected retail sales data had also shaken hopes for a pause in hikes, since it seemed to suggest consumers remained in spending mode. Later on Friday, British retail sales data is due, and European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde is among a smattering of policymakers due to speak.

☆ The Fed's last interest rate hike will be in December as it faces political pressure due to a weakening economy
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-03 | by ( Matthew Fox | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The Federal Reserve's last interest rate hike will be in December, according to investment strategist Louis Navellier. Navellier believes a weakening economy will spark tremendous political pressure on the Fed. Investors weighed new language in the FOMC statement against Powell's hawkish speech on Wednesday. Navellier said investors should focus more on the FOMC statement than comments from Powell during his press conference. "I want you to know that the FOMC statement is much more important than the Fed Chairman's doublespeak," Navellier said on Thursday.

The move to strengthen industrial leadership comes after delays and cost overruns blighted a series of long-term projects for which Boeing is locked in to a fixed price. Chief Financial Officer Brian West said last month fixed-price defense contracts were being "knocked around" by supply chain problems, inflation and labor shortages. In 2006, incoming BCA chief Scott Carson appointed Jim Jamieson chief operating officer of the planemaking unit - a wide brief giving him effective oversight of jet manufacturing and development until his retirement about 18 months later. Those changes came just as Boeing was trying to juggle changes in manufacturing with the development of the Boeing 787, while still bearing the wounds of a 1997 production crisis. Airbus (AIR.PA) has long had a chief operating officer at its main planemaking arm, though in practice it is more than a divisional role as the defense and helicopter units slot in underneath.

☆ U.S., European shares rise on hopes Fed will slow rate hike pace
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-24 | by ( Chris Prentice | Amanda Cooper | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

WASHINGTON/LONDON (Reuters) -U.S. and European shares rose on Monday as signs of a cooling U.S. economy raised hopes that the Federal Reserve will slow its pace of rate hikes. “Investors are getting more confident that inflation is going to come down and that the Fed might be quick to pause. European shares rose on Monday, driven by hopes that the Federal Reserve could slow its pace of interest rate hikes, while investors braced for a busy week of earnings and key interest rate decision from the European Central Bank. Markets are still priced for a rate rise of 75 basis points next month, but have scaled back bets on a matching move in December. Chinese blue chips slid almost 3%, while Hong Kong shares fell 6.4%, their biggest one-day drop since the financial crisis.

☆ Dollar shakes off suspected Japan intervention; stocks brace for earnings
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-24 | by ( Amanda Cooper | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

LONDON (Reuters) -The dollar weathered another suspected blast of Japanese intervention to rise against the yen on Monday, while European markets got a lift from hopes that U.S. interest rates could rise more slowly than previously thought. Japan likely spent a record 5.4 trillion-5.5 trillion yen ($36.16 billion-$36.83 billion) in its yen-buying intervention last Friday, according to estimates by Tokyo money market brokerage firms. Sterling, meanwhile, see-sawed in volatile trade on news Boris Johnson had dropped out of the running for British prime minister. Chinese blue chips slid almost 3%, while Hong Kong shares fell 6.4%, their biggest one-day drop since the financial crisis. Sentiment will also be tested by some major earnings with Apple, Microsoft, Google-parent Alphabet and Amazon all reporting.

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