January 13th, 2016

Daily Market Commentary

 

ECONOMIC NEWS

  • MBA mortgage applications in the US were up 21.3%.
  • Industrial Production in the Eurozone was down 0.7% and up 1.1% in month-over-month and year-over-year terms, respectively.

Commodities:

  • Oil bounced back after tumbling below $30 a barrel for the first time in 12 years. A persistent oversupply means prices still haven’t staved off the threat of further declines.
  • Gold fell for a fourth day after a report that showed China’s trade surplus increasing assuaged concerns about further financial market turmoil and damped haven demand. Palladium rose from the lowest level in more than five years.

 

Canada:

  • Canada’s Sherritt International Corp and Japan’s Sumitomo Corp said on Wednesday they would book more than $1.7-billion of losses on their Ambatovy nickel mine in Madagascar, as prices at 12-year lows wreak havoc among miners. (Globe)
  • First Quantum Minerals Ltd. is considering the sale of future precious metals output from some of its mines as the Canadian company looks for ways to cut debt, people with knowledge of the matter said.

 

United States:

  • U.S. index futures indicated an equity rebound will extend to a third day after a turbulent start to the year erased as much as $1.7 trillion from stocks.
  • Williams Cos., the pipeline company that agreed to be bought by Energy Transfer Equity LP in September, slid to a five-year low on Tuesday as credit downgrades and slumping energy prices exacerbated concerns over the $38 billion deal.
  • J Sainsbury Plc chief Mike Coupe said his planned takeover of Home Retail Group Plc will give him a competitive edge over Amazon.com Inc.as he prepares to confront the online giant in his own backyard.
  • GlaxoSmithKline Plc Chief Executive Officer Andrew Witty is willing to consider suggestions made by investors to break up the company — although it may not happen for at least a year or two.

International:

  • A rebound in commodity and energy producers pushed European stocks toward their first back-to-back gains in almost a month.
  • Aegon NV jumped the most in almost six years after saying it plans to buy back 400 million euros ($432 million) of shares and cut costs to improve its return on equity.
  • Volkswagen AG Chief Executive Officer Matthias Mueller faces a crucial meeting Wednesday with U.S. regulators to discuss ways out of the emissions-cheating crisis, a day after the California Air Resources Board rejected its initial proposed engine fix.
  • Asian stocks rebounded from a three-year low, with Japanese shares climbing for the first time this year, as China’s exports unexpectedly rose in yuan terms and investors speculated a global selloff had gone too far.
  • Sumitomo Corp. withdrew its full-year forecasts after booking a 77 billion yen ($651 million) charge on its Ambatovy nickel project in Madagascar, following a collapse in the price of the metal.
  • Sinpoec sets 2016 oil-processing target at ~240m mt because of weak diesel demand and retail sales competition from teapots, according to people with direct knowledge of matter.

*All information is taken from Bloomberg, unless otherwise noted.