July 7th 2014

Daily Market Commentary

 

ECONOMIC NEWS

  • Building Permits in Canada were reportedly up 13.8%, above estimates of a 3% increase.
  • The Sentix survey of Investor Confidence for the Eurozone was reported at 10.1, above estimates of 7.5.

Commodities:

  • Brent traded at the lowest price in more than three weeks as Libya prepared to increase exports from two ports closed for a year. West Texas Intermediate also fell in New York. Futures dropped as much as 0.2 percent in London.
  • Gold extended a decline from a three-month high as the outlook for higher borrowing costs in the U.S. strengthened the dollar. Silver also dropped.
  • Copper fell for a second day in London as stockpiles expanded the most since March and some investors viewed last week’s rally as excessive. Nickel slid for a second day before Indonesia’s presidential election.

Canada:

  • U.S. stock-index futures were little changed, after a weekly rally pushed benchmark gauges to record levels, as investors weighed valuations and speculated the Federal Reserve may raise interest rates sooner than expected.
  • Archer-Daniels-Midland Co. said it will acquire Wild Flavours GmbH, a maker of natural food ingredients, for about $3 billion in cash in what will be the U.S. company’s biggest takeover.
  • Goldman Sachs Group Inc. brought forward its forecast for the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates after U.S. employers added more jobs than forecast, sending five-year Treasuries lower for a fourth day.

United States:

  • U.S. stock-index futures were little changed, after benchmark equity gauges extended records yesterday, as investors awaited data that may show employers added more than 200,000 jobs for a fifth month.
  • Qualcomm Inc., the world’s largest maker of chips for mobile phones, said it bought Wilocity Ltd. in an effort to speed up introduction of new Wi-Fi products. Wilocity’s fast gigabit wireless-data capabilities will be included in sample products being shipped to customers, Qualcomm said yesterday in a statement.
  • Tesla Motors Inc., which has battled U.S. auto dealer groups over its direct sales of electric cars through company-owned stores, was approved by lawmakers in Pennsylvania to expand retail operations there.
  • PetSmart Inc. shares surged after hedge fund Jana Partners LLC disclosed a stake in the pet-care company and urged it to undertake a strategic review that might include a potential sale.

International:

  • European stocks fell, as investors assessed equity valuations following the biggest weekly rally since March.
  • Apache Corp., the energy company that has announced $9.8 billion of asset sales in the past year, is seeking a buyer for its interests in the Wheatstone liquefied natural gas project, people familiar with the matter said. The oil and gas producer is in early discussions with potential buyers for its holdings in Chevron Corp.’s A$29 billion ($27 billion) project in Western Australia.
  • Expedia Inc., an online travel-booking service, agreed to buy Australia’s Wotif.com Holdings Ltd. for A$703 million ($658 million), seeking to expand its presence in the Asia-Pacific region.
  • Europe’s banks face a further $50 billion of legal costs as they catch up with their U.S. counterparts, according to analysts at Morgan Stanley.
  • Asian stocks fell, with the regional benchmark index declining from the highest level in six years as Aeon Co., shipbuilding and health-care companies retreated.