February 5th, 2016

Daily Market Commentary

 

ECONOMIC NEWS:

  • Imports and Exports in Canada were reported at $45.94B and $45,35B, respectively. Both figures were better than expected.
  • Non-farm Payroll figures in the US, which are used as a proxy for employment, were reported at 151K, below estimates of 191K.
  • Average hourly earnings in the US were up 2.5% in year-over-year terms.
  • The Unemployment rate in the US was reported at 4.9%, down from 5%.
  • The US Participation rate rose to 62.7%, up 0.01%.
  • Average Hourly earnings in the US were up 0.5% in month-over-month terms, above expectations.

Commodities:

  • Oil steadied on Friday in a volatile session, as bearish fundamentals pressured prices, despite bullish indications earlier this week. (Reuters)
  • Gold climbed to a 3-month high, helping propel Newmont Mining Corp. to its biggest gain in seven years, as mining shares rallied amid diminishing expectations for more US rate increases.

 

Canada:

  • Canada lost 5,700 jobs in January due to employment declines in Alberta as well as the manufacturing and transportation sectors. (Globe)
  • Canada’s biggest pension funds say that they are walking away more and more from global infrastructure deals, citing concerns that intense competition for assets has driven up valuations. (Globe)

United States:

  • U.S. markets are ending higher in advance of the jobs data release, as are European Markets. (CNN)
  • LinkedIn’s stock price nosedived by nearly 30% in extended trading after the company reported earnings Thursday evening. The social networking site posted better than expected earnings, but issued weak annual guidance for the year ahead, leading investors to hit the sell button.
  • President Obama is proposing a $10 a barrel oil tax, phased in over 5 years, to pay for a variety of transportation initiatives, including new rail corridors, pilot projects for self-driving cars, and other projects under the goal of creating a ‘clean transportation system’.

International:

  • European markets are making small gains in early trading, while Asian markets ended with mixed results.
  • BNP Paribas moved upwards 4% after announcing that they will be making cuts to their investment banking divisions in order to improve profitability, while quitting other activities as well. (Reuters)
  • Orange announced on Thursday that it would be revealing several important changes to its senior management team in Europe as of May 1st. (Reuters)
  • Foreign exchange translations were Lenovo’s biggest headache in the third fiscal quarter, according to Wong Wai Ming, CFO. (CNBC)
  • Toshiba announced Thursday that they were considering whether or not to deepen their full year loss estimate, amid mounting restructuring costs following an accounting scandal. (CNBC)

 

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