January 29th, 2015

Daily Market Commentary

 

ECONOMIC NEWS

  • Pending Home Sales in the U.S. were reportedly down 3.7% and up 6.1% in month-over-month and year-over-year terms, respectively.
  • Initial Jobless Claims in the U.S. were reported at 265K, below estimates of 300K.
  • Continuing Jobless Claims in the U.S. were reported at 2.385M, below estimates of 2.420M.
  •  The Consumer Price Index in Germany was reportedly down 1% and 0.3% in month-over-month and year-over-year terms, respectively.

Commodities:

  • Gold fell to the lowest in more than a week after the Federal Reserve upgraded its assessment of the economy and labour market.
  • Oil traded near the lowest price in almost six years in New York after U.S. crude stockpiles climbed to the highest level since at least 1982.
  • A measure of global shipping costs for commodities fell to a 28-year low as slowing growth in China’s demand exacerbates the effect of a fleet glut.

Canada:

  • Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan Inc., reported fourth-quarter profit and revenue that beat analysts’ estimates as sales volumes of its namesake crop nutrient rose to a record.
  • Element Financial Corp. raised its earnings outlook for 2015 and plans to announce its first dividend next year as a robust U.S. economy, lower oil prices and a weaker Canadian dollar stoke its vehicle-finance business.
  • Rogers Communications Inc. beat analyst estimates for fourth-quarter profit as Canada’s biggest wireless carrier increased the amount of revenue it gets from each customer.

United States

  • U.S. stock-index futures advanced, indicating the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index will pare its biggest monthly drop in a year.
  • Apple Inc. captured the top spot in China’s smartphone market, vaulting it into a tie for global leadership for the first time since 2011 as booming sales of iPhones with larger screens helped it gain ground on Samsung Electronics Co.
  • Bill Gross said the U.S. Federal Reserve will raise interest rates late in 2015 to end distortions that six years of near-zero borrowing costs have brought to financial markets.
  • Time Warner Cable Inc., which is awaiting approval to merge with Comcast, missed analysts’ profit estimates as TV programming costs rose.
  • Coach Inc. posted second-quarter profit that topped analysts’ estimates.

International:

  • European stocks declined, paring their best start to the year since 1989, as disappointing earnings from Royal Dutch Shell Plc dragged energy companies lower.
  • Royal Dutch Shell Plc will cut $15 billion of investment over the next three years as the crash in oil prices saw fourth-quarter profit miss forecasts.
  • Deutsche Bank AG swung to a profit after legal charges dropped and the investment bank posted fourth-quarter earnings that exceeded analysts’ estimates on higher trading revenue.
  • BNP Paribas SA, under a yearlong ban on some dollar clearing, is revamping its trade financing, corporate deposit and cash gathering businesses in Europe, the Middle East and Africa in a bid to boost profit.
  • Samsung Electronics Co. will spend more than $21.4 billion this year to help supply chips and displays to Apple Inc. and Chinese competitors eating away at its Galaxy smartphone sales.
  • Alibaba Group’s revenue missed estimates as the e-commerce giant’s push into mobile curbed its advertising sales growth. The shares fell.

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