May 1st, 2015

Daily Market Commentary

 

ECONOMIC NEWS

  • The RBC Manufacturing PMI for Canada was reported at 49.
  • The Markit Manufacturing PMI for the U.S. was reported at 54.1.
  • Construction spending in the U.S. came in below estimates, dropping 0.6%.
  • Consumer Confidence for the U.S. was slightly below estimates, at 95.9.
  • The Markit Manufacturing PMI for Great Britain was reported at 51.9, below estimates of 54.6.

 

Commodities:

  • Oil traded near $60 a barrel in New York after the biggest monthly advance since May 2009 as shrinking inventories at the U.S. storage hub and cutbacks in drilling prompted speculation the supply glut will abate.
  • Gold extended the biggest slump in eight weeks after a drop in U.S. jobless claims backed the case for the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates.

Canada:

  • Target Canada, which went into bankruptcy protection on Jan. 15, has decided to return 55 leases to their landlords, unable to find suitable bidders for them, according to a court filing this week. (Globe)
  • Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd. said the insider-trading probe of the company and Chief Executive Officer Prem Watsa is tied to the 2011 takeover offer by Resolute Forest Products Inc. for shares of Fibrek Inc.

United States

  • U.S. index futures rose, indicating the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index will pare its worst week in a month.
  • Tesla Motors Inc. Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk unveiled a suite of batteries to store electricity for homes, businesses and utilities, saying a greener power grid furthers the company’s mission to provide pollution-free energy.
  • American International Group Inc. said it will repurchase another $3.5 billion in stock after first-quarter profit climbed 53 percent on gains at the unit selling property and casualty insurance to commercial clients.
  • Monsanto Co., the world’s largest seed company, has approached Syngenta AG about a takeover, almost a year after a previous attempt fell apart, according to people familiar with the matter.

International:

  • Growth at U.K. factories unexpectedly cooled last month as the stronger pound hit demand for British goods abroad, adding to signs economic growth is losing momentum less than a week before the general election.
  • Lloyds Banking Group Plc, Britain’s biggest mortgage provider, said it will exceed its lending profitability target after first-quarter earnings beat analyst estimates. The shares jumped the most in a year.
  • The Bank of Japan released a triple salvo of reports concluding Governor Haruhiko Kuroda’s reflation strategy is working, a day after the central bank acknowledged it would fail to reach its original inflation-target timeframe.
  • A Chinese manufacturing gauge for April suggested that growth may be starting to stabilize in the nation’s economy after the government spurred infrastructure investment and eased monetary policy.

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