NOTABLE MOVES
- U.S. Richmond Manufacturing Index at 15 vs expected 25. Japan’s finance minister said he expects a planned sales tax increase next October to cause some disruptions. The 10-yr yield finished three basis points lower at 3.17%, but was down as much as eight basis points. USDJPY down -0.34%, $112.45.
- German PPI m/m at 0.5% vs expected 0.3%. EU rejected Italy’s budget plan to increase its deficit spending to 2.4% of GDP in 2019. Euro up 0.05%, $1.1471. In Brexit, headlines indicated that the EU is willing to offer PM May a UK-wide customs union as a way around the Irish backstop issue, but it will have to be negotiated separately to the Withdrawal agreement. PM May, however, wants a UK-wide customs backstop that is legally-binding and included in the divorce bill. Sterling up 0.14%, $1.2980. USDCAD down -0.14%, $1.3083.
- S&P 500 down -0.55%, 2,740.69. Nasdaq down -0.32%, 7,118.67. Nikkei down -2.67%, 22,010.78.
- Disappointing earnings reports from Dow components 3M (MMM 192.55, -8.81) and Caterpillar (CAT 118.98, -9.73) heightened worries that earnings growth may have peaked and weighed on the industrial sector, which lost -1.6%. 3M reported lower-than-expected top and bottom lines and also lowered its earnings guidance. Meanwhile, Caterpillar drew attention to higher material and freight costs, including tariffs. Shares of 3M lost -4.4%, and Caterpillar shares fell -7.6%. Dow component McDonald’s (MCD 177.15, +10.52, +6.3%) helped lift the consumer discretionary sector after it reported above-consensus top and bottom lines. Meanwhile, Verizon (VZ 57.21, +2.23, +4.1%) led the communication services sector higher after it reported better-than-expected earnings.
CRYPTOCURRENCY UPDATES
Payments Company Square Open-Sources Its Bitcoin Cold Storage Tool
According to U.S. payments processing company Square’s announcement it is open-sourcing its Bitcoin (BTC) cold storage solution dubbed “Subzero“. “Subzero,” uses a Hardware Security Module (HSM)-backed cold wallet for which the company has now released the code, documentation, and tools. A HSMs’ security benefits include robust protection against physical tampering, strong access control and the option to replicate keys for backup or recovery purposes. Subzero has reportedly added multi-signature protection for its wallet, in which “participants [must] use a combination of smart cards and passwords” to authenticate transfers. QR codes are used to exchange the minimal amount of data needed between the offline and online world. The company also says it has leveraged industry stalwart crypto wallet Trezor’s “open source projects (such as trezor-crypto) as much as possible.”
Use of Blockchain in Major Industries by Numbers: Retail, Manufacturing, Finance, and Others
Many startups, major conglomerates, supply chain operators, and distributors have attempted to integrate blockchain technology over the past two years, to increase transparency and reduce the power of central entities in data processing. The exponential increase in demand and interest in blockchain technology has enabled multi-billion dollar markets for the blockchain in major sectors including manufacturing, agriculture, retail, supply chain, IoT, and payments. The researchers from ReportLinker firm stated that the blockchain in manufacturing market is forecasted to be worth around $30 million by 2020, and the market will continue to grow at an annual growth rate of 80 percent, to $566 million by 2025. The offshore banking market, which is mostly dominated by financial institutions and banks that oversee savings accounts for high profile retail traders and institutional investors, is estimated to be valued at around $32 trillion. Blockchain in energy and insurance are also predicted by MarketsandMarkets to grow to $7 billion and $1,4 billion respectively by the end of 2023, at a compound annual growth rate of 84.9 percent.
Ex-Fidelity Exec Joins Blockchain Company Bloq as Chief Operating Officer
A former executive at financial services giant Fidelity Investments Hadley Stern has been appointed Chief Operating Officer (COO) at blockchain infrastructure firm Bloq. In a Medium post published today, entitled “The Tokenization of Things and Building the Unimaginable,” Stern gave his perspective on the history of the new technologies driving an “efficient, frictionless” economy stating that without coming off as doctrinaire or fundamentalist, it’s fair to say that Satoshi Nakamoto delivered a true gift in the Bitcoin whitepaper, that is, a way to produce and account for a provably scarce, wholly digital asset. Stern’s blog post further outlined three fundamental market areas to be undertaken at Bloq as part of the company’s aim to further the management and integration of digital assets.