NOTABLE MOVES
As of Fri, Mar 1, Singapore Time zone UTC+8
USDJPY, +0.33%, $111.36
EURUSD, +0.04%, $1.1373
GBPUSD, -0.35%, $1.3264
USDCAD, +0.04%, $1.3161
AUDUSD, -0.53%, $0.7102
NZDUSD, -0.39%, $0.6820
S&P500, -0.28%, 2,784.49
Nasdaq, -0.27%, 7,097.52
Nikkei Futures, -0.35%, 21,485.0
CURRENCY MARKET WRAP
- U.S. Advance Q4 GDP estimate showed economic output increased at an annualized rate of 2.6% (consensus 2.2%). With the fourth quarter numbers, it is estimated that real GDP increased 2.9% in 2018 versus 2.2% in 2017. The key takeaway from the report is that it supported the notion that the U.S. economy held up relatively well in the fourth quarter despite the stock market volatility. In turn, it will help rebut any notions that the economy is on the cusp of a recession.
- Initial claims for the week ending February 23 increased by 8,000 to 225,000 (consensus 221,000). Continuing claims for the week ending February 16 increased by 79,000 to 1.805 million.The key takeaway from this report is that the low level of initial claims, which have held below 300,000 for 208 consecutive weeks, continues to support the view that the labor market remains tight and that employers are reluctant to let go of employees.
- Chicago PMI, increased to 64.7 in February (consensus 57.5) from 56.7 in January. The New Orders Index rebounded swiftly from a two-year low to its highest level since November.
- Media attention was placed on Trump abruptly ending a two-day summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. Trump hoped to curb Pyongyang’s nuclear-weapons program, but communication broke down when North Korea wanted the U.S. to lift all sanctions in exchange for closing some, but not all, of its nuclear sites. North Korea later refuted this account.
- U.S. Treasuries finished lower following the release of the better-than-expected advance Q4 GDP reading. The 2-yr yield increased one basis point to 2.50%, and the 10-yr yield increased two basis points to 2.71%. The U.S. Dollar Index increased 0.1% to 96.22. WTI crude rose 0.5% to $57.22/bbl.
STOCK MARKET WRAP
- S&P 500 lost -0.28% on Thursday in another tight-ranged session, which included the underperformance of cyclical sectors and the outperformance of defensive-oriented sectors. Investors also weighed better-than-expected GDP data, the latest batch of earnings reports, and some geopolitical drama.
- The S&P 500 materials (-1.3%), energy (-1.0%), and consumer discretionary (-0.6%) sectors underperformed the broader market. Conversely, the utilities (+0.4%), consumer staples (+0.3%), and real estate (+0.3%) sectors outperformed
- Booking Holdings (BKNG 1697.04, -208.90, -11.0%), HP Inc. (HPQ 19.73, -4.12, -17.3%), Box (BOX 20.24, -4.64, -18.7%), and Crocs (CROX 25.68, -2.84, -10.0%) dropped considerably following their reports. Anheuser-Busch InBev (BUD 78.16, +3.44, +4.6%) and Monster Beverage (MNST 63.83, +5.09, +8.7%), however, pleased investors with their results.