February 25th 2015

Daily Market Commentary

 

ECONOMIC NEWS

  • Mortgage Applications in the U.S. were reportedly down 3.5% in February.
  • Mortgage Approvals in Great Britain were reportedly up 36.4K in January, slightly above estimates.
  • The HSBC Manufacturing PMI in China was reported at 50.1, above estimates of 49.5.

Commodities:

  • Oil slipped a sixth day in New York, heading for the longest run of declines since July, before U.S. government data forecast to show record crude stockpiles expanded again.
  • Gold rebounded from the lowest level in seven weeks as investors weighed the outlook for U.S. interest rates after Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen downplayed the possibility of an immediate increase.

Canada:

  • Royal Bank of Canada, the country’s second-largest lender by assets, said profit rose 17 percent to a record on gains in domestic lending and investment banking. The company raised its dividend 2.7 percent to 77 cents a share.
  • Encana Corp. reported an 84.5 percent drop in operating profit for the fourth quarter, hurt by a fall in natural gas production and weak oil prices. (Globe)
  • Magna International Inc. cut its revenue forecast for 2015, hurt by weak demand from Europe. (Globe)
  • BMO posted a fiscal first-quarter profit that fell 6% from a year earlier and missed analyst expectations amid headwinds such as swooning oil prices, interest rates and a turbulent CAD.
  • CP said it has renewed its share buyback program for the next year, allowing it to repurchase up to 9.14 million shares, or 6% of its public float.

United States

  • U.S. stock-index futures were little changed after benchmark gauges closed at all-time highs.
  • American Express Co. is raising interest rates on a swath of credit cards for the first time in more than five years.
  • Lowe’s Cos. posted fourth-quarter profit that topped analysts’ estimates as the company revamps its stores to take advantage of a boom in home remodelling.
  • As promised, U.S. President Barack Obama vetoed Keystone XL approval legislation Tuesday, escalating the confrontation with Congress over the pipeline (Globe).

International:

  • European stocks fell from a seven-year high as declines in energy companies and automakers outweighed Axa SA’s advance.
  • Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc will outline plans Thursday to reduce the number of countries in which it operates by two-thirds to 13, a person with knowledge of the matter said.
  • Telefonica SA reported the lowest fourth-quarter operating profit in more than a decade after writing down the value of its Venezuelan unit, becoming the latest foreign investor to suffer from the crumbling economy.
  • Greece’s new left-wing government will not block Canadian firm Eldorado Gold Corp.’s mining operations in the country’s north, but will review permits for a processing plant at the site. (Globe)
  • Asian stocks gained, with the regional benchmark extending a five-month high, after Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen indicated an increase in interest rates is unlikely before mid-year.
  • Sony Corp. will put more businesses into separate structures, including its lucrative devices unit, as Chief Executive Officer Kazuo Hirai tries to boost accountability in his turnaround push.
  • Toyota Motor Corp. rebuffed the largest wage increase proposal from its union since 1998, saying the raise would lift costs by about 20 billion yen ($168 million).

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