June 25th, 2015

Daily Market Commentary

 

ECONOMIC NEWS

  • The EIA Natural Gas storage change was reported at 75B barrels, slightly below estimates.
  • Continuing jobless claims were reported at 2.247M, slightly above estimates.
  • Personal income in the U.S. rose 0.5% in month-over-month terms, in line with estimates.
  • The Markit Services PMI for the U.S. was reported at 54.8, slightly below estimates.

Commodities:

  • Oil traded near $60 a barrel in New York as a decline in U.S. crude inventories countered near-record production levels, depressing price volatility to the lowest in more than seven months.

Canada:

  • The departure of discounter Target Corp. and a raft of other retailers from Canada leaves landlords with plenty of space to fill at a time when many merchants are downsizing amid the rise of e-commerce. In all, an estimated 21 million square feet of retail real estate will be vacant this year – almost three times the amount of new retail development that comes on the market annually. (Globe)
  • A group of WestJet Airlines Ltd. pilots has applied to be certified as a union at the staunchly non-union carrier. The application to the Canada Industrial Relations Board required that more than 40 per cent of WestJet’s 1,200 pilots signed membership cards. (Globe)

United States:

  • U.S. stock-index futures gained, indicating equities will rebound, before data that may show the economy is strengthening before an expected Federal Reserve rate increase.
  • High-frequency trading firm Optiver’s U.S. unit paid $16.75 million to settle seven-year-old lawsuits that alleged the company had manipulated energy futures contracts.
  • U.S. airlines are adding seats at a slower pace as they seek to keep domestic fares, running at their lowest level in four years, from falling further.

International:

  • European stocks climbed, reversing earlier losses, after a European Union official said Greek documents can be the basis for a deal. Asian stocks fell.
  • Vale SA, the world’s largest nickel producer, is considering selling about 25 percent to 30 percent of its base metals business in an initial public offering.
  • London Mayor Boris Johnson is proposing a 10 billion-pound ($16 billion) fund to encourage growth of emerging health-care companies in the U.K. in an effort to catch up to biotechnology clusters in the U.S.
  • Vivendi SA raised its stake in Telecom Italia SpA to 14.9 percent as the French media group bolsters its influence over Italy’s biggest telecommunications provider.
  • Hennes & Mauritz AB reported second-quarter profit that missed analysts’ estimates as Europe’s second-biggest clothing retailer battled with the strength of the U.S. dollar, which raised garment costs.
  • The share of total energy derived from renewables in the U.K. rose to 7 percent in 2014, confounding a European warning that Britain may not be on track to meet its 2020 goals on clean energy.
  • South Korea plans a stimulus package of more than 15 trillion won ($13.5 billion) to cushion the economic impact of a deadly respiratory disease and a drought.
  • Surging Chinese demand for Australian homes is dwarfing efforts to root out illegal buyers as the government struggles to avert a backlash against unaffordable housing.

 

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