October 20th, 2015

Daily Market Commentary

 

ECONOMIC NEWS

  • Wholesale Sales in Canada were down 0.1% in month-over-month terms, below consensus.
  • Housing starts in the U.S. were 1.2 million, above consensus.
  • The Redbook Index, which measures same-store sales growth in US general merchandising stores, was reportedly down 0.1% and up 1.3% in month-over-month and year-over-year terms, respectively.
  • Foreign Direct Investment in China was up 9% year-to-date in year-over-year terms.

Commodities:

  • Gold traded near the lowest in almost a week as investors waited on U.S. data for clues on when the Federal Reserve will start raising interest rates.
  • Oil traded near the lowest closing price for two weeks in London amid estimates that U.S. crude inventories, already above average levels, expanded further.
  • Aluminum dropped to the lowest level in eight weeks as other industrial metals retreated amid mounting concerns about demand in China, the world’s biggest raw-materials consumer.

Canada:

  • Justin Trudeau’s Liberal Party swept into office with a surprise majority in Canada’s election, ousting Prime Minister Stephen Harper and capping the biggest political comeback in the country’s history.

United States:

  • U.S. stock-index futures declined as investors weighed earnings reports and mixed global economic data for clues on the trajectory of the U.S. recovery and central bank stimulus.
  • SanDisk Corp. is in advanced talks to sell itself to Western Digital Corp., and the two storage makers could reach a deal as soon as this week, people with knowledge of the matter said.
  • Here’s an awkward fact for anyone attributing the three-week climb in the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index to bearish investors unwinding trades: over that stretch, short interest hasn’t budged.
  • Google Inc. is making its first direct investment in a Chinese firm, an artificial-intelligence startup, since mostly quitting the country in 2010 over censorship concerns.

 

International:

  • European stocks declined after a report showing an improvement in the region’s lending conditions lowered the prospects for additional monetary stimulus.
  • Swedbank said profit fell 14 percent in the third quarter after commission income suffered because of weaker markets.
  • Asian stocks fell, paring the benchmark regional equities gauge’s biggest monthly rally in five years, as energy and material shares led losses and casino stocks trading in Hong Kong slumped.
  • China Mobile Ltd. posted third-quarter profit that missed analyst estimates as the world’s largest carrier faces stiffer competition, slowing subscriber growth and costs for its new high-speed network.
  • Posco, South Korea’s biggest steelmaker, reported the largest quarterly loss in at least five years amid losses on foreign exchange and mining assets, a lawsuit settlement and as a deluge of Chinese exports pushed down world prices.

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