Summary Of the Markets Today:
- The Dow closed down 53 points or 0.13%,
- Nasdaq closed up 0.14%, (Closed at 18,429, New Historic high 18,512)
- S&P 500 closed up 0.07%, (Closed at 5,577, New Historic high 5,591)
- Gold $2,371 up $7.50,
- WTI crude oil settled at $82 down $0.81,
- 10-year U.S. Treasury 4.294 up 0.026 points,
- USD index $105.12 up $0.120,
- Bitcoin $57,860 up $1,150 or 2.05%,
*Stock data, cryptocurrency, and commodity prices at the market closing.
Click here to read our current Economic Forecast – July 2024 Economic Forecast: One Recession Flag Removed But Little Indication The Economy Is Strengthening
Today’s Economic Releases Compiled by Steven Hansen, Publisher:
In today’s testimony to Congress on monetary policy, Fed Chair Jerome Powell stated in part:
The Committee has stated that we do not expect it will be appropriate to reduce the target range for the federal funds rate until we have gained greater confidence that inflation is moving sustainably toward 2 percent. Incoming data for the first quarter of this year did not support such greater confidence. The most recent inflation readings, however, have shown some modest further progress, and more good data would strengthen our confidence that inflation is moving sustainably toward 2 percent … We continue to make decisions meeting by meeting. We know that reducing policy restraint too soon or too much could stall or even reverse the progress we have seen on inflation. At the same time, in light of the progress made both in lowering inflation and in cooling the labor market over the past two years, elevated inflation is not the only risk we face. Reducing policy restraint too late or too little could unduly weaken economic activity and employment. In considering adjustments to the target range for the federal funds rate, the Committee will continue its practice of carefully assessing incoming data and their implications for the evolving outlook, the balance of risks, and the appropriate path of monetary policy.
There is no bottom line on monetary policy. The only definitive element is that the Fed does not want to adjust the federal funds rate today. Tomorrow or five years from now may be the right time 🙂
The NFIB Small Business Optimism Index reached the highest reading of the year in June at 91.5, a one-point increase from last month. The last time the index was higher was in December of 2023 when it reached 91.9. Even so, this marks the 30th month below the historical average of 98. Inflation is still the top small business issue, with 21% of owners reporting it as their single most important problem in operating their business, down one point from May. NFIB Chief Economist Bill Dunkelberg stated:
Main Street remains pessimistic about the economy for the balance of the year. Increasing compensation costs has led to higher prices all around. Meanwhile, no relief from inflation is in sight for small business owners as they prepare for the uncertain months ahead.
Here is a summary of headlines we are reading today:
- Early Adopters Pay the Price as EV Truck Values Tumble
- Africa’s Top Oil Producer Aims to Fight Soaring Inflation with Gold Reserves
- Tesla Short Sellers Are Getting Burned
- BP Shares Plummet on $2 Billion Impairment Warning
- Russian Moguls Received $11 Billion in Dividends in the Past Year
- Oil Prices Drop as Hurricane Beryl Blows Over
- Fed Chair Powell says holding rates high for too long could jeopardize economic growth
- Investors poured $1.6 billion into this riskier corner of the bond market in June, State Street says
- Bitcoin rises as Fed Chair Powell outlines risk to keeping rates high too long: CNBC Crypto World
- It suddenly looks like there are too many homes for sale. Here’s why that’s not quite right
- Boeing deliveries drop 27% in June year-on-year
- Hopes for cooling inflation are stifled by Wall Street’s expectations for Trump 2.0
- Long-term Treasury yields rise for first time in five sessions after Powell expresses need for more ‘good’ inflation data
Click on the “Read More” below to access these, other headlines, and the associated news summaries moving the markets today.
The Market in Perspective
| Here are the headlines moving the markets. | |
 |
Early Adopters Pay the Price as EV Truck Values TumbleSome early adopters of electric vehicle trucks who bought on secondary markets during the EV mania in recent years have been hammered by price collapses. Using Bring A Trailer data, we analyzed auctions of four EV trucks: a GMC Hummer EV, a Ford F-150 Lightning EV, a Rivian R1T, and a Tesla Cybertruck. All of these trucks have seen sizeable price declines on the auction website. Let’s start with the GMC Hummer EV, which was heavily hyped and initially sold for a staggering $275k on the auction website in April 2022. Fast forward to… Read more at: https://oilprice.com/Energy/Energy-General/Early-Adopters-Pay-the-Price-as-EV-Truck-Values-Tumble.html |
|
5 Issues That Will Dominate the NATO SummitOne of the main things to look out for during the summit is the wording about Ukraine’s NATO membership prospects in the final declaration. The drafting of this document, which usually stretches several pages, has been under way in NATO HQ in Brussels for weeks and the main bone of contention is how exactly to craft sentences pertaining to the chances of Kyiv joining the military alliance. Ukraine will not be invited to join now, that much is clear. NATO has been adamant that Ukraine cannot join as long as the war rages on in the country, as members… Read more at: https://oilprice.com/Geopolitics/International/5-Issues-That-Will-Dominate-the-NATO-Summi.html |
|
Labour Looks to Balance Oil and Gas Revenue With Green Energy ExpansionFollowing the Labour Party’s landslide victory in the U.K. at the beginning of July, several changes are expected to be introduced in the country’s energy sector. Environmentalists hope the change in government will bring greater support for green energy projects and help curb fossil fuel activities, as it moves in a different direction from the Conservative Party. However, there are several challenges facing the Labour government when it comes to the energy transition, including local support for energy projects and investment in transmission… Read more at: https://oilprice.com/Energy/Energy-General/Labour-Looks-to-Balance-Oil-and-Gas-Revenue-With-Green-Energy-Expansion.html |
|
Africa’s Top Oil Producer Aims to Fight Soaring Inflation with Gold ReservesNigeria, the biggest oil producer in Africa, is considering ways to curb soaring inflation, including by giving the central bank powers to use gold to boost reserves. Nigerian lawmakers are discussing a bill to create a so-called Gold Reserve Authority and give the central bank the powers to be the automatic off-taker for all the gold produced in Nigeria, according to a draft document seen by Bloomberg. Lawmakers are also proposing boosting the share of gold of Nigeria’s foreign reserves to a minimum of 30%, compared to 4% at present. … Read more at: https://oilprice.com/Latest-Energy-News/World-News/Africas-Top-Oil-Producer-Aims-to-Fight-Soaring-Inflation-with-Gold-Reserves.html |
|
Georgia’s Complex Relationship with NATOA NATO summit will convene July 9 in Washington with the main objective being enhancing Ukraine’s ability to defend itself against Russian aggression. But an ancillary aim for the Atlantic Alliance will be strengthening relationships with states in the Caucasus and Central Asia in the hopes of crimping Russia’s ability to wage war. During three days of meetings, NATO leaders will strive to put a comprehensive system in place to build Kyiv’s war-fighting capacity. At the same time, they intend to pay attention to Russia’s… Read more at: https://oilprice.com/Geopolitics/International/Georgias-Complex-Relationship-with-NATO.html |
|
Shell Looks To Drill Ultra-Deepwater Wells Off South AfricaOil and gas supermajor Shell is applying for authorizations to drill ultra-deepwater wells offshore South Africa, looking to expand the recent discoveries off Namibia into South Africa’s west coast, Reuters reported on Tuesday, citing a draft environmental assessment from independent environmental consultancy SLR. Analysts believe that some offshore formations that South Africa shares with the offshore areas of Namibia – the latest deepwater exploration hotspot – could hold great resource potential. Shell’s local… Read more at: https://oilprice.com/Latest-Energy-News/World-News/Shell-Looks-To-Drill-Ultra-Deepwater-Wells-Off-South-Africa.html |
|
Tesla Short Sellers Are Getting BurnedOne month ago, when momentum-chasing market pundits and other fair-weather experts were quick to throw Tesla out of the Mag7 and forecast that the stock would keep on sinking indefinitely even as the AI bubble took the Big 5 – MSFT, NVDA, AAPL, GOOGL and META – into the stratosphere, we observed that “TSLA remains one of the most shorted names in the hedge fund space and is one of the biggest mutual fund underweights” The implication, of course, was that a face-ripping short squeeze was imminent – and sure enough, just three weeks later we have… Read more at: https://oilprice.com/Finance/the-Markets/Tesla-Short-Sellers-Are-Getting-Burned.html |
|
BP Shares Plummet on $2 Billion Impairment WarningShares in BP fell by as much as four percent this morning after it warned it was expected to post an impairment of up to $2bn (1.6bn) and was operating under “significantly” lower refining margins. The FTSE 100 oil major, which in April surprised investors with a better-than-expected oil and gas trading performance in the first three months of the year, maintained much of its momentum in the second quarter, but said that “onerous contract provisions” meant it was setting aside up between between $1bn (£780m) and $2bn… Read more at: https://oilprice.com/Latest-Energy-News/World-News/BP-Shares-Plummet-on-2-Billion-Impairment-Warning.html |
|
Green Economy’s 198% Return Second Only to Tech in the Past DecadeGreen economy firms have seen total market returns of 198% over the past decade, making the sector the second-best performing equity segment over the past decade, behind technology, Bloomberg reported on Tuesday, citing a report from London Stock Exchange Group Plc (LSEG). LSEG has defined the “green economy” as including companies generating revenues from renewables and mining and processing of critical minerals and has estimated that this green industry overall now has a total market capitalization of $7.2 trillion.… Read more at: https://oilprice.com/Energy/Energy-General/Green-Economys-198-Return-Second-Only-to-Tech-in-the-Past-Decade.html |
|
Saudi Aramco Looks to Raise at Least $3 Billion From New Bond SaleSaudi state oil giant Aramco plans to raise at least $3 billion from a new bond issue that would be its first in three years, sources with knowledge of the matter told Bloomberg on Tuesday. Saudi Aramco plans to offer bonds with 10, 30, and 40 years of maturity and expects to begin meetings with fixed-income investors on Tuesday, according to Bloomberg’s sources. The proceeds from Aramco’s new bond sale will likely go to refinancing existing borrowings and helping the investment program of the world’s largest… Read more at: https://oilprice.com/Latest-Energy-News/World-News/Saudi-Aramco-Looks-to-Raise-at-Least-3-Billion-From-New-Bond-Sale.html |
|
Russian Moguls Received $11 Billion in Dividends in the Past YearExecutives and shareholders of some of the largest companies in Russia have pocketed the equivalent of more than $11 billion in dividends in the past year as many firms resumed dividend payments, a Bloomberg analysis showed on Tuesday. At least 12 Russian executives, former executives, and shareholders of some of the major local firms – including in the energy sector – received more than $11.4 billion (1 trillion Russian rubles) in dividends in 2023 and so far in 2024, according to data from company filings compiled by Bloomberg.… Read more at: https://oilprice.com/Latest-Energy-News/World-News/Russian-Moguls-Received-11-Billion-in-Dividends-in-the-Past-Year.html |
|
Oil Prices Drop as Hurricane Beryl Blows OverThe first major hurricane of the year has come and gone without causing any significant supply disruptions, leading oil prices to fall back on Tuesday morning.- The landfall of Hurricane Beryl led to three casualties in Texas, leaving more than 2 million Houston homes without power, but first reports suggest damage to oil infrastructure has been limited.- Since making landfall near the coastal town of Matagorda, Beryl has weakened to a tropical storm and is forecast to move across eastern Texas and into the lower Mississippi Valley later in the… Read more at: https://oilprice.com/Energy/Energy-General/Oil-Prices-Drop-as-Hurricane-Beryl-Blows-Over.html |
|
Texas Energy Industry Starts Restoring Operations After BerylEnergy companies in Texas began restoring operations on Tuesday after some ports were shut and refineries reduced output ahead of hurricane Beryl, which made landfall on the U.S. Gulf Coast in Texas earlier this week. Early on Monday, Beryl, which at one point was the earliest Category 5 hurricane on record, made landfall in Texas, bringing heavy rains and warnings of potential storm surge, flooding, and tornadoes. At the time of the landfall, Beryl was a Category 1 hurricane. Ahead of Hurricane Beryl’s landfall, natural gas flows to… Read more at: https://oilprice.com/Latest-Energy-News/World-News/Texas-Energy-Industry-Starts-Restoring-Operations-After-Beryl.html |
|
Recovering Hydropower Set to Reduce Fossil Fuels GrowthFollowing low generation from hydropower in 2023, global hydropower plants have seen their output soar this year, thanks to sufficient rainfalls in large hydropower-producing nations. The recovery of hydropower output from last year’s lows could displace some of the fossil fuel use for electricity generation, Reuters market analyst John Kemp notes. In 2023, energy-related emissions surged to another record-high level as coal use rose in major developing markets hit by low hydropower generation, the latest emissions report by… Read more at: https://oilprice.com/Latest-Energy-News/World-News/Recovering-Hydropower-Set-to-Reduce-Fossil-Fuels-Growth.html |
|
Oil Depot on Fire in Russia After Ukrainian Drone StrikesAn oil depot in the Volgograd region of Russia is burning following a drone attack by the Ukrainian army. The drones were destroyed by local air defense systems but the debris from the unmanned aerial vehicles set the oil depot on fire along with a substation in the area, Russian media report. The fire at the substation has been dealt with and firefighters are currently working on putting out the fire at the oil depot. Per official statements by the Russian authorities, the air defense system destroyed 38 drones including 21 over the region… Read more at: https://oilprice.com/Latest-Energy-News/World-News/Oil-Depot-on-Fire-in-Russia-After-Ukrainian-Drone-Strikes.html |
|
Fed Chair Powell says holding rates high for too long could jeopardize economic growthSetting the stage for a two-day appearance on Capitol Hill, the central bank leader said the economy remains strong as does the labor market. Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2024/07/09/fed-chief-powell-says-holding-rates-high-for-too-long-could-jeopardize-economic-growth.html |
|
Democrats hold pivotal meetings on Biden, as divisions deepen after Trump debateIt’s the first full Democratic caucus meeting since President Joe Biden’s poor debate showing against former President Donald Trump sparked a campaign crisis. Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2024/07/09/biden-campaign-democrats-updates.html |
|
UiPath to lay off 10% of workforce in companywide restructuringSoftware developer UiPath will cut 10% of its workforce, or about 420 jobs, as part of a broader company restructuring. Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2024/07/09/uipath-layoffs-company-to-cut-10percent-of-workforce.html |
|
Senators seek special counsel probe of Supreme Court Justice Clarence ThomasSupreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas “secretly accepted gifts and income potentially worth millions of dollars,” the Democratic senators said evidence showed. Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2024/07/09/justice-clarence-thomas-senate-special-counsel-probe-sought.html |
|
Investors poured $1.6 billion into this riskier corner of the bond market in June, State Street saysThe pursuit of solid income spurred investors to snap up ETFs holding bank loans and collateralized loan obligations. Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2024/07/09/investors-poured-1point6-billion-into-bank-loan-clo-etfs-in-june-state-street.html |
|
Bitcoin rises as Fed Chair Powell outlines risk to keeping rates high too long: CNBC Crypto WorldCNBC Crypto World features the latest news and daily trading updates from the digital currency markets and provides viewers with a look at what’s ahead with high-profile interviews, explainers, and unique stories from the ever-changing crypto industry. On today’s show, Exodus CEO JP Richardson explains a new innovation the crypto wallet created in an effort to give users control of their wealth. Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/video/2024/07/09/bitcoin-rebounds-amid-fed-chair-jay-powell-testimony-capitol-hill-cnbc-crypto-world.html |
|
It suddenly looks like there are too many homes for sale. Here’s why that’s not quite rightInventory of both new and existing homes is finally rising, but the supply of newly built homes appears to be way too high. Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2024/07/09/why-home-prices-are-still-rising-even-as-inventory-recovers.html |
|
Hedge funds post mediocre first-half performance with some big names only up single digitsHedge funds returned just 5% in the first half of the year after a 0.2% loss in June, according to data firm HFR. Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2024/07/09/hedge-funds-post-mediocre-1h-numbers-with-big-names-only-up-single-digits.html |
|
Etsy CEO says company is escaping ‘race to the bottom’ and getting back to its artisan rootsEtsy is making policy changes as it faces pressure to compete with Amazon and emerging e-commerce players Temu and Shein. Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2024/07/09/etsy-escaping-race-to-the-bottom-and-getting-back-to-artisan-roots.html |
|
First Ariane 6 rocket launches, as Europe rejoins a market dominated by Musk’s SpaceXThe European Space Agency has prepared its newest heavy-lift Ariane 6 rocket to launch from Europe’s Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana on Tuesday. Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2024/07/09/first-ariane-6-launch-of-european-rocket.html |
|
3 tips for using Google Flights to score cheaper airfare, from a travel expertFollow these steps to find the best — and cheapest — flights for your next vacation. Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2024/07/09/travel-expert-how-to-use-google-flights-to-score-cheaper-airfare.html |
|
Greece defends new six-day working week legislation, says it’s an ‘exceptional measure’After facing backlash for introducing a new six-day working week, Greece has defended the policy, saying it would be an “exceptional measure.” Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2024/07/09/greece-defends-six-day-work-week-says-it-is-an-exceptional-measure.html |
|
Boeing deliveries drop 27% in June year-on-yearBoeing delivered more commercial jets in June than in any other month this year, but it represented a drop on an annual basis amid a whirlwind of challenges. Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2024/07/09/boeing-deliveries-drop-27percent-in-june-year-on-year.html |
|
AriZona Iced Tea CEO ‘Fights Hard’ To Keep Prices At 99 CentsAriZona Beverages first debuted its 99-cent cans at retail brick-and-mortar shops in 1992. Thirty-two years later, the price has yet to be raised a single penny. “I don’t know about never, but not in the foreseeable future,” Arizona Beverages chairman and founder Don Vultaggio said in a recent interview with NBC Morning News and Today, who was asked if price hikes were imminent. Vultaggio said, “We’re going to fight as hard as we can for consumers because consumers are my friends.” He explained that keeping prices for the 23-ounce cans was “maybe … my little way to give back.” “We’re successful. We’re debt-free. We own everything,” he said. “Why have people who are having a hard time paying their rent … pay more for our drink?”
In a 2022 CNBC interview, Vultaggio explained the way his company keeps prices low is not through large advertising campaigns, like major competitors, but instead relies on word-of-mouth. “I tell people every day I go to a gunfight wit … Read more at: https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/arizona-iced-tea-ceo-fights-hard-keep-prices-99-cents |
|
Supreme Court Won’t Hear Online Commentator’s Censorship Suit Against CaliforniaAuthored by Matthew Vadum via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours), The Supreme Court denied commentator Rogan O’Handley’s bid last week to appeal a lower court’s decision dismissing his lawsuit that claimed California pressured Twitter to censor his election-related posts.
The U.S. Supreme Court in Washington on June 25, 2024. (Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times) Mr. O’Handley’s account on Twitter, now called X, had been suspended after he claimed the 2020 presidential election was rigged. California officials flagged his posts as election misinformation. He sued the social media platform and the state in federal court and lost. The new action by the Supreme Court came after it Read more at: https://www.zerohedge.com/political/supreme-court-wont-hear-online-commentators-censorship-suit-against-california |
|
Zelensky & Biden Blast Modi’s Visit To Moscow, Warm Embrace Of PutinOn Monday Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Russian President Vladimir Putin at his residence in Novo-Ogaryovo near Moscow. Modi declared that he’s ready to support any and all efforts toward achieving peace in Ukraine. But while Putin and Modi were cementing their ‘bonds of friendship’, hundreds of miles away in Ukraine some 40 Russian missiles rained down on major cities, including Kiev. President Volodymyr Zelensky subsequently blasted the Indian leader’s visit, calling it a “huge disappointment and a devastating blow to peace efforts.”
Kremlin/AP The two-day visit, which has continued through Tuesday, is Modi’s first since the Russian invasion began two-and-a-half years ago. “It is a huge disappointment and a devastating blow to peace efforts to see the leader of the world’s largest democra … Read more at: https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/zelensky-biden-blast-modis-2-day-moscow-visit-warm-embrace-putin |
|
Four Unbelievable NarrativesAuthored by James Rickards via DailyReckoning.com, Everyday Americans and investors in particular are confronted with “narratives” daily. Many include hidden agendas that are politically, ideologically or financially driven. The key for investors is to see the narrative for what it is, avoid the mass psychosis, position yourself for reality and succeed in the end. Following are four reigning narratives.
In each case, I sketch these narratives (and what the media wants you to believe), then contrast that sketch with reality supported by hard data. COVID: The NarrativeThe pandemic narrative was straightforward: It was caused by a virus of natural origin that passed from animals to humans through exotic game, such as bats and pangolins, that were sold in a wet market in Wuhan, China. It spread quickly and was highly fatal. The solution was to isolat … Read more at: https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/four-unbelievable-narratives |
|
Dyson to cut nearly one third of UK workforceThe firm, known for the invention of the bag-less vacuum cleaner, made the announcement in response to global markets. Read more at: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c6p2660ldn2o |
|
How are the non-dom rules changing?The non-domicile rules let some UK residents limit the tax paid on earnings outside the country. Read more at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-32216346 |
|
Energy boss backs lower bills for those near wind farmsGreg Jackson from Octopus says people living near wind farms should pay less for electricity. Read more at: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cj509yg9n3qo |
|
Tech View: Nifty forms long bull candle, may test 24,580-24,640. Here’s how to trade on WednesdayNifty’s upward momentum is expected to continue after surpassing the key resistance level of 24,400. According to Nagaraj Shetti of HDFC Securities, the index could reach 24,960 in the near term, with immediate support at 24,250. Read more at: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/stocks/news/tech-view-nifty-forms-long-bull-candle-may-test-24580-24640-heres-how-to-trade-on-wednesday/articleshow/111609865.cms |
|
Tea stocks rally up to 16% as tea prices likely to soar furtherTea stocks soar as prices spike due to heatwave and floods, reaching new highs. India’s struggling tea industry could benefit from the surge, but financially weak producers still face challenges. Read more at: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/stocks/news/tea-stocks-rally-up-to-16-as-tea-prices-likely-to-soar-further/articleshow/111597074.cms |
|
Expect the market to rally more toward Budget date: Andrew HollandAndrew Holland, CEO of Avendus Capital Public Markets Alternate Strategies, anticipates a pre-Budget rally in IT, banking, FMCG, and power sectors, aided by post-election gains, rural spending, and renewables. Key areas include consumer stocks, affordable housing finance, and power financers like PFC and REC. Power cables and the beverage sector also appear promising with increasing power orders. Read more at: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/expert-view/expect-the-market-to-rally-more-toward-budget-date-andrew-holland/articleshow/111578614.cms |
|
Hopes for cooling inflation are stifled by Wall Street’s expectations for Trump 2.0Just as many investors and traders remain sanguine about the prospects of cooling U.S. inflation when Thursday’s consumer-price index for June comes out, Wall Street is pointing to the potential inflationary impacts of a second presidency under Republican Donald Trump. Read more at: https://www.marketwatch.com/story/hopes-for-cooling-inflation-are-stifled-by-wall-streets-expectations-for-trump-2-0-baffd6ff?mod=mw_rss_topstories |
|
Long-term Treasury yields rise for first time in five sessions after Powell expresses need for more ‘good’ inflation dataYields on U.S. government debt finished modestly higher on Tuesday after Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell indicated that more improvement on inflation is needed before officials can cut interest rates. Read more at: https://www.marketwatch.com/story/treasury-yields-steady-as-market-prepares-for-powell-testimony-1de667d2?mod=mw_rss_topstories |
|
Oil prices finish lower after Hurricane Beryl leaves energy infrastructure largely unscathedOil futures lost ground Tuesday, with U.S. benchmark prices settling at their lowest in nearly two weeks after Hurricane Beryl appeared to leave Texas energy infrastructure with little damage. Read more at: https://www.marketwatch.com/story/oil-prices-edge-lower-after-beryl-leaves-energy-infrastructure-largely-unscathed-4415a755?mod=mw_rss_topstories |
