Summary Of the Markets Today:

• The Dow closed down 270 points or 0.80%,
• Nasdaq closed down 0.46%,
• S&P 500 closed down 0.70%,
• Gold $2,037 up $13.60,
• WTI crude oil settled at $68 down $3.49,
• 10-year U.S. Treasury 3.352% down 0.087 points,
• EUR/USD $1.105 up $0.005,
• Bitcoin $28,351 down $384,

*Stock data, cryptocurrency, and commodity prices at the market closing.

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Click here to read our Economic Forecast for May 2023

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Today’s Economic Releases:

The ADP National Employment Report for April 2023 showed that private payrolls increased by 296,000 (blue line on the graph below), much higher than expected. This was the largest gain since July 2022. The services sector added 229,000 jobs, led by leisure/hospitality (154,000), education/health services (69,000), and trade/transportation/utilities (32,000). Meanwhile, the goods-producing industry added 67,000 jobs due to construction (53,000) and mining (52,000) while manufacturing shed 38,000 jobs. Medium establishments created 122,000 jobs, small-sized companies 121,000 jobs only large firms 47,000 jobs. Job changers in particular saw a dramatic decline in pay growth to 13.2%, the slowest pace of growth since November 2021, from 14.2%. For job stayers, pay growth eased to 6.7% from 6.9%. The report also showed that average hourly earnings for private employees rose 5.4% from a year ago, down from 5.5% in March. The deceleration in wage growth is a sign that labor market tightness is easing.

The S&P Global US Services PMI for April 2023 came in at 53.6, up from 52.6 in March. This was the fastest pace of expansion in the country’s service sector since April 2022. The increase in the S&P Global US Services PMI suggests that the services sector is growing at a faster pace.

The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) met on May 3-4, 2023, and decided to raise the target range for the federal funds rate by 0.25 percentage points to a range of 5.00 to 5.25 percent. The FOMC’s decision to raise interest rates was in response to high inflation which is not moderating quickly. There were few word changes in the meeting statement so there are no clues on how many more rate increases are projected. For a commentary on Chair Powell’s market-moving comments after the latest rate hike – [click here].

 

A summary of headlines we are reading today:

• TotalEnergies To Launch $27 Billion Energy Project In Iraq This Month
• Rare Earth Metals See Prices Plunge
• Oil Prices Crash As Demand Fears Mount
• Iran Seizes Second Oil Tanker In Arabian Gulf
• Fed recap: Here are Chair Powell’s market-moving comments after the latest rate hike
• Dow closes more than 250 points lower Wednesday after Fed hikes rates for a 10th time: Live updates
• The market is looking for the next ‘domino’ to fall, keeping banks under pressure
• Private payrolls surged by 296,000 in April, much higher than expected, ADP says
• Watch Live: Fed Chair Powell Attempt To Explain If The Pause Is Hawkish Or Dovish
• Fed’s Powell says U.S. banking system is ‘sound and resilient’ after First Republic failure

Click on the “Read More” below to access these, other headlines, and the associated news summaries moving the markets today.

Summary Of the Markets Today:

• The Dow closed down 367 points or 1.08%,
• Nasdaq closed down 1.08%,
• S&P 500 closed down 1.16%,
• Gold $2,026 up $34.10,
• WTI crude oil settled at $72 down $4.03,
• 10-year U.S. Treasury 3.426% down 0.148 points,
• EUR/USD $1.100 up $0.003,
• Bitcoin $28,718 up $863,

*Stock data, cryptocurrency, and commodity prices at the market closing.

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Click here to read our Economic Forecast for May 2023

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Today’s Economic Releases:

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported today that job openings decreased to 9.6 million on the last business day of March, a decrease of 632,000 from the previous month. The decline was driven by a decrease in openings in professional and business services, health care and social assistance, and transportation and warehousing. The decline in job openings is a sign that the labor market is cooling. This is likely due to a number of factors, including rising inflation, concerns about a recession, and the war in Ukraine. Note that the number of job openings per unemployed person has significantly declined (see graph below)

New orders for manufactured goods in March increased by $4.9 billion or 0.9% month-over-month to $539.0 billion (1.3% year-over-year gain). This follows two consecutive monthly decreases. The increase was driven by a rise in demand for transportation equipment, which increased by $4.4 billion or 5.4%. Excluding transportation equipment, new orders increased by 0.3%. Excluding defense, new orders increased by 1.0%. If one inflation adjusts this data, new orders declined 0.2% year-over-year.

A summary of headlines we are reading today:

• Tesla Hikes Prices Of Model 3, Model Y In The U.S. And China
• Platinum May Soon Be In Short Supply
• Oil Prices Unlikely To Get Support From Rising Jet Fuel Demand
• WTI Crude Falls 4% As Economic Fears Trigger Selloff
• Diamondback Energy Misses Q1 Forecasts As Oil Prices Slide
• BP Beats Q1 Profit Forecast With “Exceptional” Oil And Gas Trading
• Dow tumbles more than 300 points as banking sector worries reignite before Fed rate decision: Live updates
• Drugs, guns and crypto seized, 288 arrested, in ‘unprecedented’ dark web crackdown
• Job openings fell more than expected in March to lowest level in nearly two years
• Washington Watch: Debt-ceiling standoff: Here’s what’s next, as U.S. faces potential default on June 1

Click on the “Read More” below to access these, other headlines, and the associated news summaries moving the markets today.

Summary Of the Markets Today:

• The Dow closed down 46 points or 0.14%,
• Nasdaq closed down 0.11%,
• S&P 500 closed down 0.04%,
• Gold $1,989 down $10.30,
• WTI crude oil settled at $76 down $1.01,
• 10-year U.S. Treasury 3.589% up 0.135 points,
• EUR/USD $1.097 down $0.005,
• Bitcoin $27,821 down $1,506,

*Stock data, cryptocurrency, and commodity prices at the market closing.

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Click here to read our Economic Forecast for May 2023

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Today’s Economic Releases:

Construction spending in the United States increased by 0.3% in March 2023 to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1,834.7 billion. This was the third consecutive month of growth. Unfortunately, inflation is high, and when subtracting the inflation rate from the construction growth rate – construction spending continues to slow (see graph below).

The Institute for Supply Management (ISM) Services Report On Business for March 2023 registered 51.2%, 3.9 percentage points lower than February’s reading of 55.1%. The Services PMI® Index is a composite indicator of the performance of the non-manufacturing sector, including service-providing industries such as retail, transportation, and warehousing, as well as finance and insurance. The index is based on a survey of purchasing managers in the United States. The decline in the Services PMI® Index in March was driven by a number of factors, including:

• Rising inflation
• Supply chain disruptions
• Labor shortages

A summary of headlines we are reading today:

• A summary of headlines we are reading today:
• U.S. April Oil Exports Beat Expectations
• Harvard Study: Divesting From Coal Is More Beneficial Than Previously Thought
• New Nuclear Technology Is Safer, More Efficient And More Sustainable
• Oil Prices Fall On Disappointing Manufacturing Data
• Jamie Dimon says ‘this part of the crisis is over’ after JPMorgan Chase buys First Republic
• Dow closes slightly lower following JPMorgan’s takeover of fallen First Republic: Live updates
• Bonds, Bitcoin, & Bullion Battered After Bank Bailout, Stagflation Scare
• The Economy Is A Powder Keg, Boiling Over And Ready To Blow
• Key Words: ‘It is hard to see how you can prevent the bad actors from using it for bad things’: Google’s former ‘Godfather of AI’ warns of misuse after quitting tech giant

Click on the “Read More” below to access these, other headlines, and the associated news summaries moving the markets today.