03 April 2023 Market Close & Major Financial Headlines: Wall Street’s Three Main Indexes Opened Fractionally Lower, But Finally Closed Mixed

April 3, 2023Posted inmarketsNo Comments

Summary Of the Markets Today:

  • The Dow closed up 327 points or 0.98%,
  • Nasdaq closed down 0.27%,
  • S&P 500 closed up 0.37%,
  • Gold $2,002 up $16.30,
  • WTI crude oil settled at $80 up $4.74,
  • 10-year U.S. Treasury 3.411% down 0.077 points,
  • USD $102.02 down $0.49,
  • Bitcoin $28,047 up $60,

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

Click here to read our Economic Forecast for April 2023

Today’s Economic Releases:

The ISM Manufacturing PMI decreased to 46.3 in March of 2023, the lowest since May of 2020, and compared to 47.7 in February and a consensus of 47.5 implying that rising interest rates and growing recession fears are starting to weigh on businesses. The reading pointed to a fifth straight month of contraction in factory activity, as companies continue to slow outputs to better match the demand for the first half of 2023 and prepare for growth in the late summer/early fall period.

source: trading economics

Construction spending during February 2023 was up 5.2% from February 2022. Unfortunately, after adjusting for inflation, construction spending is DOWN 9.5% year-over-year and is continuing to slow.

 

A summary of headlines we are reading today:

  • U.S. Natural Gas Prices Are “Begging For Supply Cuts”
  • Renewables Projected To Overtake Coal Worldwide By 2027
  • Traders Predict 25-Point Rate Hike After OPEC+ Surprise Oil Output Cut
  • Tesla Smashes Q1 Delivery Record Thanks To Price Cuts
  • Citi Doesn’t See $100 Oil Despite Shock OPEC+ Cuts
  • Google to cut down on employee laptops, services and staplers for ‘multi-year’ savings
  • Dow closes 300 points higher to begin April’s trading, S&P 500 notches fourth day of gains: Live updates
  • JPMorgan says more banks could run out of reserves like SVB if the pace of this deposit flight continues
  • U.S. passport delays may be four months long — and could get worse. Here’s what to know
  • Home prices suddenly jump after several months of declines
  • Oil prices surge after a surprise move to cut output
  • Metals Stocks: Gold settles above $2,000 as the dollar retreats after OPEC+ surprise output cuts

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

Weather: Tonight, Tomorrow, Next Day, Five Days, and Intermediate-Term Outlooks for the U.S. and a Five-Day Forecast for the World: posted April 3, 2023

April 3, 2023Posted inweatherNo Comments

Updated at 7:02 p.m. EDT April 3, 2023

Here is what we are paying attention to in the next 48 to 72 hours. The article also includes weather maps for longer-term outlooks and a five-day World weather forecast.

We start with the U.S. Information.

Short Range Forecast Discussion
NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD
355 PM EDT Mon Apr 03 2023

Valid 00Z Tue Apr 04 2023 – 00Z Thu Apr 06 2023

…Heavy snow over parts of the Northern/Central Plains…

…There is a Slight Risk of severe thunderstorms over parts of the
Southeast on Monday evening and a Moderate Risk of Severe thunderstorms
over parts of the Middle/Lower Mississippi Valley on Tuesday…

…There is a Slight Risk of excessive rainfall over parts of the Western
Gulf Coast, Lower Mississippi Valley, and the Ohio/Tennessee Valleys on
Wednesday…

…There is a Slight Risk of severe thunderstorms over parts of the Ohio
Valley and the Great Lakes on Wednesday…

Weather: Tonight, Tomorrow, Next Day, Five Days, and Intermediate-Term Outlooks for the U.S. and a Five-Day Forecast for the World: posted April 2 2023

April 2, 2023Posted inweatherNo Comments

Updated at 4 p.m. EDT Sunday, April 2, 2023

Here is what we are paying attention to in the next 48 to 72 hours. The article also includes weather maps for longer-term outlooks and a five-day World weather forecast.

We start with the U.S. Information.

Short Range Forecast Discussion
NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD
406 PM EDT Sun Apr 02 2023

Valid 00Z Mon Apr 03 2023 – 00Z Wed Apr 05 2023

…There is an Enhanced Risk of severe thunderstorms over parts of the
Southern Plains on Sunday evening and over parts of the Plains and
Mississippi Valley on Tuesday...

…Heavy snow over parts of the Northern/Central Plains on Tuesday…

…There is a Slight Risk of excessive rainfall over parts of the Southern
Plains/Lower Mississippi Valley…

NOAA Updates It’s April 2023 Outlook on March 31, 2023

April 1, 2023Posted inweatherNo Comments

At the end of every month, NOAA updates its Outlook for the following month which in this case is April of 2023. We are reporting on that tonight.

There have been some significant changes in the Outlook for April and these are addressed in the NOAA Discussion so it is well worth reading. We highlighted some of the important changes within the NOAA Discussion. We also provided the prior Mid-Month Outlook for April for comparison.  From the NOAA Discussion:

  • The updated April temperature outlook indicates an expansion of enhanced probabilities for below normal temperatures for the western and north-central contiguous U.S. (CONUS)
  • The updated April temperature outlook shows a reduction in the probabilities favoring above normal temperatures for parts of the Southwest, while continuing to indicate likely above normal temperatures for the Southern Plains, the Central and Lower Mississippi Valley, the Ohio Valley, the Southeast, and the Mid-Atlantic region.
  • The updated April precipitation outlook indicates an increased probability of above normal precipitation for the Pacific Northwest
  • The area of enhanced probabilities of below normal precipitation over parts of the Southwest has decreased in the updated April Outlook
  • The updated April precipitation outlook indicates increased probabilities of above normal precipitation from East Texas across the Lower Mississippi Valley into the Ohio and Tennessee Valleys, as well as for eastern areas of the Northern Plains, the Great Lakes region, and western New York state
  • The April precipitation outlook favors above normal precipitation for northwestern Alaska into parts of the Alaska interior and below normal precipitation for the Alaska Peninsula and the southwestern coast

The article includes the Drought Outlook for April. We have also included the current fire incidents (starting to increase) and four months of Wildland Fire Potential Outlooks and also a map showing the year-to-date snowpack in the West. We also provide the Week 2/3 Tropical Outlook for the World.

Weather: Tonight, Tomorrow, Next Day, Five Days, and Intermediate-Term Outlooks for the U.S. and a Five-Day Forecast for the World: posted April1, 2023

April 1, 2023Posted inweatherNo Comments

Updated at 9:34 p.m. Saturday April 1, 2023

Here is what we are paying attention to in the next 48 to 72 hours. The article also includes weather maps for longer-term outlooks and a five-day World weather forecast.

We start with the U.S. Information.

Short Range Forecast Discussion
NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD
419 PM EDT Sat Apr 01 2023

Valid 00Z Sun Apr 02 2023 – 00Z Tue Apr 04 2023

…There is an Enhanced Risk of severe thunderstorms over parts of the
Lower Great Lakes, Central Appalachians, and the northern Mid-Atlantic…

…Heavy snow over parts of the Cascades and Northern Central Rockies…

…There is a Slight Risk of excessive rainfall over parts of the Southern
Plains/Lower Mississippi Valley on Sunday…

31 March 2023 Market Close & Major Financial Headlines: Wall Street Main Indexes Opened Higher, Trended Higher, And Closed Sharply Higher

March 31, 2023Posted inmarketsNo Comments

Summary Of the Markets Today:

  • The Dow closed up 415 points or 1.26%,
  • Nasdaq closed up 1.74%,
  • S&P 500 closed up 1.44%,
  • Gold $1,987 down $10.50,
  • WTI crude oil settled at $76 up $1.20,
  • 10-year U.S. Treasury 3.481% down 0.07 points,
  • USD $102.59 up $0.44,
  • Bitcoin $28,417 up $450,
  • Baker Hughes Rig Count: U.S. down 3 to to 755 rigs

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

Click here to read our Economic Forecast for April 2023

Today’s Economic Releases:

Personal income increased $72.9 billion (0.3%) in February 2023, according to estimates released today by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. Disposable personal income (DPI) increased $89.9 billion (0.5%) and personal consumption expenditures (PCE) increased by $27.9 billion (0.2%). The PCE price index increased 0.3%. Excluding food and energy, the PCE price index also increased 0.3%. But the real (inflation-adjusted) year-over-year growth is what is important – personal income is up 3.3% (blue line on the graph below), consumption expenditures up 2.5% (red line on the graph below), price index (inflation) is up 5.0% (green line on the graph below), and price index (excluding food and energy) up 4.6% (purple line on the graph below). At the current rate of moderation of inflation – it will be several years for inflation to fall near 2%. There is NO SIGN of a recession in this data.

The Chicago Business Barometer, also known as the Chicago PMI, inched up 0.2 index points to 43.8 in March. It was the first increase since December. The increase was unexpected. Economists polled by the Wall Street Journal forecast a 43 reading. This is the seventh straight reading below the 50 threshold that indicates activity is contracting.

 

A summary of headlines we are reading today:

  • Time To Buy The Oil Dip: Goldman Sachs
  • Nickel Buyers On Edge As Another LME Scandal Unfolds
  • Peter Schiff: We Are On The Cusp Of Another Financial Crisis
  • U.S. Drilling Activity Slips Following Price Slump
  • Supply Outage Fuels Oil Price Recovery
  • Here’s what went wrong with Virgin Orbit
  • Key Fed inflation gauge rose 0.3% in February, less than expected
  • Trump campaign uses newly restored Facebook page to fundraise off of indictment
  • Stocks could be shaky in the week ahead as sigh-of-relief rally runs its course
  • Reasons To Be Cheerful (and Drear-full) About Stocks
  • Simon Black: I Love How Everyone Pretends The Bank Crisis Is Over…
  • In One Chart: Stocks are headed for gains in March. This chart shows why retirement should still be a worry for investors.

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

Weather: Tonight, Tomorrow, Next Day, Five Days, and Intermediate-Term Outlooks for the U.S. and a Five-Day Forecast for the World: posted March 31, 2023

March 31, 2023Posted inweatherNo Comments

Updated at 5:18 p.m. March 31, 2023

Here is what we are paying attention to in the next 48 to 72 hours. The article also includes weather maps for longer-term outlooks and a five-day World weather forecast.

We start with the U.S. Information.

Short Range Forecast Discussion
NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD
432 PM EDT Fri Mar 31 2023

Valid 00Z Sat Apr 01 2023 – 00Z Mon Apr 03 2023

…A major severe weather outbreak is forecast to continue into tonight
across portions of the Mississippi Valley…

…Winter Storm with Blizzard conditions from Northern Plains to Upper
Midwest/Great Lakes tonight…

…Heavy snow across northwestern mountains…

…Critical Fire Weather persists over parts of the Central/Southern
Plains for the next several days…

30 March 2023 Market Close & Major Financial Headlines: Wall Street Gapped Upwards At The Opening Bell, Traded Mostly Sideways Before Closing Moderately Higher

March 30, 2023Posted inmarketsNo Comments

Summary Of the Markets Today:

  • The Dow closed up 141 points or 0.43%,
  • Nasdaq closed up 0.73%,
  • S&P 500 closed up 0.57%,
  • Gold $2,000 up $15.50,
  • WTI crude oil settled at $74 up $1.23,
  • 10-year U.S. Treasury 3.554% down 0.012 points,
  • USD $102.16 down $0.48,
  • Bitcoin $27,956 down $412,

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

Click here to read our Economic Forecast for April 2023

Today’s Economic Releases:

The third estimate of real gross domestic product (GDP) increased at an annual rate of 2.6% (relative to 3Q2022) in the fourth quarter of 2022. In the third quarter, real GDP increased by 3.2% which implies the economy slowed. My preferred method of analyzing GDP shows real GDP only improved by 0.9% from the quarter one year ago. In the second estimate, the increase in real GDP was 2.7%. This third estimate primarily reflected downward revisions to exports and consumer spending. Imports, which are a subtraction in the calculation of GDP, were revised down.

The weekly unemployment insurance weekly claims 4-week moving average was 198,250 – an increase of 2,000 from the previous week.

A summary of headlines we are reading today:

  • Why U.S. Refiners Are Ramping Up Biofuel Production
  • WTI Crude Gains As Banking Fears Ease, Kurdish Oil Exports Remain Suspended
  • Researchers Create Catalyst That Cleans Dirty Water And Produces Hydrogen
  • Shell Cancels Singapore Aviation Biofuel Project
  • The Coal Price Crash Isn’t Over Yet
  • Stocks close higher a second-straight day, Dow jumps more than 100 points: Live updates
  • More home sellers are sitting out of the spring housing market
  • Disney blocks Ron DeSantis’ Florida power play with a royal family clause
  • Jobless claims edge up to 198,000, higher than expected
  • 4 red flags for an IRS tax audit — including what one tax pro calls a ‘dead giveaway’
  • ETF Wrap: Commercial real-estate worries weigh down property ETFs — but a ‘durable’ corner holds up relatively well

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