U.S. non-financials’ 2014 capX >internally generated funds. One-off, given energy dynamics?

posted in: Economy | 0

Subdued corporate capX now will adversely impact productivity later First time in 6 years, U.S. non-financials corporate capX exceeds internal funds Given new energy dynamics and impact on capX, too early to back-slap and high-five? U.S. corporations have not been … Continued

Peek into future through futures

The following are futures positions of non-commercials as of March 17, 2015.  Change is week-over-week. 10-year note: What a week!  In four out of the five sessions, the 10-year yield fell – down 18 basis points for the week.  On … Continued

No rate hike in foreseeable future

posted in: Credit, Currency, Economy | 0

Fed gets rid of “patient”, but hints it will be patient in hiking rates Surging dollar impacts exports; Fed takes 2015 GDP forecast down a notch With economic data increasingly coming in weak, rate-hike odds this year next to nil  … Continued

KBE on cusp of breakout, even as XLF lags

posted in: Economy, Equities, Technicals | 0

Different messages coming out of two financial ETFs – KBE vs. XLF KBE similar to KRE, regional bank ETF, while XLF is large cap-dominated C&I loans have been growing nicely, but so is inventories-to-sales ratio, muddying picture How did U.S. … Continued

FOMC will probably dictate next big move for dollar index

Dollar index signaling it is ready to at least pause? Stronger $ will adversely impact both exports and earnings Fed can ill afford to send hawkish signal post-FOMC on Wednesday Over the past three sessions, this is how the U.S. … Continued

In age of personal branding, difficult to decipher if message is real or has ulterior motive

posted in: Commodities, Economy, Uncategorized | 0

Shortly after noon on Saturday, a Zero Hedge tweet caught my attention.  It was entitled “‘From Bubble-Blower To Energy Expert, Alan Greenspan warns ‘Oil Hasn’t Bottomed Yet.’”  Apparently he was on Bloomberg with Betty Liu, and in the interview talked … Continued

R b/w average hourly earnings and NFIB comp plans started breaking down a year ago

posted in: Economy | 0

Below is one of the charts often used – this blog including – to validate expectations for imminent upward pressure on U.S. wages.  It shows the correlation between year-over-year change in average hourly earnings of production and non-supervisory employees and … Continued

Bond vigilantes vs. Fed: Who is calling whose bluff and where it might lead

posted in: Credit, Currency, Economy, Technicals | 0

U.S. bond market and Fed lock horns as relates to trajectory of short rates Fed continues to drop hints it is ready to lift rates off near-zero levels Should that come to pass, it has potential to help vigilantes’ case … Continued

Energy job cuts in Jan-Feb >36k; mining-and-logging job openings plunge from Oct 14 high

posted in: Economy | 0

Oil-and-extraction jobs are just beginning to come under pressure More on the way as mining-and-logging job openings crater In Jan and Feb, energy job-cut announcements >36k Since crude oil peaked in the middle of last year, investor attention has been … Continued

What is causing divergence between momo in U.S. jobs and other data points?

posted in: Economy | 0

Divergence between jobs momentum and other macro data points Annual growth in productivity past four years mere 0.68 percent Infrastructure, both structures and equipment, is rapidly aging It has been more or less an enigma.  The divergence between various U.S. … Continued