(As of 7:10 am PST)
US stocks opened cautiously
flat Monday as investors returned from the long Thanksgiving holiday weekend.
It looks to be a busy week with a full batch of economic data due out including
Friday’s jobs report which will be the last before the Fed’s December policy
meeting. A speech from Fed Chair Janet Yellen will highlight the middle part of
the week, while a policy meeting from the ECB Thursday will keep market
participants anxiously awaiting to see if the central bank delivers on further
stimulus measures. Investors will be looking at retail stocks today and
tomorrow as sales numbers trickle in from the holiday weekend although early consensus
is that Black Friday sales this year were weaker than expected. Today’s economic
data is disappointing as a report on Chicago PMI showed business activity
falling back into contractionary territory in November. A report on pending
home sales nudged higher in October after two consecutive months of declines.
International markets are mixed today. Oil prices are higher ahead of an
important OPEC meeting Friday. Gold and other precious metals are also up
slightly. It’s an important week for markets this week and barring any downside
surprises on the data front, all signs point to a December Fed rate hike which,
in our opinion, could lead to a year-end rally.
No comments:
Post a Comment