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US equity markets fell for a second consecutive session, shrugging off some solid corporate earnings releases and with re-opening plays such as airlines and cruise line operators led losses – Dow down -256-points or -0.75% , with Boeing Co (down -%) and Nike Inc (-%) both dropping more than >4%. International Business Machines (IBM) Corp rose over +3.79% after posting better-than-expected first quarter earnings per share (EPS) and revenue after the closing bell of the previous session. The broader S&P 500 lost -0.68%, with Energy (down -2.66%) leading seven of the eleven primary sectors lower. The more defensive Utilities (up+1.32%) and Real Estate (+1.12%) both advanced over >1%. United Airlines Holdings Inc fell -8.53% after the carrier recorded its fifth consecutive quarterly loss after the close of the previous session. American Airlines Group Inc fell -5.48%, while cruise operators Carnival Corp (down -4.35%) and Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings (-4.36%) both fell over >4%. The Nasdaq -0.92% Apple Inc (down -1.28%) launched a new iMac and iPad with its M1 chips at a spring event overnight. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 index fell -1.96%. In merger and acquisition (M&A) news, Kansas City Southern soared +15.25% after The Wall Street Journal reported that Canadian National Railway Co (-6.76%) was planning to make a buyout bid for the railroad operator of ~US$30B, which would top Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd.’s previously agreed on buyout bid.
•In US corporate earnings, Netflix Inc dropped over >8% in extended trading after the streaming video company posted disappointing subscriber growth for the March quarter. For the period, Netflix added 4M net new subscribers, falling well short of the company’s guidance target of 6M, while the company sees just 1M net additions in the June quarter. Netflix finished March with 208M subscribers, up 14% from a year ago. For the March quarter, Netflix reported revenue of up 24% from a year ago to US$7.16B and slightly ahead of the company’s projection of US$7.1B. Profits were US$3.75 per share, ahead of the company’s estimate of US$2.97 a share. Netflix forecast June quarter revenue of US$7.3B, just below the current Wall Street consensus at US$7.4B, with profits of US$3.16 per share (above the current consensus analyst estimate at US$2.69 per share). Railroad operator CSX Corp fell over >1.5% in after hours trading after reporting that first quarter revenue fell -1% to US$2.81B (versus consensus forecasts for US$2.79B), citing “difficult operating conditions”. Net income fell more than >% to US$706M or US$0.93c versus consensus analyst estimates for US$0.93c. President and chief executive James Foote noted that “the strengthening economic momentum is providing added visibility into volume growth. Johnson & Johnson rose +2.33% after reporting first-quarter profit and sales that topped expectations, citing strength in its pharmaceutical business and continued recovery in medical devices. The company also reported US$100M in first-quarter sales of its COVID-19 vaccine that’s on hold in the U.S. while health regulators investigate a rare blood-clotting issue. Abbott Laboratories fell -3.6% despite exceeding earnings expectations during a quarter in which sales of its COVID-19 tests made up 20% of total revenue. Consumer staples group and Dow constituent Procter & Gamble Co settled +0.83% higher after posting better-than-expected third quarter earnings and flagged that it would be raising prices on certain product categories. Fellow Dow component Travelers Companies Inc rose +0.87% after posting quarterly figures that topped consensus forecasts, raised its cash dividend and approved an additional US$5B of share buybacks. Aerospace and defence giant Lockheed Martin Corp fell -1.12% despite exceeding consensus first quarter earnings per share (EPS) estimates by 4%. Philip Morris International gained +2.54% after the tobacco group reported better-than-expected first-quarter profit and revenue. Baker Hughes Co, Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc, Haliburton, Lam Research Corp and Verizon Communications Inc are among companies slated to report tonight AEST.
•The Travel and Leisure and Banking sectors both dropped -3.7% to lead all major sectors and major European bourses lower, leaving the benchmark pan-European Stoxx 600 index (which includes UK equities) nursing a -1.90% decline. Germany's DAX fell -1.55% . Bayerische Motoren Werke (BMW) AG fell -3.36% . France's CAC -2.09%. French food group Danone SA fell -1.8% after posting a -3.3% fall in first-quarter sales but maintained its goal of returning to profitable growth in the second half of the year Interim co-Chief Executives Veronique Penchienati-Bosetta and Shane Grant said that the company “continue to expect a return to like-for-like sales growth in the second quarter, and to profitable growth in the second half of 2021". French car parts maker Faurecia rose 1% after first-quarter sales beat market expectations, underpinned by strong growth in China. In broader stock moves, Austrian chipmaker ams AG tumbled 13.26% after a media report that it lost some business from Apple Inc. Sandvik AB (down -2.56%) said that order intake increased organically in the first quarter by +12% to SEK 25,847M (~US$2.97B) "...driven by strong momentum in mining and continued improvement in short-cycle businesses." Sandvik runs a mining equipment business, alongside machine tooling and materials technology business. Mining accounts for 40% of the company's revenues. "We continued to see strong momentum in mining with accelerating demand for our equipment, parts and services. The order intake level for Sandvik Mining and Rock Solutions was at an all-time high, driven by organic growth of +36% year on year," said Sandvik Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Stefan Widing in a news release. The European Medicines Agency said its safety committee concluded that a warning about unusual blood clots with low blood platelets should be added to the product information for Johnson & Johnson’s coronavirus vaccine, but said the benefits outweighed the risk. In economic data, the German producer price index (PPI) for March
•London's FTSE 100 shed -2.00%. Associated British Foods Plc fell -5.93% after adjusted operating profit almost halved from the same period last year. Rio Tinto Plc fell -2.2% following the iron ore major’s first quarter operations review. In economic data, labor market data for March recorded that UK unemployment rate unexpectedly declined for a second consecutive month to 4.9% despite tight nationwide COVID-19 lockdown measures. Consumer price inflation (CPI) and producer price inflation (PPI) figures for March are released tonight AEST.
•Base metals weaker across-the-board – copper lost -0.53% to ~US$4.23/lb after rising as much as +1.1% to US$9,483 per tonne or ~US$4.30/lb earlier in the session, and flirting with the US$9,617 per tonne level hit in February (which was its highest since August 2011). The most-traded June copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange rose as high as ¥69,750 yuan (~US$10,737) per tonne, not far from its February peak of ¥71,080 per tonne (which was its highest since March 2011) before settling +1.1% higher at ¥69,450 per tonne. Elsewhere, nickel fell -0.84%, aluminium -0.80% and zinc -1.46%. The People’s Bank of China (PBoC) yesterday (20 April) left their benchmark one year loan prime rate (LPR) unchanged for a twelfth consecutive month at 3.85% as widely expected (while the five-year rate also remained steady at 4.65%).
•Benchmark spot iron ore (62% fines) jumped +US$7.81c or +4.30% to US$189.61mt . China’s most traded iron ore futures contract (September delivery) rose over >4% yesterday (20 April) to hit a new record high of ¥119.05. The World Steel Association released its Short Range Outlook for 2021 and 2022 yesterday (20 April) and forecasts that steel demand will grow by 5.8% in 2021 to reach 1,8740.0M tonnes, after declining -0.2% in 2020. The association forecasts steel demand to see further growth of 2.7% to 1,924.6M tonnes in 2022.
•Gold futures (June delivery) added +US$7.80 or +0.4% to US$1,778.40/oz, reversing an earlier decline as US Treasury yields receded. Silver futures (May delivery) unchanged at US$25.84/oz.
•Oil prices retreated as record cases of COVID-19 in India (the world’s third-largest importer of oil) dimmed the outlook for the nation’s economy and energy demand, while there was apparent progress in the Iran’s nuclear deal negotiations - WTI fell -US$0.94c or -1.5% to US$62.44/barrel, with the May contract expiring at the conclusion of the session. Last night’s session marked the one-year anniversary of a negative price close for the front-month WTI crude futures contract. On 20 April, 2020 the May WTI crude plummeted -306% or -US$55.90, to settle at negative -US$37.63/barrel. The new front month June WTI contract fell -US$0.76c or -1.2% to US$62.67/barrel. Brent shed -US$0.48c or -0.7% to US$66.57/barrel. India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi held an address to the nation on Tuesday (20 April), ruling out a nationwide lockdown as a measure to curb the pandemic and urging states to ensure that lockdowns are only chosen as the last resort, according to the Hindustan Times. Elsewhere, Bloomberg reported that Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani said negotiations toward a nuclear deal were 60% to 70% complete. Meanwhile, the U.S. House Judiciary Committee’s move on the No Oil Producing and Exporting Cartels Act of 2021, known as NOPEC, called attention to long-running efforts to by the U.S. to make it illegal for the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to manipulate oil prices. The NOPEC bill would make it illegal for any foreign state to act collectively to limit oil production or set prices. After the markets’ close, the American Petroleum Institute (API) released their latest weekly inventory data, recording a +436K barrel increase in US crude stoc

US equity markets retreated from record highs amid fresh falls for the technology sector – Dow eased -123-points or -0.36%, snapping a three session inning streak that carried to index to multiple record closing highs. The broader S&P500 -0.53%, pulling back from a record closing high (4,185.47). Consumer Discretionary (down -1.14%) led ten of the eleven primary sectors lower. Real Estate (up +0.29%) was the only primary sector to advance. Tesla Inc fell -3.40% ollowing a fatal crash in Spring, Texas, over the weekend. Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Elon Musk tweeted a denial that his company’s automated driving systems were involved. The Nasdaq -0.9%, retreating for the first time in three sessions. Nvidia Corp fell -3.46% after the UK government said it would look into the national security implications of Nvidia's purchase of British chip designer ARM Holdings, raising a question mark over the US$40B deal. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) will assess the competition, jurisdiction and national security impact of the deal, with a report due by 30 July, the government said. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 index fell -1.36%.

US equity markets booked another round of record closing highs to end the week – Dow up +165-points or +0.48% to 34,200.67 and a record closing high after crossing the 34,000 threshold for the first time in the previous session. Boeing Co fell -1.17% after the planemaker said that the potential electrical problem that prompted airlines to remove dozens of 737 MAX jets from service last week affects more areas of the aircraft's flight deck than previously known. The broader S&P500 rose +0.36% to 4,185.47. Real Estate (up +1.95%), Health Care (+1.74%), Materials (+1.18%) and Utilities (+1.11%) all rose over >1% to lead ten of the eleven of the primary sectors higher. Energy (down -0.90%) Information Technology (-0.03%) were the only primary sectors to close in the red. UBS Wealth Management increased their year end S&P 500 target to 4,400. The Nasdaq added +0.10% to 14,052.34 the second highest close ever for the technology centric index. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 index rose +0.25%. For the week, the Dow rose +1.18% and S&P500 +1.37%, with both indices logging their fourth straight weekly advance. The Nasdaq gained +1.09% to log its third straight weekly advance.

The Dow and S&P500 clinched fresh record closing highs after the latest round of economic reports continued to affirm a healthy recovery from the pandemic – Dow gained +305-points or +0.90% to 34,035.99, logging its first close above >34,000. The Dow took 20 sessions to traverse and eclipse 34,000, which marks its fourth 1,000-point milestone so far this year, already the most since 2017, which saw five such milestones, according to Dow Jones Market Data. Home Depot Inc contributed 264 points to the price-weighted Dow’s most recent +1000 point climb, with UnitedHealth Group Inc adding ~260 points and Microsoft Corp ~140 points. The broader S&P500 +1.11% to 4,170.42. The S&P Information Technology sector (up 1.79%) hit an all-time high. Energy (down 0.88%) and Financials (-0.11%) were the only primary sectors to settle lower Advanced Micro Devices was the best performing index constituent with a 5.7% gain. The Nasdaq +1.31% to settle ~0.4% below its 12 February record closing high (14,095.47). Facebook Inc (+1.65%), Amazon.com Inc (+1.38%), Apple Inc (+1.87%), Netflix Inc (+1.70%) and Alphabet Inc (+1.85%) all climbed more than >1%. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 index rose +0.42%.

A late session rally lifted both the Dow and S&P500 to fresh record closing highs last Friday (9 April) albeit it was a relatively quiet session as traders eyed the earnings season kicking off later this week – Dow gained +297-points or +0.89% to 33,800.60. The broader S&P500 +0.77% to log its third straight record closing high (4,128.80) and its 20th of 2021. The Nasdaq +0.51% . Cruise operator Carnival Corp rose+2.6%, buoyed by two broker upgrades. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 index eked out a +0.04% rise.

A mixed session on Wall Street despite some stellar first quarter results from a brace of banks to kick off the earnings season – Dow added +54-points or +0.16% to 33,730.89, settling ~0.5% below is 23 March record closing high (32,423.15). The Dow pared an earlier climb of over >200-points that lifted the index to a fresh record intra-session high (). The broader S&P500 eased -0.41% a day after logging its 21st record closing high (4,141.59) of 2021 but touched a fresh record intra-day high (4,151.69). Consumer Discretionary (down -1.17) and Information Technology (-1.1%) both fell over >1% to be the worst performing primary sectors. Energy gained +2.91% to comfortably lead the primary sector gains. Costco Wholesale Corp edged ~0.1% higher in after hours trading after lifting its dividend more than >12% to US$0.79c per share. The Nasdaq fell -0.99%. Netflix Inc (down -1.97%) and Facebook Inc (-2.24%) dropped more than >2% each, which Amazon.com Inc (-1.97%), Microsoft Corp (-1.12%) and Apple Inc (-1.79%) all dipped at least 1%. Coinbase Global Inc, the biggest U.S. cryptocurrency exchange and one of the first crypto exchanges to go public, settled at a +31.3% premium to its US$250 issue price and was briefly valued above $100B after touching a session peak of US$429. Dell Technologies Inc rallied over >8% in extended trading after announcing a plan to spin off its 80.8% stake in VMware Inc (up +2.77% in extended trading) to shareholders. Dell holders would receive 0.44 VMware shares for each Dell share held, subject to adjustment prior to close. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 index rose +0.8%.

U.S. stocks traded mostly higher on Tuesday after a March inflation report turned out not as bad as some traders feared, but the impact of a halt to the rollout of Johnson & Johnson vaccine kept optimism in check. The Dow Jones fell -68 points or -0.2%, the S&P 500 added +0.33% and locked in a new closing high. The Nasdaq, the relative outperformer, gained +1.05% as Apple and PayPal each added more than +2%. Semiconductor maker Nvidia climbed +3%, Tesla rose +8.6%.

U.S. stocks hovered near their record levels on Monday as dull trading resumed before the release of widely-watched inflation data and the start of first-quarter corporate earnings. The Dow Jones fell 55 points or -0.16%, the S&P 500 was down just -0.02%, while the Nasdaq dropped -0.36%.
Wall Street has been relatively quiet with the S&P 500 moving within 1% for five sessions in a row. Market volatility has declined to pre-pandemic levels amid rising reopening optimism.
Nvidia jumped +5.6% after the chip giant said its first quarter revenue for fiscal 2022 is tracking above its previously provided outlook and that it expects demand to continue to exceed supply for much of this year. The weakness in reopening plays weighed on the overall market with shares of Carnival and Norwegian Cruise Line off more than 4% each. United Airlines fell -3.9% after the carrier said its first-quarter revenue is expected to fall 66% compared with the same period in 2019.

Technology stocks lifted US equity markets as US Treasury yields continued to moderate – Dow up +57-points or +0.17% . The broader S&P500 rose +0.42% to 4,097.17, booking its 19th record closing high of 2020 after also logging a fresh record intra-day high (4,098.19). Information Technology (up +1.42%) led six of the eleven primary sectors higher. Energy (down -1.36%) was the worst performing primary sector. Overnight also marked the third straight session that the S&P500 has logged an intra-day trading range of less than1%. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 index rose +0.88%, clawing back some of the previous session’s -1.6% decline. The Russell 1000 growth index, which consists heavily of tech-related stocks, gained +1.05%. Its value counterpart, comprising mostly financials and energy names, dipped -0.05%.

US equity markets settled little changed after a listless session as the Federal Reserve released its March policy meeting minutes, which pointed to continued support for financial markets until the economy has more fully healed from the pandemic – Dow inched +16-points or +0.05% higher . The broader S&P500 edged +0.15% higher to eke out its 18th record closing high (4,079.95) of 2020. The Nasdaq dipped -0.07% despite Amazon.com Inc (up +1.72%), Apple Inc (+1.34%) and Alphabet Inc (+1.12%) all climbing more than >1%, while Facebook Inc jumped +2.3%. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 index fell -1.6%.