Renewed Uncertainty About Trade Deal May Weigh On Wall Street

[ADVFN]( [WorldDaily Markets Bulletin]( [Daily world financial news]( [Thursday, 31 October 2019 10:35:36]( [Monitor]( [Quote]( [Charts]( [News]( [Toplists]( [Boards]( [NASDAQ OPTIONS]( Ready to Trade the Top Nasdaq Options Superstars? You'll learn the Top 12 best stocks you should be trading with options right now. Plus, a step-by-step blueprint for setting up high probability trades using options in any market conditions. See how to trade options in under 10 minutes per day with minimal risk. [Download the Free Report Here]( --------------------------------------------------------------- US Market Bitcoin [Bitcoin]( DAX [DAX]( Dow Jones [Dow Jones]( Nasdaq [Nasdaq]( The major U.S. index futures are pointing to a pointing to a lower opening on Thursday, with stocks likely to move back to the downside after ending the previous session moderately higher. Renewed uncertainty about the potential for a long-term U.S.-China trade deal may contribute to initial weakness on Wall Street. Optimism about phase one of a trade deal has contribute to recent strength on Wall Street, but a new report from Bloomberg said Chinese officials are casting doubts about reaching a comprehensive long-term trade agreement. People familiar with the matter told Bloomberg that Chinese officials have warned in private conversations that they are unwilling to budge on the thorniest issues. Early selling pressure may be somewhat subdued, however, with better than expected earnings news from tech giant Apple (AAPL) likely to help limit the downside. With traders reacting positively to the Federal Reserve's monetary policy decision, stocks moved moderately higher over the course of the trading session on Wednesday. With the upward move, the S&P 500 reached a new record closing high. The major averages pulled back off their highs going into the close but remained in positive territory. The Dow climbed 115.27 points or 0.4 percent to 27,186.69, the Nasdaq rose 27.12 points or 0.3 percent to 8,303.98 and the S&P 500 ended the day up 9.88 points or 0.3 percent at 3,046.77. Stocks showed a lack of direction for most of the day until the Fed announced its decision to lower interest rates for the third straight meeting. The Fed announced its widely expected decision to lower the target range for the federal funds rate by 25 basis points to 1-1/2 to 1-3/4 percent. The quarter point rate cut follows two matching moves at the Fed's meetings in September and July, which marked the first rate cuts in over a decade. Traders seemed unfazed by a change to the accompanying statement suggesting the central bank may put further monetary policy easing on hold. The Fed's accompanying statement removed a key line indicating the central bank would continue to "act as appropriate to sustain the expansion." The line was included in each of the Fed's three previous statements and was seen as pointing toward a near-term rate cut. The Fed said it would continue to monitor the implications of incoming information for the economic outlook as it assesses the appropriate path of the target range for the federal funds rate. "It's a small change, but suggests less willingness to continue cutting rates in future," FHN Financial Chief Economist Chris Low said about removing the line. Low added, "In other words, while the FOMC was previously in the midst of a mid-cycle series of rate cuts and assessing whether to end it, the new language suggests they are ready to end it, but alert for evidence it should continue." The Fed is scheduled to hold its next monetary policy meeting on December 10-11, with CME Group's FedWatch tool currently indicating a 79.1 percent chance the central bank will leave rates unchanged. In his post-meeting press conference, Fed Chairman Jerome Powell said the current stance of monetary policy is "likely to remain appropriate" as long as "the outlook remains broadly in keeping with our expectations." Powell also told reporters the Fed would need to see a "really significant move up in inflation that's persistent" before the central bank would consider raising interest rates. With the focus on the Fed, traders largely shrugged off the release of some upbeat U.S. economic data, including the Commerce Department's first reading on third quarter GDP. The Commerce Department report showed U.S. economic growth slowed much less than expected in the third quarter. The report said real gross domestic product increased by 1.9 percent in the third quarter after climbing by 2.0 percent in the second quarter. Economists had expected GDP growth to slow to 1.7 percent. Payroll processor ADP released a separate report showing U.S. private sector employment increased by slightly more than anticipated in the month of October. ADP said private sector employment climbed by 125,000 jobs in October compared to economist estimates for an increase of about 120,000 jobs. However, the report also showed private sector job growth in September was downwardly revised to 93,000 from the previously reported addition of 135,000 jobs. "Job growth has throttled way back over the past year," said Mark Zandi, chief economist of Moody's Analytics. "If hiring weakens any further, unemployment will begin to rise." Gold stocks showed a strong move to the upside over the course of the session, driving the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index up by 1.5 percent. The strength among gold stocks came amid an increase by the price of the precious metal. Notable strength also emerged among software and pharmaceutical stocks, with the Dow Jones U.S. Software Index and the NYSE Arca Pharmaceutical Index both rising by 1.4 percent. On the other hand, energy stocks moved sharply lower as the price of crude oil fell following the release of a report showing a much bigger than expected weekly jump in crude oil inventories. Reflecting the weakness in the sector, the Philadelphia Oil Service Index plummeted by 4.4 percent, the NYSE Arca Natural Gas Index plunged by 3.7 percent and the NYSE Arca Oil Index tumbled by 2.2 percent. Considerable weakness also remained visible among transportation stocks, as reflected by the 1.8 percent slump by the Dow Jones Transportation Average. C.H. Robinson Worldwide (CHRW) led the sector lower after the trucking company reported third quarter results that missed analyst estimates. --------------------------------------------------------------- [EagleFX]( EagleFX offers deep liquidity, leverage up to 1:500 and some of the best spreads in the industry. We offer 24/7 live customer service, charge no deposit or withdrawal fees, and process withdrawals within 30-minute or less. EagleFX is an online Forex & Crypto STP broker providing CFD trading on hundreds of assets and optimal trading conditions within the award-winning MT4 platform. [Open Account Now]( --------------------------------------------------------------- U.S. Economic Reports CADUSD [CADUSD]( Oil [Oil]( Gold [Gold]( EURUSD [EURUSD]( With the more closely watched monthly jobs report looming, the Labor Department released a report showing a modest increase in first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits in the week ended October 26th. The report said initial jobless claims rose to 218,000, an increase of 5,000 from the previous week's revised level of 213,000. Economists had expected jobless claims to inch up to 215,000 from the 212,000 originally reported for the previous week. A separate report from the Commerce Department showed personal income and spending both increased in line with economist estimates in the month of September. The report said personal income increased by 0.3 percent in September after climbing by an upwardly revised 0.5 percent in August. Economists had expected personal income to rise by 0.3 percent compared to the 0.4 percent increase originally reported for the previous month. Meanwhile, the Commerce Department said personal spending edged up by 0.2 percent, matching the revised uptick seen in August. Personal spending had been expected to inch up by 0.2 percent compared to the 0.1 percent uptick originally reported for the previous month. At 9:45 am ET, MNI Indicators is scheduled to release its report on Chicago-area business activity in the month of October. The Chicago business barometer is expected to inch up to 48.0 in October from 47.1 in September, although a reading below 50 would still indicate a contraction in regional business activity. --------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------------------------- Stocks in Focus Shares of HanesBrands (HBI) are moving sharply lower in pre-market trading after the apparel maker reported inline third quarter results but said its guidance includes a cautious outlook for the U.S. brick-and-mortar retail market. Hard drive maker Western Digital (WDC) may also come under pressure after reporting better than expected fiscal first quarter results but providing disappointing guidance and announcing the retirement of its CEO Steve Milligan. On the other hand, shares of Kraft Heinz (KHC) are likely to see initial strength after the packaged food company reported third quarter adjusted earnings that exceeded analyst estimates. Social media giant Facebook (FB) may also move to the upside after reporting third quarter results that beat analyst estimates on both the top and bottom lines. --------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------------------------- Europe European stocks have moved mostly lower on Thursday as investors digest a mixed set of earnings results and react to the Federal Reserve statement. The U.S. Federal Reserve cut interest rates by 0.25 percentage point, as widely expected, but indicated it is ready to hold off on further rate cuts for now. Elsewhere, the Bank of Japan signaled further monetary easing going forward. While the U.K.?s FTSE 100 Index has slumped by 0.9 percent, the French CAC 40 Index is down by 0.2 percent and the German DAX Index is just below the unchanged line. Shares of Peugeot have moved sharply lower. The French automotive manufacturer and Fiat Chrysler have confirmed a deal to merge in order to create the world's fourth-largest automaker. Air France-KLM has also come under pressure after its third quarter operating result fell 15.5 percent from the third quarter 2018, impacted by trading environment and fuel bill increase. Lloyds Banking Group has fallen after reporting a 97 percent plunge in pre-tax profit for the third quarter. The company also said its Chief Operating Officer Juan Colombas plans to retire in July 2020. Royal Dutch Shell has also tumbled after it warned that a slowing global economy could slow its $25 billion share buyback program. Shares of carpet and floor coverings retailer Carpetright have plummeted. Having explored the viability of various long-term financing solutions to repay its debt facilities, the company said it is in talks with Meditor on a possible offer to acquire all of the issued and to be issued shares of Carpetright. On the other hand, Dutch semiconductor supplier ASM International has jumped after forecasting a rise in fourth-quarter sales. Professional kitchen specialist Rational AG has also moved notably higher after the company backed its full-year guidance after reporting a 14 percent rise in profit after taxes for the first nine months. French aerospace company Safran has also advanced after reporting an increase in its third quarter adjusted revenue. In economic news, Germany retail sales grew at a faster pace in September, data from Destatis revealed. Driven by non-food product sales, turnover in retail trade increased 3.4 percent year-on-year in September following a 3.1 percent rise in August. The rate came in line with expectations. --------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------------------------- Asia USDCAD [USDCAD]( USDEUR [USDEUR]( USDGBP [USDGBP]( USDJPY [USDJPY]( Asian stocks turned in a mixed performance on Thursday after the U.S. Federal Reserve cut interest rates, as widely expected but indicated it is ready to hold off on further rate cuts for now. Investors also digested news that Chile has canceled the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit scheduled to be held in Santiago in mid-November, citing violent protests across the country. U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping were due to meet at the summit to discuss and possibly sign phase one of a U.S.-China trade deal. Chinese shares fell after the release of weak economic data. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index dropped 10.26 points, or 0.4 percent, to 2,929.06, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index gained 239.01 points, or 0.9 percent, to end at 26,906.72. Chinese factory activity slipped to an eight month-low in October, official data showed. The manufacturing PMI fell to 49.3 from 49.8 a month ago. China's service sector also logged weaker growth in October, with the corresponding index dipping to 52.8 from 53.7 in September. Japanese shares eked out modest gains after the Bank of Japan maintained its policy rates but signaled further monetary easing going forward. The central bank said short and long-term interest rates are expected to remain at current or lower levels as long as it is necessary to achieve its price stability target. A rebound in industrial output also helped underpin investor sentiment. Industrial production in Japan was up a seasonally adjusted 1.4 percent month-on-month in September, the government said in a preliminary report. That beat forecasts for an increase of 0.4 percent following the 1.2 percent decline in August. On a yearly basis, industrial output was up 1.1 percent - again beating expectations for a decline of 0.1 percent following the 4.7 percent drop in the previous month. The Nikkei 225 Index rose 83.92 points, or 0.4 percent, to 22,927.04, while the broader Topix closed marginally higher at 1,667.01. Sony soared 4.1 percent after posting the highest operating profit for a second quarter on the back of strong demand for image sensors for mobile phones. Market heavyweight SoftBank Group advanced 3.7 percent and Fast Retailing added 1.3 percent. Apple Inc. supplier Alps Alpine jumped 8.7 percent after Apple forecast sales for the crucial holiday shopping quarter ahead of Wall Street expectations. Australian markets fell modestly, with lower oil prices and weak results from Australia and New Zealand Banking Group weighing on sentiment. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index dropped 26.10 points, or 0.4 percent, to 6,663.40, while the broader All Ordinaries Index ended down 21.80 points, or 0.3 percent, at 6,772.90. ANZ tumbled 3.3 percent as the country's fourth-largest lender missed market expectations for second-half profits. Commonwealth Bank of Australia, Westpac Banking Corp and National Australia Bank all fell more than 1 percent. A drop in oil prices also pulled down energy stocks, with Beach Energy shares falling as much as 2.6 percent. Meanwhile, gold miners Evolution Mining and Newcrest edged up slightly as gold prices climbed on dollar weakness after the Federal Reserve cut interest rates for the third time this year. In economic news, private sector credit in Australia was up 0.2 percent sequentially in September, the Reserve Bank of Australia said in a report, unchanged from the previous month. Separately, official data showed that the total number of building approvals issued in Australia was up a seasonally adjusted 7.6 percent month-on-month in September. Seoul stocks ended off their day's highs after Samsung Electronics said its earnings would remain weak despite a recovery in chip sales. The Kospi jumped more than 1 percent earlier in the day before ending the session up 3.21 points, or 0.2 percent, at 2,083.48. Samsung Electronics gave up early gains to end on a flat note. --------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------------------------- Commodities Crude oil futures are sliding $0.67 to $54.39 a barrel after falling $0.48 to $55.06 a barrel on Wednesday. Meanwhile, after climbing $6 to $1,496.70 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are jumping $14.50 to $1,511.20 an ounce. On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 108.20 yen compared to the 108.85 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Wednesday. Against the euro, the dollar is valued at $1.1154 compared to yesterday?s $1.1151. --------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe from this news bulletin or edit your mailing list settings click [here](. Registered Office/Accounts Dept: Suite 27, Essex Technology Centre, The Gable, Fyfield Road, Ongar, CM5 0GA. Customer Support +1 888-992-3836. Company registered in England and Wales: Number 2374988 VAT No. GB 549 2130 49