ADVFN Newsdesk - Fed Minutes Likely To Be In Focus On Wall Street

[ADVFN]( [World Daily Markets Bulletin]( [Daily world financial news]( [Wednesday, 24 May 2017 11:05:21]( [Monitor]( [Quote]( [Charts]( [News]( [Toplists]( [Forex]( [Boards]( The $11.1 Trillion Trump Retirement Roadmap Turn your $100 into a game changing retirement fortune ACT BEFORE AUGUST 1ST [Find out more]( --------------------------------------------------------------- US Market [To view the charts please add newsdesk@advfn.com to your contact list] NYSE AMEX Dow Jones Nasdaq [NYSE]( [AMEX]( [Dow Jones]( [Nasdaq]( Please click on the images to view our interactive charts The major U.S. index futures are pointing to a modestly higher opening on Wednesday after stocks closed higher for four consecutive sessions. The markets may continue to benefit from the upward momentum seen in the days following the sell-off last Wednesday, which many traders felt was overdone. Early trading activity may be somewhat subdued, however, as traders look ahead to the release of the minutes of the latest Federal Reserve meeting this afternoon. Stocks turned in a relatively lackluster performance during trading on Tuesday but managed to end the session modestly higher. The major averages closed higher for the fourth consecutive session, largely offsetting the sell-off seen last Wednesday. The major averages finished the day in positive territory but off their highs of the session. The Dow rose 43.08 points or 0.2 percent to 20,937.91, the Nasdaq inched up 5.09 points or 0.1 percent to 6,138.71 and the S&P 500 edged up 4.40 points or 0.2 percent at 2,398.42. The higher close on Wall Street came as stocks continued to benefit from the upward momentum seen in recent days, which has helped lift the major averages well off their lowest levels in nearly a month. Many traders felt the pullback last Wednesday was overdone amid lingering optimism about President Donald Trump's ability to implement his pro-business policy agenda. Nonetheless, traders seemed somewhat reluctant to make more significant moves ahead of today's release of the Fed minutes. The minutes of the meeting held earlier this month may shed some additional light on the outlook for interest rates ahead of the next meeting in mid-June. The Fed is widely expected to raise interest rates next month, with CME Group's FedWatch tool indicating an 83.1 percent chance of a quarter point rate hike. Meanwhile, traders largely shrugged off a report from the Commerce Department showing a substantial pullback in new home sales in the month of April. The Commerce Department said new home sales plunged by 11.4 percent to an annual rate of 569,000 in April from an upwardly revised 642,000 in March. Economists had expected new home sales to drop to a rate of 602,000 from the 621,000 originally reported for the previous month. The upwardly revised figure for March reflected the highest rate of new home sales since it reached 727,000 in October of 2007. Many of the major sectors ended the day showing only modest moves, although substantial strength was visible among steel stocks. Reflecting the strength in the steel sector, the NYSE Arca Steel Index surged up by 2.1 percent. AK Steel (AKS), Mechel (MTL), Gerdau (GGB), and U.S. Steel (X) turned in some of the steel sector's best performances. Banking stocks also showed a strong move to the upside on the day, driving the Dow Jones Banks Index up by 1.2 percent. Regions Financial (RF), Zions Bancorp (ZION), and Cullen/Frost (CFR) posted notable gains. On the other hand, gold stocks moved sharply lower, resulting in a 3 percent drop by the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index. The weakness in the sector came amid a decrease by the price of gold. --------------------------------------------------------------- CannaInvestors Hub Magazine - Research for Cannabis Investors [Subscribe for Free to the May 2017 issue]( Featured Companies include HelloMD, AEssenseGrows, MCig, Inc, Grow Condos, Novus Acquisition and Dev, Naturally Splendid Ent Ltd, AusCann Group Holdings. [Click Here]( --------------------------------------------------------------- US Economic Reports [To view the charts please add newsdesk@advfn.com to your contact list] CADUSD Oil Gold Allbanc [CADUSD]( [Oil]( [Gold]( [Allbanc]( Please click on the images to view our interactive charts At 10 am ET, the National Association of Realtors is scheduled to release its report on existing home sales in the month of April. Existing home sales are expected to dip to an annual rate of 5.65 million in April after jumping to a ten-year high of 5.71 million in March. The Energy Information Administration is scheduled to release its report on oil inventories in the week ended May 19th at 10:30 am ET. Crude oil inventories after expected to drop to 2.42 million barrels after falling by 1.75 million barrels in the previous week. At 1 pm ET, the Treasury Department is due to announce the results of its auction of $34 billion worth of five-year notes. The Federal Reserve is scheduled to release the minutes of its monetary policy meeting held earlier this month at 2 pm ET. At 6 pm ET, Dallas Fed President Robert Kaplan will participate in a moderated Q&A session at the C.D. Howe Institute Annual Directors' Dinner in Toronto. Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari is scheduled to participate in a town hall Q&A in Ashland, Wisconsin, at 6:30 pm ET. --------------------------------------------------------------- Earth Shattering Marijuana Legislation Just Announced A new earth-shattering government announcement could completely change the legalization of marijuana -- forever. In fact, thanks to this historic legislation, tiny pot stocks trading for under $5 are getting set to double, triple, or quadruple. In an exclusive presentation, stock expert Michael Robinson shares all the good news -- including details on five tiny weed stocks that could potentially turn a small stake into $100,000. [Click here to continue.]( --------------------------------------------------------------- Shares of Inovio Pharmaceuticals (INO) have spiked higher in pre-market trading after the company said its HIV vaccine produced amongst the highest overall levels of immune response rates ever demonstrated in a human study. Business and financial software maker Intuit (INTU) may also see early strength after reporting fiscal third quarter results that exceeded analyst estimates on both the top and bottom lines. Shares of The Container Store (TCS) are also showing a significant move to the upside in pre-market trading after the storage products retailer reported better than expected fiscal fourth quarter results. Meanwhile, home improvement retailer Lowe's (LOW) may come under pressure after reporting first quarter results that came in below expectations. Shares of Tiffany (TIF) are also seeing pre-market weakness after the luxury goods retailer reported better than expected first quarter earnings but on weaker than expected sales. Solar cell maker JA Solar (JASO) may also move to the downside after reporting a steep drop in first quarter earnings. --------------------------------------------------------------- Europe markets European stocks are turning in another mixed performance on Wednesday, with gains by energy stocks offset by weakness in the mining sector. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index has risen by 0.3 percent, the French CAC 40 Index is just below the unchanged line and the German DAX Index is down by 0.1 percent. Automakers have moved broadly lower after the U.S. government filed a suit against Fiat Chrysler, accusing the Italian carmaker of using illegal software to fake emission results on its diesel vehicles. Mining stocks have followed copper prices lower after Moody's Investors Services downgraded China's long-term local and foreign currency issuer ratings. Shares of Kingfisher have plunged after the home improvement retailer reported weak sales in its first quarter on a constant currency and like-for-like basis amid continued weak sales in France. On the other hand, British telecom major Vodafone Group has risen after announcing an agreement to combine mobile operator Vodafone Malta Ltd. and Malta-based cable, broadband and pay TV provider Melita. Retailer Marks and Spencer has also moved higher despite reporting a 64 percent drop in annual profits following a costly business overhaul. In economic news, German consumer confidence is set to continue its rising trend in June on the back of further improvement in expectations on income and economy, results of a survey by the GfK market research group showed. The forward-looking headline index rose to 10.4 points from 10.2 points in May, defying expectations for an unchanged reading. --------------------------------------------------------------- Utilize the strategy that has achieved a 1,281% cumulative gain Investors who use utilize The Option Advisor trade recommendations have enjoyed a 1,281% cumulative gain; and for a limited time you can join them at no cost! When you join The Option Advisor you'll learn how to trade smarter and maximize your returns by utilizing Bernie Schaeffer's 35 years of options trading experience. Each month you'll receive 10 trades targeting triple-digit gains, as well as invaluable market insight and commentary. And if you [click here now you'll receive 12 months FREE!]( --------------------------------------------------------------- Asia markets [To view the charts please add newsdesk@advfn.com to your contact list] USDCAD USDEUR USDGBP USDJPY [USDCAD]( [USDEUR]( [USDGBP]( [USDJPY]( Please click on the images to view our interactive charts Asian stocks closed mostly higher on Wednesday after the Trump administration unveiled its first budget proposal and Moody's Investors Services downgraded China's long-term local and foreign currency issuer ratings, saying its debt levels are likely to increase further in the years ahead. A surge in U.S. Treasury yields helped the dollar rebound from 6-1/2-month lows against its major peers, while oil prices rose for a fifth straight session ahead of OPEC's key meeting Thursday. The world's major oil countries are likely to extend production cuts for another nine months after Iraq backed an extension. Japanese shares rose notably as the yen's drop against the dollar lifted export-related shares and banking stocks benefited from a rise in U.S. Treasury yields. The Nikkei 225 Index climbed 129.70 points or 0.66 percent to finish at 19,742.98, the highest level since May 17th. The broader Topix index closed 0.63 percent higher at 1,575.11. Sony, Panasonic, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial and Honda Motor rose 1-2 percent. Toshiba jumped as much as 8.4 percent on reports that Western Digital (WDC) and its partners have offered ?2 trillion ($17.8 billion) to buy its chip unit. Chinese stocks ended little changed on worries about the state of the economy after Moody's downgraded China's credit rating for the first time since 1989. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index reversed early losses to end 1.84 points or 0.06 percent higher at 3,064.08. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index also inched up 25.35 points or 0.10 percent to 25,428.50. Australian shares seesawed before closing marginally higher as strength in the healthcare and energy sectors offset losses among mining and utility stocks. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index and the broader All Ordinaries Index both rose about 0.15 percent to close at 5,769 and 5,811.50, respectively. Energy majors Woodside Petroleum, Oil Search and Origin Energy eked out modest gains as oil prices extended overnight gains on industry data showing a weekly decline in U.S. crude supplies. Testing services provider ALS soared nearly 13 percent on posting turnaround results for fiscal 2017. Meanwhile, falling iron ore futures pulled down miners, with BHP Billiton losing 0.6 percent and Rio Tinto declining 1.3 percent, while smaller rival Fortescue Metals Group tumbled 4.8 percent. Gold miners Evolution, Newcrest, Northern Star and Regis Resources also fell 2-5 percent after gold prices fell overnight. SurfStitch shares were placed in a trading halt after the company was sued by disgruntled shareholders in a $100 million class action. Sigma Healthcare plunged 31 percent after the company said it is exploring legal action against a pharmacy chain. --------------------------------------------------------------- Leaked tax return reveals secret to pocketing $460,164... Official tax return reveals how one trader nabbed annual gains of 228%, 309% and 339%. His tax return was released online, exposing this simple trading technique used to pocket nearly half a million in profits. [Click here to see the official tax return before it is deleted...]( --------------------------------------------------------------- Currency and Commodities Markets Crude oil futures are slipping $0.17 to $51.30 a barrel after rising $0.34 to $51.47 a barrel on Tuesday. Gold futures, which slid $5.90 to $1,255.50 an ounce in the previous session, are falling $2.90 to $1,252.60 an ounce. On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 111.80 yen compared to the 111.78 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Tuesday. Against the euro, the dollar is valued at $1.1197 compared to yesterday's $1.1183. --------------------------------------------------------------- 7 Shocking Forecasts for 2017 [There's no question that America is in trouble: Startling report reveals the terrifying truths that Washington doesn't want you to know & the actions to take NOW to protect your family through the chaos ... FREE]( --------------------------------------------------------------- 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 +44 (0) 207 0700 961. Company registered in England and Wales: Number 2374988 VAT No. GB 549 2130 49