Wall Street May Benefit From Continued Optimism About Debt Ceiling Deal

[ADVFN]( [[Global Email] World Daily Markets Bulletin]( Friday, 19 May 2023 09:05:24 [ADVFN Twitter]( [Monitor]( [Quote]( [Charts]( [News]( [Toplists]( [Boards]( [Did the Crypto Market Bounce Up?]( Check out the short analysis video [here](. --------------------------------------------------------------- US Market Bitcoin [Bitcoin]( DAX [DAX]( Dow Jones [Dow Jones]( Nasdaq [Nasdaq]( The major U.S. index futures are currently pointing to a higher open on Friday, with stocks likely to see further upside after moving sharply higher over the two previous sessions. Stocks may continue to benefit from optimism about an agreement on raising the U.S. debt ceiling following comments by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif. While McCarthy told reporters on Thursday that a deal hasn?t been reached, the GOP leader said he sees a ?path that we can come to an agreement.? ?I think we have a structure now and everybody?s working hard,? McCarthy said. ?And I mean we?re working two or three times a day, then going back getting more numbers.? He added, ?I just believe where we were a week ago and where we are today is a much better place, because we?ve got the right people in the room discussing it in a very professional manner, with all the knowledge, all the background from all the different leaders.? Early trading activity may be somewhat subdued, however, as traders look ahead to remarks by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. Powell is due to participate in a Perspectives on Monetary Policy panel before the Thomas Laubach Research Conference later this morning, with traders likely to keep a close eye on his comments for clues about the outlook for interest rates. Following the rally seen during Wednesday's session, stocks showed another strong move to the upside during trading on Thursday. With the continued advance, the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 reached their best closing levels in about nine months. The major averages reached new highs for the session going into the close of trading. The Nasdaq surged 188.27 points or 1.5 percent to 12,688.83, the S&P 500 jumped 39.28 points or 0.9 percent to 4,198.05 and the Dow rose 115.14 points or 0.3 percent to 33,535.91. Optimism lawmakers will eventually reach an agreement on raising the U.S. debt ceiling contributed to the continued strength on Wall Street. Following a meeting earlier in the week, President Joe Biden and House Speaker McCarthy both expressed optimism a deal will be reached. "Stocks are rising as the biggest risk on Wall Street's table appears to be going away," said Edward Moya, senior market analyst at OANDA. "Speaker McCarthy said that the House could vote on the debt ceiling deal as soon as next week." "Traders are so fixated on the debt ceiling and regional banking fears that they are losing track of what could happen with inflation," he added. "Stocks are heading higher, but could soften if we continue to get more rounds of data that suggest the economy is not breaking." A positive reaction to quarterly results from Walmart (WMT) also generated some buying interest, with the retail giant climbing by 1.3 percent. The advance by Walmart came after the company reported better than expected first quarter results and raised its full-year guidance. On the U.S. economic front, the Labor Department released a report showing first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits fell by more than expected in the week ended May 13th. The report said initial jobless claims slid to 242,000, a decrease of 22,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 264,000. Economists had expected jobless claims to dip to 254,000. The bigger than expected drop came after jobless claims reached their highest level since the week ended October 30, 2021 in the previous week. A separate report released by the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia showed a continued contraction in regional manufacturing in the month of May, although the pace of contraction slowed by more than expected. The Philly Fed said its diffusion index for current activity surged to a negative 10.4 in May from a negative 31.3 in April. While a negative reading still indicates a contraction in regional manufacturing activity, economists had expected the index to show a more modest recovery to a negative 19.8. The bigger than expected rebound came after the Philly Fed Index dropped to its lowest level since May 2020 in the previous month. The National Association of Realtors also released a report unexpectedly showing a steep drop in U.S. existing home sales in the month of April. NAR said existing home sales plunged by 3.4 percent to an annual rate of 4.28 million in April after tumbling by 2.6 percent to a revised rate of 4.43 million in March. The extended pullback surprised economists, who had expected existing home sales to inch up by 0.1 percent compared to the 2.4 percent slump originally reported for the previous month. Semiconductor stocks moved sharply higher on the day, with the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index spiking by 3.2 percent to its best closing level in well over a month. Micron Technology (MU) posted a standout gain after announcing plans to invest up to $3.6 billion to bring extreme ultraviolet (EUV) technology to Japan for production. Computer hardware, networking, and software stocks also saw significant strength, contributing to the surged by the tech-heavy Nasdaq. Retail stocks have also moved notably higher following Walmart's upbeat results, driving the Dow Jones U.S. Retail Index up by 1.7 percent. On the other hand, gold stocks saw substantial weakness on the day, dragging the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index down by 2.5 percent. The sell-off by gold stocks came amid a steep drop by the price of the precious metal. --------------------------------------------------------------- Do you day trade? Trader Alerts streams stocks reaching new highs and lows as well as stocks breaking out of previous volume highs as they happen. It's a powerful tool for day trading ideas. [Learn More / Upgrade]( --------------------------------------------------------------- U.S. Economic Reports CADUSD [CADUSD]( Oil [Oil]( Gold [Gold]( EURUSD [EURUSD]( Federal Reserve Board Governor Michelle Bowman is scheduled to participate in a discussion before the Texas Bankers Association 138th Annual Convention at 9 am ET. At 11 am ET, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell is due to participate in a Perspectives on Monetary Policy panel before the Thomas Laubach Research Conference. --------------------------------------------------------------- [3 Tiny Stocks Primed to Explode]( The world's greatest investor ? 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On the other hand, shares of Foot Locker (FL) are seeing substantial pre-market weakness after the footwear retailer reported weaker than expected first quarter results. Semiconductor equipment maker Applied Materials (AMAT) may also move to the downside despite reporting fiscal second quarter results that exceeded analyst estimates. --------------------------------------------------------------- [Sell every Stock except ONE]( Markets are down... But Jeff Clark couldn't care less because he ignores almost every stock in the market except ONE. He lives financially free trading this One Stock Once per month... [Ticker Revealed.]( --------------------------------------------------------------- Europe European stocks have risen on Friday, extending gains from the previous session as investors shrugged off hawkish rhetoric from Fed speakers and remained hopeful that the U.S. will avert a catastrophic debt default. In economic news, German producer prices posted their slowest annual growth in two years in April, Destatis reported earlier today. Producer prices registered annual growth of 4.1 percent in April after rising 6.7 percent in March. This was the smallest increase since April 2021. Economists had forecast a 4.0 percent jump. Separately, survey data from the market research group GfK showed U.K. consumer confidence continued to strengthen in May. The consumer sentiment index posted -27 in May compared to -30 in April, marking an improvement for the fourth straight month. While the U.K.?s FTSE 100 Index has risen by 0.5 percent, the German DAX Index and the French CAC 40 Index are both up by 0.8 percent. Concentric AB, a Swedish pump maker, has jumped after it was awarded a SEK 201 million order to supply a fully integrated high voltage cooling solution to a North American zero-emission truck maker. Industrial technology firm Smiths Group has also moved to the upside after raising its annual organic revenue growth outlook. Meanwhile, Titon Holding, a British supplier of ventilation systems and window-and-door products, has plunged. The company said it expects full-year results below expectations. Drinks company C&C Group has also plummeted after announcing a ?25 million hit from problems implementing a system upgrade in its Matthew Clark and Bibendum businesses in the U.K. --------------------------------------------------------------- Do you have a full view of the market? Level 2 lets you see all of the orders to buy and sell shares, allowing you to see what is really going on in the market. If you don?t have this in your trading toolkit, you?re at a serious disadvantage. [Learn More / Upgrade]( --------------------------------------------------------------- Asia USDCAD [USDCAD]( USDEUR [USDEUR]( USDGBP [USDGBP]( USDJPY [USDJPY]( Asian stocks ended mixed on Friday, as hopes that lawmakers in Washington will avert a first-ever U.S. default offset worries about China's uneven economic recovery. U.S. President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy hope to finalize a deal on the debt ceiling after Biden returns from the Group of Seven meeting in Japan on Sunday. U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen told top bank executives that a failure to raise the debt ceiling would be "catastrophic" for the financial system. Treasury yields climbed and the dollar held near a two-month high on hawkish Fed bets. Gold inched up but was on course for its biggest weekly drop in 3-1/2 months as investors awaited Fed Chair Jerome Powell's remarks later in the day to gauge the monetary policy path. Oil rebounded from losses of more than 1 percent in the previous session. Chinese shares ended lower as weak economic data released earlier this week reignited concerns about a patchy recovery in the world's biggest crude importer. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index dropped 0.4 percent to 3,283.54, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index tumbled 1.4 percent to 19,450.57. Alibaba Group Holding plunged over 6 percent after reporting a lower-than-expected 2 percent increase in quarterly revenue. Japanese stocks extended gains, with the Nikkei 225 Index climbing 0.8 percent to 30,808.35, marking its highest level in nearly 33 years on the back of strong domestic earnings and increased investment by Warrant Buffett in local stocks. The broader Topix ended 0.2 percent higher at 2,161.69. The yen rose slightly against the greenback after data showed Japanese inflation re-accelerated in April after cooling earlier in the year. Seoul stocks rose for a fifth consecutive session as investors cheered signs the Biden administration is making progress on debt ceiling talks with Congress. The Kospi rallied 0.9 percent to 2,537.79. Market behemoth Samsung Electronics jumped 3.3 percent and No. 2 chipmaker SK Hynix surged 4 percent, while leading refiner SK Innovation fell 2.6 percent. Australian markets rose, led by banks and tech stocks. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index gained 0.6 percent to close at 7,279.50, while the broader All Ordinaries Index settled 0.6 percent higher at 7,471.50. BrainChip Holdings and Xero spiked 9.3 percent and 5.4 percent, respectively in the tech sector. Tysers parent AUB Group surged 5.9 percent after completing a capital raising. Qantas Airways rose 1.1 percent after the airline said it expects its international capacity to reach pre-COVID levels by March 2024. Across the Tasman, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX-50 Index jumped 1.0 percent to 12,099.74. The Reserve Bank of New Zealand delivers its interest-rate decision on Wednesday, with economists expecting a final quarter point rate hike. --------------------------------------------------------------- Do you day trade? Trader Alerts streams stocks reaching new highs and lows as well as stocks breaking out of previous volume highs as they happen. It's a powerful tool for day trading ideas. [Learn More / Upgrade]( --------------------------------------------------------------- Commodities Crude oil futures are jumping $1.29 to $73.23 a barrel after slumping $0.95 to $71.94 a barrel on Thursday. Meanwhile, after tumbling $25.10 to $1,959.80 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are rising $6.20 to $1,966 an ounce. On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 138.23 yen versus the 138.71 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Thursday. Against the euro, the dollar is valued at $1.0817 compared to yesterday?s $1.0770. --------------------------------------------------------------- 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