Friends
More retailers releasing earnings including Target, which was really good, and Lowe’s which was not. In addition to news about retailers we got the release of the Fed minutes today and it appears that the FOMC’s biggest concern is the lack of inflation. The minutes indicated that they are likely to hold rates where they are for a while, but the market sneakily still believes that a rate cut is coming sooner than later. Finally, the “infrastructure” meeting at the White House between The President and Congressional leaders lasted about 30 seconds, so the odds of any stimulation from the fiscal side of the ledger over the next couple of years is virtually nil.
As for stocks, for the day the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 100 points to finish the day at 25,776. The S&P 500 was down 8 points to close at 2,856. Gold was up $1 to trade at $1,273 per ounce, while oil was down $1.87 to trade at $61.26 per barrel WTI.
Stocks are probably reacting just about as they should given the backdrop we are dealing with at the moment. Political headlines, trade war concerns, mixed economic data and flattening earnings growth are providing enough of a headwind that stocks are struggling to advance. On the other hand, low interest rates, decent valuation and few alternatives seem to be keeping stocks from experiencing any major selloff. Let the tug-of-war continue.
Have a nice evening everyone.
