In this week’s recap: U.S. equity benchmarks hit fresh
record highs; one trade deal is signed, and Congress approves another; builders
break ground on more residential projects.
Weekly Economic Update
THE WEEK
ON WALL STREET
Traders
were in an upbeat mood last week, reacting to news out of Washington: the
signing of the phase-one trade deal between the U.S. and China as well as the
Senate passage of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). In addition, a new
earnings season started. Risk appetite grew and spurred all three of the major
Wall Street averages to record settlements on Friday.1
For
the week, the Nasdaq Composite rose 2.29%; the S&P 500, 1.97%; the Dow
Jones Industrial Average, 1.82%. International stocks improved 0.40%, according
to MSCI’s EAFE index.2,3
Progress
on the Trade Front
President
Donald Trump and Chinese Vice Premier Liu He signed off on a new, partial
U.S.-China trade pact Wednesday. In this deal, China agrees to buy at least
$200 billion more of American products, crops, and energy futures over a 2-year
period, and it must submit an “action plan” by mid-February, detailing how it
will better protect American intellectual property and cut counterfeiting of
American goods. The U.S. agrees to halve 15% tariffs on $120 billion of Chinese
imports (other tariffs slated for last December were scrapped earlier as part
of this agreement).
As
for the USMCA, President Trump is expected to sign it into law this week. It
was passed 89-10 in the Senate on Thursday, and by a wide margin in the House
of Representatives in December. Mexico’s government has also approved the
USMCA; Canada’s government has yet to do so.4,5
Homebuilding
Picks Up
The
Census Bureau reported a 16.9% surge in housing starts in December. This
surpassed expectations; housing market analysts, surveyed by Refinitiv, had
expected no increase.1
What’s AHEAD
U.S.
stock markets are closed Monday, in observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
Post offices and Social Security offices will also be closed Monday as well as
most banks.
T I P O F
T H E W E E K
A retirement relocation to a cheaper metro area may cost you money in the short run, but you might see considerable long-term savings from such a move.
THE WEEK
AHEAD: KEY ECONOMIC DATA
Source:
MarketWatch, January 17, 2020
The MarketWatch economic calendar lists upcoming U.S. economic
data releases (including key economic indicators), Federal Reserve policy
meetings, and speaking engagements of Federal Reserve officials. The content is
developed from sources believed to be providing accurate information. The
forecasts or forward-looking statements are based on assumptions and may not
materialize. The forecasts also are subject to revision.
THE WEEK
AHEAD: COMPANIES REPORTING EARNINGS
Tuesday: Capital One (COF),
Netflix (NLFX), TD Ameritrade (AMTD), United Airlines (UAL)
Wednesday: Abbott Labs (ABT),
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ), Texas Instruments (TXN)
Thursday: Comcast (CMCSA), Intel
(INTC), Procter & Gamble (PG), Union Pacific (UNP)
Friday: American Express (AXP),
Nextera Energy (NEE)
Source:
Zacks, January 17, 2020
Companies
mentioned are for informational purposes only. It should not be considered a
solicitation for the purchase or sale of the securities. Any investment should
be consistent with your objectives, time frame and risk tolerance. The return
and principal value of investments will fluctuate as market conditions change.
When sold, investments may be worth more or less than their original cost.
Companies may reschedule when they report earnings without notice.
Q U O T E O F T H E W E E K
“A joyful life is an individual
creation that cannot be copied from a recipe.”
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
T H E W E E K L Y
R I D D L E
Travel a mile, and I will change. Travel
a million miles, and I might be incapable of further change. What am I?
LAST WEEK’S
RIDDLE: I can be used to build castles, but I crumble in your hands. I can help
a man see, and am found all around the lands. What am I?
ANSWER: Sand.
Troy L Thompson, CFP may be
reached at 515-432-5421 or troy@thompsonfinancialinc.com www.thompsonfinancialinc.com
Know
someone who could use information like this?
Please feel free to send us their contact information via phone or email. (Don’t worry – we’ll request their permission before adding them to our mailing list.)
Please feel free to send us their contact information via phone or email. (Don’t worry – we’ll request their permission before adding them to our mailing list.)
Troy Thompson, CFP
DBA Thompson Financial and Hanson Asset Strategies
Securities offered through FIRST HEARTLAND CAPITAL, INC.
Member FINRA & SIPC.
Thompson Financial is not affiliated with FIRST HEARTLAND
CAPITAL, INC.
This material was prepared by MarketingPro, Inc., and does
not necessarily represent the views of the presenting party, nor their
affiliates. The information herein has been derived from sources believed to be
accurate. Please note - investing involves risk, and past performance is no
guarantee of future results. Investments will fluctuate and when redeemed may
be worth more or less than when originally invested. This information should
not be construed as investment, tax or legal advice and may not be relied on
for the purpose of avoiding any Federal tax penalty. This is neither a
solicitation nor recommendation to purchase or sell any investment or insurance
product or service, and should not be relied upon as such. All market indices
discussed are unmanaged and are not illustrative of any particular investment.
Indices do not incur management fees, costs and expenses, and cannot be
invested into directly. All economic and performance data is historical and not
indicative of future results. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is a
price-weighted index of 30 actively traded blue-chip stocks. The NASDAQ
Composite Index is a market-weighted index of all over-the-counter common
stocks traded on the National Association of Securities Dealers Automated
Quotation System. The Standard & Poor's 500 (S&P 500) is a market-cap
weighted index composed of the common stocks of 500 leading companies in
leading industries of the U.S. economy. The MSCI EAFE Index is a stock market
index that is designed to measure the equity market performance of developed
markets outside of the U.S. and Canada. NYSE Group, Inc. (NYSE:NYX) operates
two securities exchanges: the New York Stock Exchange (the “NYSE”) and NYSE
Arca (formerly known as the Archipelago Exchange, or ArcaEx®, and the Pacific
Exchange). NYSE Group is a leading provider of securities listing, trading and
market data products and services. The New York Mercantile Exchange, Inc.
(NYMEX) is the world's largest physical commodity futures exchange and the
preeminent trading forum for energy and precious metals, with trading conducted
through two divisions – the NYMEX Division, home to the energy, platinum, and
palladium markets, and the COMEX Division, on which all other metals trade.
Additional risks are associated with international investing, such as currency
fluctuations, political and economic instability and differences in accounting
standards. This material represents an assessment of the market environment at
a specific point in time and is not intended to be a forecast of future events,
or a guarantee of future results. MarketingPro, Inc. is not affiliated with any
person or firm that may be providing this information to you. The publisher is
not engaged in rendering legal, accounting or other professional services. If
assistance is needed, the reader is advised to engage the services of a
competent professional.
2 - wsj.com/market-data
[1/17/20]
3 - quotes.wsj.com/index/XX/MSCI%20GLOBAL/990300/historical-prices
[1/17/20]
4 - cnbc.com/2020/01/15/trump-and-china-sign-phase-one-trade-agreement.html
[1/16/20]
5 - washingtonpost.com/us-policy/2020/01/16/senate-approves-new-usmca-trade-deal-with-canada-mexico/
[1/16/20]
quotes.wsj.com/index/XX/MSCI%20GLOBAL/990300/historical-prices
[1/17/20]
quotes.wsj.com/index/SPX/historical-prices
[1/17/20]
No comments:
Post a Comment