Good morning. Commodities are an unusual asset. They either perform poorly, or are one of the top...
It's the monthly jobs numbers today and they're not going to be pretty and will be possibly the tip of the iceberg as we head into May.
 | | |  Good morning. Commodities are an unusual asset. They either perform poorly, or are one of the top investments in a given year. This year, they stand to continue building on their performance of the past few years.
While it's easy to give inflation the credit for rising commodity prices, a combination of supply and demand is pointing to potential moves higher in everything from agricultural commodities, precious metals, and, of course, energy. Reports of low supplies in silver on exchanges, Brent Cushing oil reserves, and other commodities point to a potential squeeze higher.
While we've highlighted some trades in this area already, traders may want to consider having a more permanent exposure to commodities until inflation comes under control and supply and demand dynamics for these commodities starts to improve.
Now here's the rest of the news: | | | | | |
| | |  | DOW 34,934.27 | -0.16% | | |  | S&P 4,475.01 | +0.09% | | | | NASDAQ 14,124.09 | -0.11% | | | | | *As of market close | | | • | Markets traded mixed on Wednesday, with stocks closing near highs of the day. | | | • | Oil dropped 1.3 percent going for $90.87 per barrel. | | | • | Gold rallied 1 percent, last going for $1,874 per ounce. | | | • | Cryptocurrencies trended flat, with Bitcoin at $44,153 at the stock market close. | | | | | | | |
| | | Post-Pandemic Travel Trends Make This Player a Continued Winner | | | | The pandemic is largely over in the United States and around the world, as many cities, states and countries have started dropping mask and social-distancing mandates that have marked nearly two years now.
Already, travel trends have pointed to a recovery in that sector, with further room to go before getting to pre-pandemic levels. That will likely accelerate as plans for Covid passports and other restrictive measures to travel now appear unlikely. But one clear winner is already emerging.
» FULL STORY | | | | |
| | Insider Trading Report: PennyMac Financial Services (PFSI) | | | | Farhad Nanji, a director at PennyMac Financial Services (PFSI), recently added 95,982 shares. The buy increased his stake by over 2 percent, and came to a total price of just over $5.8 million.
The buy came 4 days after he made another buy of 204,018 shares, costing just under $12.5 million. Over the past three years, insider transactions have featured more insider sales, but buys have been more prominent in the past few months.
» FULL STORY | | | | |
| | Unusual Options Activity: CommScope Holding Company (COMM) | | | | Shares of communications infrastructure firm CommScope Holding Company (COMM) have shed more than half their value in the past year. However, one trader sees shares as potentially rebounding strongly from here.
That's based on the May $11 calls. With 91 days until expiration, 7,738 contracts traded compared to a prior open interest of 103, for a 75-fold rise in volume. The buyer of the call options paid $0.75 to make the trade.
» FULL STORY | | | | |
| | • | Retail Sales Rise 3.8 Percent in January
Retail sales in the US rose 3.8 percent in January compared to December. That was far greater than expectations for a 2.1 percent increase. The move came as inflation hit a 7.5 percent annualized basis, indicating that consumers may be starting to spend more to get ahead of further inflation. | | | | • | Homebuilder Confidence Drops on Supply Chain Shortages
Homebuilder confidence dropped for a second month in a row, falling to a read of 82. The scale uses 50 as a neutral reading, so 82 is still incredibly bullish, and only 2 points below the February 2021 reading of 84. Builders also reported production disruptions in everything from cabinets to appliances as a reason to expect a further slowdown. | | | | • | Super Bowl Ratings Rebound
Super Bowl LVI averaged 112.3 million viewers, according to NBC. That included both broadcast TV watchers and streaming services. The ratings were roughly 10 percent higher than last year. That's also good news for advertisers, who shelled out a record $7 million for a 30-second spot. | | | | • | Lawmakers Propose Gas Tax Halt
A number of politicians are looking to suspend the gas tax with oil once again over $90 per barrel. However, the idea is facing some opposition. Currently, federal gas taxes add about 18 cents to the cost of a gallon of gas, and lowering gas prices could help curb the current inflationary pressures on the economy. | | | | • | Spotter Raises $200 Million at $1.7 Billion Valuation
Spotter has announced that it has raised $200 million at a $1.7 billion valuation in Series D funding. The company is working to better monetize licensed content on YouTube and other channels that generate over 40 billion minutes of watch time per month. Spotter expects to have $1 billion invested in creators by 2023. | | |
| | | | TOP | | | GNRC | 14.362% | | | | ABMD | 6.8% | | | | WAB | 6.408% | | | | CINF | 6.173% | | | | KHC | 5.594% | | | | BOTTOM | | | VIAC | 17.811% | | | | ZM | 5.711% | | | | AKAM | 5.557% | | | | ETSY | 5.282% | | | | PYPL | 4.261% | | | | |
| | |  | | The latest inflation data continue to decimate the 'inflation is purely transitory' theory. After pricing in less than one Fed hike as of last September, markets and Fed watchers now expect between 6 and 7 hikes over the next year, with some arguing for a 50 basis point move and not just 25. | | - Michael Cembalest, chairman of market and investment strategy at J.P. Morgan Asset Management, on why traders should continue to brace for market volatility as investors have started to price in a large number of interest rate hikes by the Fed this year to curb inflation. | |
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