Skip to main content

Slow Day?

Not much happening in the markets today. I guess everyone is waiting on the G20 which starts tomorrow, and of course the meeting between President Trump and China’s President Xi Jinping over the on-going trade wars. Can there be an agreement? My prediction (which is actually a guess), is that they'll come up with some meeting of the minds, which would be in everyone's best interest. But both are tough negotiators. So it will be interesting. 

Of note was the jobless claims report
Initial claims are up for a third straight week, 10,000 higher in the November 24 week to a 234,000 level that is outside high estimates for 228,000. The 4-week average is up a sizable 4,750 to 223,250 which is suddenly the highest reading since July. There are no special factors distorting today's report. 
Also moving higher are continuing claims, up 50,000 in lagging data for the November 17 week with this 4-week average up 20,000 to 1.668 million. This reading is coming up from a 45-year low in late October at 1.635 million. The unemployment rate for insured workers is unchanged at 1.2 percent, which is very low but up 1 tenth from a month ago.
Unemployment claims do appear to be shifting higher which doesn't point to another month of outstanding strength for the November employment report.
If you can decipher that, more power to you. All it may mean is the Fed may soften its stance on raising interest rates again. But don't count your chickens yet. 

On another note, I did a couple of trades in oil futures (Feb 19 contracts) this week, so I'm up about $1,400, so I'll take the rest of the day off. I'll detail these trades this weekend when I do my market wrap.

Other than that, Wall Street is usually -- emphasis on usually -- quiet on Friday afternoons, so I suggest you find a good book to read. 





Comments

Popular posts from this blog

California: A Model for the Rest of the Country, Part 2

Part 1 here . On Leaving the Golden State Guest Post by NicklethroweR . Posted on the Burning Platform. The fabled Ventura Highway is all that separates my artist loft from the beach where surfing first came to the United States. Both my balcony and front patio face the freeway at about eye level and I could easily smack a tennis ball right on to the ever busy 101. Access to the beach and boardwalk is very important to a Tourist Town such as mine and I can see one underpass from my balcony and another underpass from the patio. Further up the street are two pedestrian bridges. Both have been recently remodeled so that people can not use it to kill themselves by leaping down into traffic. The traffic, just like the spice, must flow and the elites that live here do not like to be inconvenienced as they dart about between Malibu and Santa Barbara. Another feature of living where I live would have to be the homeless, the insane and the drug addicts that wander this particular...

Top Five Consumer Cyber Security FAQs

Business, technology, environmental and economic changes are a part of life, and they are coming faster all the time. All of these changes and advancements can be distracting and make us more vulnerable to cyber scams. That's why protecting your credit is a critical part of protecting yourself from cyber security threats. Security researchers have reported that hackers and scammers are using any opportunity or vulnerability to target both individuals and companies. You may have already seen these attempts in the form of fake emails or calls. Here are the top five questions Equifax ®  has received about how individuals can protect themselves from cyber security threats and help to improve your credit protection. 1. How can I better protect my credit? Check your credit reports frequently. You can get free credit reports from the nationwide credit reporting agencies (Equifax, Experian ®  and TransUnion ® ) at annualcreditreport.com. Check your credit reports frequently to closely...

School Choice Passed by Texas Senate

The Texas Senate on Thursday approved a $500 million school choice bill mostly along party lines after hours of passionate debate. It will now head for consideration in the House, where members rejected similar proposals during the regular session. Senators passed Senate Bill 1 by a 18-13 vote, with one Republican joining all Democrats in voting against the measure. The bill will likely face steep resistance in the House, where Democratic members and many rural Republicans have vehemently opposed such proposals. School choice programs, also called education savings accounts or vouchers, use public money to help pay for a child’s private schooling. “We must recognize that a one-size-fits-all approach doesn't fit the needs of our diverse student population,” said Sen. Brandon Creighton, R-Conroe, who authored SB 1 and estimated the proposal could serve about 60,000 students. Texas has about 5.5 million children in public schools. Public schools have failed the American people, especi...