Tuesday, April 29, 2008

Tuesday Watch

Late-Night Headlines
Bloomberg:
- The US dollar traded near a two-month high against the yen on speculation the Federal Reserve will signal that it’s close to pausing interest-rate cuts.
- China may revalue the yuan by 10 to 15% in the coming months as policy makers seek to temper inflation close to an 11-year high, according to Frank Gong, head of China research at JPMorgan Chase(JPM). “Given global crude oil prices where they are now and continued rising global resource and commodity prices, the government is weighing the pros and cons of a one-step, large revaluation of renminbi,” wrote Gong.
- Obama’s Pastor Stands by Comments, Defends Church.
- Clinton to Get North Carolina Governor’s Endorsement.
- Visa Inc.(V), the world’s largest credit-card network, said profit rose 28% in the company’s first earnings report since its record $19 billion IPO last month. The shares fell 7% after the results didn’t meet the most optimistic predictions.

Wall Street Journal:
- Coal Producers Could Feel a Chill If Beijing Tries to Ease Price Rises.
- JPMorgan Chase(JPM), Goldman Sachs(GS and Berkshire Hathaway(BRK/A) emerged largely unscathed from the credit crunch that laid low their Wall Street brethren, so their willingness to step up and fund a big deal is a good sign for the financial markets and the economy.
- General Motors(GM) said it will cut production of heavy-duty pickup trucks and sport-utility vehicles by as much as 138,000 at four North American plants in the second half in reaction to declining sales as consumers shift to smaller, more fuel-efficient vehicles.

BusinessWeek.com:
- X Prize: $100 Million for Clean Fuels. In a bid to speed innovation, the foundation plans awards for breathrough in biofuels and other alternative-energy fields.

USA Today.com:
- A Silicon Valley start-up says it has developed technology that can deliver solar power in about a year at prices competitive with coal-fired electricity, a milestone that would leapfrog other more established players and turbocharge the fast-growing industry.

Dow Jones:
- International Business Machines(IBM) will team up with software companies to sell hardware and software to small and medium-sized business over the Web. The online marketplace will be called the Blue Business Platform.

Financial Times:
- Saudis to launch $5.3bn sovereign fund. Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund is in the “final stages” of launching the kingdom’s first sovereign wealth fund. But its early financial commitment will disappoint those hoping for another megafund.
- Macquarie has more of its shares on loan than any other Australian-listed company in a sign that short sellers have taken a big gamble that the investment bank’s share price will tumble.

China Daily:
- Shanghai Stops Outdoor Advertising Approvals.

Late Buy/Sell Recommendations
Citigroup:

- Reiterated Buy on (ACV), target $30.
- Reiterated Buy on (VECO), target $23.
- Reiterated Buy on (MCHP), target $43.

Night Trading
Asian Indices are -.75% to +.50% on average.
S&P 500 futures +.01%.
NASDAQ 100 futures -.03%.

Morning Preview
US AM Market Call
NASDAQ 100 Pre-Market Indicator/Heat Map
Pre-market Commentary
Pre-market Stock Quote/Chart
Before the Bell CNBC Video(bottom right)
Global Commentary
WSJ Intl Markets Performance
Commodity Movers
Top 25 Stories

Top 20 Business Stories
Today in IBD
In Play
Bond Ticker
Economic Preview/Calendar
Daily Stock Events
Upgrades/Downgrades
Rasmussen Business/Economy Polling
CNBC Guest Schedule

Earnings of Note
Company/EPS Estimate
- (MHP)/.24
- (GLW)/.42
- (SPG)/.38
- (ADM)/.69
- (MHS)/.53
- (MSO)/-.08
- (LEA)/.50
- (TIN)/-.04
- (CBS)/.33
- (UA)/.02
- (BYD)/.32
- (BNI)/1.22
- (AG)/.46
- (GGP)/.55
- (CBG)/.22
- (PNRA)/.39
- (HTCH)/.09
- (ESRX)/.67
- (MA)/1.99
- (MAS)/.21
- (VLO)/.26
- (ENR)/1.45
- (X)/1.91
- (ODP)/.22
- (DPZ)/.24
- (LIZ)/.14
- (GLBC)/-1.15
- (BWLD)/.36
- (AVP)/.42
- (FLEX)/.23

Upcoming Splits
- None of note

Economic Releases
10:00 am EST

- Consumer Confidence for April is estimated to fall to 61.0 versus 64.5 in March.

Other Potential Market Movers
- The FOMC meeting, S&P/CaseShiller Home Price Index, (SUPG) analyst meeting, (FIC) analyst day, (SIX) analyst meeting, weekly retail sales reports and Lehman Brothers Retail Conference could also impact trading today.

BOTTOM LINE: Asian indices are mostly lower, weighed down by shipbuildering and airline shares in the region. I expect US equities to open modestly lower and to rally into the afternoon, finishing mixed. The Portfolio is 100% net long heading into the day.

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