Monday Watch

Today's Headlines

Bloomberg:           

• China’s Industrial Profits Grow at Slower Pace as Costs Rise.
• China Asks Citic Group to Examine Huarong’s Finances
• Australia to Notch Up Another Record Year for Resource Exports.
• U.K. Names New Minister; AstraZeneca Vaccine Trial: Virus Update.   
• Asia Stocks, U.S. Futures Steady; Dollar Edges Up: Markets Wrap. 
• Oil Steady Near $74 With OPEC+ Expected to Trail Demand Revival.
• GOP Senators Say Biden’s Infrastructure Deal Back on Track.
• Crypto Exchange Binance Banned From Doing Business in U.K.  
• Record Stock Sales From Money-Losing Firms Ring the Alarm Bells.  
• The IPO Market Has Never Been Hotter Than It Is Right Now.  
• Strategists Flag Near-Term Risks for Bitcoin Price Outlook.  
• U.S. Investment-Grade Bond Supply Seen Subdued Ahead of July 4.  
• Search for Survivors Continues at Collapsed Miami-Area Building.  
• Bond Market’s Bears Undaunted by Post-Fed Shakeout of Short Bets.  
• U.S. Jobs to Be Scrutinized for Signs of Faster Hiring: Eco Week.

Wall Street Journal:

• A Conservative Court Awakening.
• Has the Military Gone ‘Woke’?
• Unemployment Rolls Shrink Faster in States Cutting Aid.
• The Apple-Microsoft Tech War Reignites for a New Era.
• During Covid-19, Most Americans Got Richer—Especially the Rich.
• Commodities Remain Popular Bet Despite Recent Declines.
• The Stock Market Hasn’t Been This Placid in Years.
• Far From Texas, Huge Gas Bills Stoke Anger.
• France’s Macron Under Pressure as Recent Terrorist Attacks Weigh on Regional Elections.
• The Battle Over Critical Race Theory.
• ‘Drill, Baby, Drill’ Is the Future.

Fox News:  

• Local businesses struggle to find workers despite Biden's suggestion to just 'pay them more'.
• Athlete turns away from flag during national anthem at Olympic trials.

CNBC:

• Doximity CEO ignored Silicon Valley wisdom and built a $10 billion health-tech company.
• Biden reiterates support for bipartisan infrastructure plan, clarifies he did not issue veto threat.
• With demand for rentals sky high, more homeowners consider adding an apartment over the garage. 
• These are the best long-term stocks to own right now, top Wall Street analysts say.

Zero Hedge: 

• FDA Adds Warning About Heart Inflammation To COVID-19 mRNA Vaccines.
• Yet More Olympics "Activism": Medalist Turns Back To Flag During Anthem At Trials.
• How Has Trader Positioning Changed Since The FOMC Meeting.
• Biden Orders Series Of Airstrikes Along Syria-Iraq Border.
• Labor Shortages And Inflation Plague California Businesses.
• United States Ranks Last In Global Media Trust, New Report Finds.
• Ford Electric Mustang Breaks Quarter-Mile Record, Challenges Elon Musk To "Race".
• More Police Officers Have Retired Or Quit In The Past Year Than Ever Before, New Survey Shows.
• Market Rallies To All-Time Highs As Bulls Dismiss Fed.
• Happy Birthday, Global Warming: Climate Change At 33.
• Virginia's First 3D-Printed Home Under Construction Amid "Hyperinflating" Housing Market.
• Losing The Plot On COVID.
• Ivermectin: Can a Drug Be "Right-Wing"?
• US Threatens Sanctions On Gulf Allies If They Normalize Relations With Assad.
• Why Gold?
• US Food Banks Warn Soaring Prices Will Affect Distributions .
• Blackouts Loom In California As Electricity Prices Are "Absolutely Exploding".
• Senate Republicans Urge CDC To End Mask Mandate On Airplanes, Public Transit.
• Japan Trails The World In Vaccination Race As Olympics Loom.
• 'You Were Wrong About A Lot Of Sh*t': Maher Blasts Big Tech, CDC Over Lab-Leak Censorship.
• "Enough Is Enough": Los Angeles Sheriff Urges State Of Emergency On Homelessness.

MarketWatch.com:      

• Opinion: Buy stocks now that the S&P 500 is finally charging out of its range.
  

NewsMax:   

• Trump: Biden 'Destroying Our Nation Right Before Our Very Own Eyes'.
• Trump Mocks 'Woke' Military Generals, Critical Race Theory.

TheGatewayPundit.com:

• Biden Signs Executive Order that Mandates Race Training at Every Level and Lectures on ‘White Privilege’ and ‘Male Privilege’.
• Biden/Obama Again Negotiating with Iran – No American Wants This – Siding with Iran Will Not Bring Peace.
• Stephen Miller: Kamala Harris’s Objective is to Destroy the Border, Eliminate Border Security and Facilitate Mass Entry of Illegal Aliens (VIDEO).
• NEVER FORGET: Republican ‘Leaders’ Like Pence, Romney, McConnell, McCarthy, Cheney and McDaniel Were Completely AWOL During Entire Arizona Audit Process.
• Newly Uncovered Emails Show Top Biden Officials DEMANDING Facebook Censor Their Opponent Then President Trump Before Election.
• Female Customer Freaks After She Sees Biological Male Walking Around with His Penis Out Around Children in LA Women’s Day Spa – Spa Defends Naked Man! (VIDEO). 
• HERE WE GO: WHO Recommends Masks and Social Distancing For Everyone – Vaccinated and Unvaccinated – Due to Covid “Delta” Variant.

The Epoch Times:

• Vatican Foreign Minister to Epoch Times: Church Has No Positive Contribution to Make in Hong Kong.

Digital Blackboard:

• Daily New Cases by Region.

Worldometer:

• New Cases/Deaths by state.

Rt Covid-19:

• How fast virus is growing by state.

KFF:

• State Data(Tests/Hospitalizations).

Night Trading

• Asian indices are -.50% to +.25% on average.
• Asia Ex-Japan Investment Grade CDS Index 83.25 -1.0 basis point.
• China Sovereign CDS 35.5 -2.0 basis points.
• Bloomberg Emerging Markets Currency Index 60.75 -.06%.
• Bloomberg Global Risk-On/Risk Off Index 3,480.0 -1.0 point.
• Volatility Index(VIX) futures 17.69 -.07%. 
• Euro Stoxx 50 futures -.06%.
• S&P 500 futures +.03%.
• NASDAQ 100 futures -.01%

Morning Preview Links

Earnings of Note

Company/Estimate

Before the Open:

• None of note
  

After the Close:

• (MLHR)/.39
  

Economic Releases

10:30 am EST

• The Dallas Fed Manufacturing Activity Index for June is estimated to fall to 32.5 versus 34.9 in May.

Upcoming Splits

• (CSX) 3-for-1
  

Other Potential Market Movers

• The Fed's Quarles speaking, Fed's Williams speaking, Japan Retail Sales report and the Mobile World Congress could also impact trading today.

US Equity Market Hours

• 9:30 am - 4:00 pm EST

BOTTOM LINE: Asian indices are slightly lower, weighed down by metals/mining and consumer shares in the region. I expect US stocks to open mixed and to rally into the afternoon, finishing modestly higher.  The Portfolio is 100% net long heading into the week.

Today's Headlines

Bloomberg:         

• U.S. Confirms Removal of Wuhan Virus Sequences From Database.
• Bookies, EVs and Food Delivery: Europe’s 2021 Winners and Losers.  
• Germany to Quarantine Travelers From Portugal: Virus Update.
• Reopening Stocks Fuel $6 Trillion Boom in a Post-Pandemic Market. 
• Peak Central Bank Support Marks New Phase for Global Recovery.
• Opioids Rip Through U.S. Workforce, With Deaths at Record Level.
  
• Opinion: Young American Adults Are Dying — and Not Just From Covid.
• How Quants at Dimensional Deal With This Year’s Meme-Stock Craze.  
• One in Five Young Adults Is Neither Working Nor Studying in U.S.   
• Chicago’s Lake Shore Drive Renamed to Honor Black Settler.  
• Wall Street Binges on Volatility Hedges as Stocks Hit Records.
• Social Media Buzz: Tesla’s China Recall, Insurrection, McCarthy. 
• United Air Seen Finalizing Its Largest-Ever Narrow-Body Jet Deal.  
• Where We Are on the Road to Electric Vehicles.

Wall Street Journal:

• Housing Market Booms, but Small Contractors Miss Out.
• New York and Other Northeast States See Large Drop in Unemployment.
• Can Vivek Ramaswamy Put Wokeism Out of Business?
• ‘There Was Nothing There’: Condo Survivors Recount Escapes, Wait for Word of Missing.
• Bitcoin Slumps Toward Another ‘Crypto Winter’.
• How AI Is Taking Over Our Gadgets.
• With Covid-19 Easing, Diplomats Urge Biden to Lift Ban on European Travelers.
• Remote Work Is the New Signing Bonus.

CNBC:

• Tesla to ‘recall’ nearly 300,000 China-made Model 3 and Model Y vehicles.
• Johnson & Johnson agrees to stop selling opioids nationwide in $230 million settlement with New York state.
• FDA adds warning about rare heart inflammation to Pfizer, Moderna Covid vaccines.
• Inflation looks bad now, but it’s pretty much sticking to the script.

IG:

• Weekend Markets Trading Live.

Barron's:

• Had bullish commentary on (AMT), (ASTE), (MLM), (ROAD), (URI), (VMC), (CAT), (DE), (OSK), (MTW), (TEX), (NMIH), (ESNT), (GTLS) and (MTG).

MarketWatch.com:     

• WallStreetBets is dying, long live the WallStreetBets movement. 
• Crypto analyst warns of weekend tumble, as bitcoin bull points to ‘daisy chain of borrowers and lenders’.

Fox News:

• Fauci 'caught lying' after book exposes details of Wuhan lab-linked grant, lawmaker says.
• Trump-appointed judges throwing wrench in Biden's executive power grab just months into his term.

Newsmax:  

• Mark Meadows: VP Harris 'Great Pretender' on Border Crisis. 
• Ex-Rep. Doug Collins: DOJ's Georgia Lawsuit a 'Cover-Up'.   
• Dershowitz: Giuliani Got No Due Process, Suspension Won't Stand.
  

Zero Hedge:

• Engineer Warned Of 'Major Structural Damage' Before Miami Condo Tower Collapsed 
• "Blow Up Republicans": UNC (Wilmington) Professor Triggers Firestorm With Call For Killing Conservatives.
• 'No Substantial Outbreaks' After Researchers Track Sports, Music And Clubbing.
• UK Lockdown Architect Quits After Breaking Own COVID Rules During Secret Affair With Aide.
• Biden Poised To Lift Trump-Era Sanctions On Iran's Supreme Leader. 
• Here's Why The Yield Curve Could Re-Steepen, And What That Means For Stocks.
• Long-Awaited US Intelligence 'UFO Report' Cites Over 140 Unexplainable Encounters.
• John McAfee's Widow Says He Was Not Suicidal.
• Is The West Strategically Reorganizing To Fight Communist China?
• Hungary Told To Repeal Law Banning LGBT Promotion To Children "Or Else Leave EU".
• Brothers Abscond With $4 Billion In Crypto Stolen From South African Exchange.
• Escobar: A Sovereign Iran Will Move Closer To Russia-China.
• Visualizing 150 Years Of US National Debt.
• The Woke Business Complex.
• The Road To Dystopia.
• How An Obscure App Turned Millions Into Unwitting Spies For The US Military.
• China's Disturbing Nuclear Buildup.
• "I'm Totally Screwed": Western Digital Tells Customers To Unplug Web-Connected Hard Drives After Data Mysteriously Deleted.
• Kyle Bass Slams Fed, Sees Inflation Everywhere He Looks.
  

TheGatewayPundit.com:

• Massive London Protests Against Lockdowns — “Enough Is Enough”.
• More Lies: Democrats Now Claim They Never Wanted To “Defund The Police”.
• NOT MAKING HEADLINES: CDC Officials Admit More Hospitalizations of Young People from Vaccine than From the Actual COVID Virus – Including HUGE Number of Heart Problems Reported.
• Biden Bureau Of Land Management Nominee Advocated Population Control, Limiting Families To Two Children.
• Nike CEO John Donahoe Bows to Chi-Coms – Admits that Nike Is a Brand “Of China and For China”.

The Epoch Times:

• Death of Free Press Spells the End of a Free Hong Kong: Jimmy Lai Advisor. 
• Chinese Scientist Who Shipped Deadly Pathogens to Wuhan Held 2 Patents.

Digital Blackboard:

• Daily New Cases by Region.

Worldometer:

• New Cases/Deaths by state.

Rt Covid-19:

• How fast virus is growing by state.

KFF:

• State Data(Tests/Hospitalizations).

Evening Headlines

Bloomberg:       

• Biden Tells Afghanistan’s Ghani U.S. Will ‘Stick With You’.
• Biden Aides Press Senators to Keep Infrastructure Deal Intact.
• Haters Everywhere in Stock Market After S&P 500’s Big First Half.
  
• Financial Crisis Scars Tie Up $8.1 Trillion in U.S. Home Equity.
• Oil Set for Weekly Gain as Focus Turns to Upcoming OPEC+ Meeting.
• GameStop Moves to Russell 1000; AMC Stays in Small-Cap Index.  
• Investors Chasing Housing Returns Target Massive Pools of Airbnb Rentals.
• Bitcoin Resumes Slide Toward Closely Watched Technical Level.  
• Facebook Must Face Claims Linked to Sex Trafficking, Judge Says.   
• IRS Adds Thousands of Auditors as Senate Considers Enforcement Funds.  
• Charting the Global Economy: Home Prices Soaring in U.S., U.K. 
• Microsoft Says SolarWinds Hackers Attacked Three in New Breach.

Wall Street Journal:

• 7 Ways Covid Has Changed Our World.
• Consumer Spending Is Primed to Fuel Summer Growth.
• 159 Missing, 4 Confirmed Dead in Florida Condo Collapse.
• Can Vivek Ramaswamy Put Wokeism Out of Business?
• A Bipartisan Pact to Supersize the IRS.
• Hotels’ and Restaurants’ Rebound Summer Held Back by Shortages.
• Delta Outbreaks Prompt Limits in Australia, Israel, as India Warns of New Mutation.
• General Dynamics CEO Phebe Novakovic Believes in Patriotism and Resilience.
• Why Vaccinated Athletes Are Testing Positive for Coronavirus.
• U.S. Economy Is Bouncing Back From Covid-19. Now Foreign Investors Are Rushing In.
• Fed’s Powell Plays Down Inflation Threat.

CNBC:

• S&P 500 climbs to another record led by bank shares, notches its best week since February.
• TikTok insiders say social media company is tightly controlled by Chinese parent ByteDance.
• Royal Caribbean to launch first passenger cruise from U.S. since pandemic no-sail orders.
• Key inflation indicator posts biggest gain in nearly three decades.
• Billionaire megadonor James Simons hires new lobbyists as he seeks to influence Biden’s Washington.
• Activision, EA or Take-Two: Traders discuss which video game stock is best.

IG:

• Weekend Markets Trading Live.

MarketWatch.com:       

• These 30 stocks are the best dividend income growers among the S&P 500.  
  
• Mister Car Wash ‘inspiring people to shine’ as shares soar 37% in trading debut.
  
• Bitcoin may slump below $10,000 if this technical signal is correct.

Fox News:

• Rescuers hopeful they will find more building collapse survivors as number of dead and missing remain the same.
• CEO unapologetic about calling Nike 'brand of China'.

Zero Hedge:

• Nevada Sheriff's Group Says NSA Sitting On 'Every Call, Text, Chat And Banking Transaction' For 'Elite Pedos And Wall Street Criminals'. 
• 650 Troops To Stay In Afghanistan As US Intelligence Warns Of Taliban Takeover Within 6 Months.
• Surgeon Fired From College Of Medicine For Voicing Concerns About COVID Shots For Kids.
• Bank Guard In India Shoots Patron For Entering Without Face Mask.
• Macleod: The Fed Is Trapped Between A 'Keep Inflating' Rock & A 'Collapsing Dollar Confidence' Hard Place.
• Senators Tell Biden Hong Kong Newspaper's Forced Closure Requires Mandatory Sanctions.
• Parents Sue LA School District Over COVID Mandates For Children.
• Biden's Real Crime Against The Economy.
• Greenwald: What is Behind Gen. Mark Milley's Righteous Race Sermon? Look To The New Domestic War On Terror.
• America's Social Order Is Unraveling.
• Portland Police Reassure Antifa That Man Shot By Police Was White To Avoid Riot.
• Below The Market's Calm Surface, Sheer Panic As Skew Soars To All Time High.
• Stocks & Commodities Jump, Dollar & Bonds Dump This Week As Inflation Hits 30 Year High.
  

TheGatewayPundit.com:

• John McAffee’s Wife Speaks Out: “I Blame the US Authorities – He Would Never Quit This Way. He Would Never Take His Life” (VIDEO).
• EXPLOSIVE REPORT! WE CAUGHT THEM AGAIN: New Findings Show Coordination and Collusion Between PA and GA in 2020 Election Steal.
• “PEOPLE of Georgia Should SUE the State, and Their Elected Officials, for Running a CORRUPT AND RIGGED 2020 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION” – Statement from President Trump.
• DAMNING VIDEO Released by Bobby Powell of Jan. 6 Protests Shows Violent Hoodlums in Black Smashing Windows, Damaging US Capitol — But FBI Refuses to Look for Them Despite Iron-clad Evidence! Weird, Huh?

The Epoch Times:

• Beijing Promotes Security Officials to Senior Roles in Hong Kong.

Digital Blackboard:

• Daily New Cases by Region.

Worldometer:

• New Cases/Deaths by state.

Rt Covid-19:

• How fast virus is growing by state.

KFF:

• State Data(Tests/Hospitalizations).

Friday Watch

Evening Headlines

Bloomberg:            

• China Crushed Jack Ma, and His Fintech Rivals May Be Next.  
• Chinese Banks Stockpile Record $1 Trillion of Foreign Currencies.
• Stock Rally Extends to Asia on U.S. Economic Hopes: Markets Wrap.
• Five Things You Need to Know to Start Your Day.  
• Oil Set for Weekly Gain as Focus Turns to Upcoming OPEC+ Meeting.
• Fed Inflation Split, China Leads U.S., One Hike in 2023: Eco Day.
• A Win for Roads, and No Tax Hikes: Infrastructure Deal Takeaways.
• Wall Street Sees Big Wish Granted in Biden’s Infrastructure Deal.
  
• Lawmakers Tap Budget Maneuvers to Make Infrastructure Plan Work.
• Fed Officials Debating Rate-Hike Timing Split on Inflation View.  
• Sporadic Gasoline Shortages Are Surfacing Across Six U.S. States.  
• Progressives Aim to Hold Biden, Pelosi to Promise on Bigger Bill.  
• U.S. Propane Prices Are Skyrocketing in a Rare Summer Rally.

Wall Street Journal:

• Disaster Looms in Afghanistan.
• New York Democrats Take a Stab at Reality.
• How I Liberated My College Classroom.
• Didi Sets Valuation Target of $62 Billion to $67 Billion in IPO.
• Environmental Investing Frenzy Stretches Meaning of ‘Green’.
  

Fox News:

• Expert explains possible reasons behind fall of Champlain Towers.
  

CNBC.com:

• Supply chain pressures are still a problem due to workforce shortages, manufacturing group says.
• Federal Reserve gives U.S. banks a thumbs-up as all 23 lenders easily pass 2021 stress test.
• Biden strikes infrastructure deal with bipartisan Senate group.
• Biden says more Americans will die as delta variant spreads: ‘You know it’s going to happen’. 
• Nike earnings and sales beat estimates as retailer books record revenue in North America.
• Reddit trading is leading to ‘massive market manipulation,’ investor warns.

 MarketWatch.com:       

• Infrastructure and the stock market — here’s what the $1 trillion deal means.
  
• Meme-based investing ‘is a totally nihilistic parody of actual investing,’ says Jeremy Grantham, who called 3 stock-market bubbles.

Zero Hedge: 

• Victor Davis Hanson: The Systemic Con Behind Wokeism.
• State Of Emergency Declared After Miami Condo Building Collapse; 99 Still Missing.
• Natgas Futures Hit 29-Month High Amid Heat Wave.
• Gun Sanctuary Movement Erupts, 61% of US Counties Now Protect Second Amendment.
• Albert Edwards: The Fed Is Trapped In An Epic Bubble, It Can Never Normalize Rates Again.
• McAfee Lawyer Saw No Sign Of Suicidal Intent, Blames Death On "Cruelty Of The System".
• Lumber Prices Extend Plunge Amid Increasing Sawmill Capacity.
• Green New Deal Illinois Style: Unions Battle Greens Over How To Screw Taxpayers.
• All 23 US Banks Easily Pass Fed's Stress Test, Setting Stage For Billions In Buybacks.
• Biden's Widely Mocked 'F-15s And Nukes' Speech Is Latest In String Of Gun Control Blunders.
• Another Day, Another Short Squeeze; Small Caps & Crypto Jump.

Newsmax:

• Sen. Rand Paul: Fire Dr. Anthony Fauci Now.
  

TheGatewayPundit.com:

• BREAKING EXCLUSIVE: 73-Year-Old Pastor and Purple Heart Veteran Arrested For Being at Capitol, His Son Also Arrested in Front of 3-Year-Old Daughter (VIDEOS).
• China Coronavirus (COVID-19) Records Were Deleted from a US Database Per the Request of Chinese Scientists.
• Joe Biden Uses Woke Term “LatinX” Then Assumes Every Latino is an Illegal Alien (VIDEO).
• WHAT THE HELL WAS THIS? Joe Biden Whispers in the Microphone Again – THREE TIMES – and It is TRULY Creepy as Hell –Video.

The Epoch Times: 

• Biden Decries Beijing’s ‘Intensifying Suppression’ in Hong Kong After Apple Daily Closure.

Digital Blackboard:

• Daily New Cases by Region.

Worldometer:

• New Cases/Deaths by state.

Rt Covid-19:

• How fast virus is growing by state.

KFF:

• State Data(Tests/Hospitalizations).

Night Trading 

• Asian equity indices are +.25% to +.75% on average.

• Asia Ex-Japan Investment Grade CDS Index 83.5 -1.0 basis point.

• China Sovereign CDS 35.75 -.25 basis point.
  

• Bloomberg Emerging Markets Currency Index 60.82 +.06%.
• Bloomberg Global Risk-On/Risk Off Index 3,247.0 -140.0 points.
• Volatility Index(VIX) futures 18.15 -.09%.
• FTSE 100 futures +.09%.

• S&P 500 futures +.05%.

• NASDAQ 100 futures -.1%. 

Morning Preview Links

Earnings of Note 
Company/Estimate 

 

Before the Open: 

• (APOG)/.37
• (KMX)/1.64
• (JKS)/-.01
• (PAYX)/.67
  

After the Close:

• None of note
  

Economic Releases

8:30 am EST

• Personal Income for May is estimated to fall -2.5% versus a -13.1% decline in April.
• Personal Spending for May is estimated to rise +.4% versus a +.5% gain in April.
• The PCE Core MoM for May is estimated to rise +.6% versus a +.7% gain in April.
  

Upcoming Splits

• (CSGP) 10-1
• (CSX) 3-1
  

Other Potential Market Movers

• The Japan CPI report could also impact global trading today.

US Equity Market Hours

• 9:30 am - 4:00 pm EST
  

BOTTOM LINE: Asian indices are higher, boosted by commodity and technology shares in the region. I expect US stocks to open modestly lower and to rally into the afternoon, finishing mixed. The Portfolio is 100% net long heading into the day.