Wednesday, August 05, 2026

Stocks Slightly Higher into Final Hour on Further Mideast War De-Escalation, Earnings Outlook Optimism, Declining Fed Rate-Hike Odds, Homebuilding/Pharma Sector Strength

Economic/Market Gauges:

  • North American Investment Grade CDS Index 50.8 +.4%
  • BofA Private Credit Proxy Index 70.0 -2.0% 
  • Bloomberg US Securitized MBS/ABS/CMBS Avg. OAS .28 -2.0 basis points
  • BofA Global Financial Stress Indicator -.14 -9.0 basis points
  • European Financial Sector CDS Index 53.5 +1.0%
  • Emerging Market CDS Index 140.5 +.5%
  • Israel Sovereign CDS 57.1 -2.0% 
  • Bloomberg Global Trade Policy Uncertainty Index .6 unch.
  • US Morning Consult Daily Consume Sentiment Index 92.3 +3.0
  • Citi US Economic Surprise Index 33.7 -.1
  • Citi Eurozone Economic Surprise Index 66.3 +4.8
  • Citi Emerging Markets Economic Surprise Index 25.4 -1.0
  • S&P 500 Current Quarter EPS Growth Rate YoY(384 of 500 reporting) +51.9% -3.2 percentage points
  • S&P 500 Blended Forward 12 Months Mean EPS Estimate 385.65 +1.37:  Growth Rate +31.1% +.5 percentage point, P/E 20.1 unch.
  • S&P 500 Current Year Estimated Profit Margin 16.19% +2.0 basis  points
  • NYSE FANG+ Current Quarter EPS Growth Rate YoY(8 of 10 reporting) +138.4% unch.
  • NYSE FANG+ Blended Forward 12 Months Mean EPS Estimate 939.08 +10.69: Growth Rate +81.1% +2.1 percentage points, P/E 19.7 -.2 
  • Bloomberg US Financial Conditions Index 1.16 +3.0 basis points
  • US Yield Curve 43.5 basis points (2s/10s) +.25 basis point
  • Bloomberg Industrial Metal Index 180.9 +.8%
  • Dutch TTF Nat Gas(European benchmark) 53.4 euros/megawatt-hour -4.6%
  • US Recession Within 6 Months Probability(3M/18M Forward Yld Curve Spread) 14.9% +.3 percentage point
  • US Atlanta Fed GDPNow Q3 Forecast +5.9% unch.
  • US 10-Year T-Note Yield 4.62% +1.0 basis point
  • 1-Year TIPS Spread 1.59 -3.0 basis points
  • Highest target rate probability for Oct. 28th FOMC meeting: 52.9% (-5.6 percentage points) chance of 3.75%-4.0%. Highest target rate probability for Dec. 9th meeting: 51.4%(-2.5 percentage points) chance of 3.75%-4.0%. (current target rate is 3.5-3.75%)
Overseas Futures:
  • Nikkei 225 Futures: Indicating -340 open in Japan 
  • China A50 Futures: Indicating -113 open in China
  • KOSPI 200 Futures: Indicating +2 open in South Korea 
  • DAX Futures: Indicating +145 open in Germany
Portfolio:
  • Higher: On gains in my tech/industrial/financial/biotech sector longs
  • Disclosed Trades: None
  • Market Exposure: 100% net long

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