Evening Headlines
Bloomberg:
- China Beige Book Shows Slowdown, Opposite Official Data. China’s
economy slowed this quarter as growth in manufacturing and
transportation weakened in contrast with official signs of an expansion
pickup, a private survey showed. Increases in business-investment and
real estate revenue also slowed, while service industries picked up and
employees became tougher to find, the survey from New York-based China
Beige Book International said yesterday. The report is based on
responses from 2,000 people from Aug. 12 to Sept. 4 as well as 32
in-depth interviews conducted later in September. The quarterly report,
modeled on the U.S. Federal Reserve’s Beige Book business survey,
diverges from government figures showing faster July and August gains in
factory production that have spurred analysts from Citigroup Inc. to
Deutsche Bank AG to upgrade expansion estimates. Nomura Holdings Inc.
is among banks skeptical that any rebound will be sustained next year.
The results “show the conventional wisdom of a renewed, strong economic
expansion in China to be seriously flawed,” China Beige Book President
Leland Miller and Craig Charney, research and polling director, said in a statement. The
data “reveal weakening gains in profits, revenues, wages, employment
and prices, all showing slipping growth on-quarter -- no disaster, but
certainly
not the powerful expansion suggested by the consensus narrative.”
- Party Will Pay the Price for China’s Rebalancing.
We need to keep the impact of financial repression in mind in
understanding the Chinese growth model. It is a fundamental cause of
China’s rapid expansion and its extraordinary imbalances. State-owned
enterprises, like other large-scale investors, have benefited from
artificially low interest rates, and it is quite easy to prove that over
the past decade they have beStudies done by the mainland research organization Unirule Institute
of Economics suggest that more than 100 percent, and perhaps much closer
to 200 percent, of theaggregate profitability of state-owned
enterprises in
China over the past decade can be explained by monopoly pricing and
direct subsidies. Without these subsidies, according to Unirule,
state-owned enterprises earned a negative return on equity equal to 6
percent to 7 percenten value destroyers on a very significant scale. .
- Asian Stocks Fall Second Day as U.S. Confidence Declines.
Asian stocks fell for a second day, paring the best monthly advance
since January 2012 for the regional benchmark index, after U.S. consumer
confidence slumped in September to a four-month low. Mitsui Chemicals
Inc. lost 4.8 percent in Tokyo, leading materials producers lower. NTT
Data Corp., a Japanese network-services company, slumped 7.5 percent,
pacing a retreat in technology firms. Tokyo Electron Ltd. surged 14
percent after Applied Materials Inc., the largest chipmaking-equipment
supplier, agreed to buy the company for $9.39 billion in stock. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index fell 0.2 percent to 140.20 as of 10:24 a.m. in Hong Kong, with six of the 10 industry groups
on the gauge declining.
- Rebar Trades Near Lowest in 11 Weeks as Producers Reduce Prices. Steel reinforcement-bar futures
traded near the lowest level in 11 weeks after some Chinese
steel producers cut prices, increasing concern that inventories
are rising as supply outpaces demand. Rebar for delivery in January
on the Shanghai Futures Exchange fell as much as 0.3 percent to 3,617
yuan ($591) a metric ton and traded at 3,619 yuan at 10:45 a.m. The
most-active contract declined to 3,612 yuan on Sept. 23, the lowest
since July 10. Futures have lost 3.6 percent this month.
- Lew Says Investors May Be Too Hopeful on Debt-Limit Debate.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Jacob J. Lew said investor confidence that a
deal can be struck to raise the debt limit is “a bit greater than it
should be” and the government probably will have less than $50 billion
in cash by mid-October. Lew, who spoke at the Bloomberg Markets 50
Summit in New York today, repeated that President Barack Obama won’t
negotiate with congressional Republicans on increasing the $16.7
trillion ceiling on the nation’s borrowing authority.
- Americans in Poll Doubt Economy Rebound. Fewer
people anticipate improvement in the economy’s strength over the
next year than in the last survey in June, with 27 percent saying the
expansion will be more robust, down from 39 percent who expected
improvement three months earlier. Forty-four percent of poll respondents
say they expect the economy, which has expanded for nine consecutive
quarters, to remain about the same, while 28 percent see it weakening. “We’re
still in a recession; I don’t know why they say it’s over,” says Chris
Sams, 28, a disabled Navy veteran from Daingerfield, Texas. “It may be
over in Washington, D.C., where the per capita income is higher than
anywhere else, but down here the minimum wage is the highest
wage.”
Wall Street Journal:
- Iran Applies Brakes to U.S. Mideast Plans. Tehran
Decides Against Meeting of President at U.N. President Barack Obama
argued the U.S. case before world leaders for resolving the Middle
East's deepest conflicts, but pushback from Iran dimmed hopes that had
been building for a rapid leap forward. Iranian President Hasan
Rouhani's decision against meeting Mr. Obama—or even exchanging a
handshake—at the
U.N. General Assembly in New York on Tuesday soured what American and
European officials had hoped would mark an advancement in efforts to
wind down tensions.
Mr. Rouhani followed that rebuff with
an address to the U.N. in which he aired his hopes for reconciliation
while holding firm on Iran's right to enrich uranium and criticizing
some aspects of American foreign policy, including economic sanctions on
Tehran.
- iPhone ‘Teardown’ Shows Apple’s(AAPL) Strong Margins. Apple is holding the line with strong margins on sales of its smartphones, including the lower-end iPhone 5C model,
according to data provided by
the research firm IHS iSuppli. Apple earns about $450 on its 16 gigabyte
iPhone 5S, minus the component costs and assembly for the device, which
sells for $649 without a contract. Those costs of the components and
manufacturing make up about 30% of the price, similar to that of last
year’s iPhone 5 and the new iPhone 5C, which sells for about $100 less.
- Copart(CPRT) 4th-Quarter Net Down 8%; Won't Pursue REIT Conversion. Copart Inc.'s (CPRT) shares fell Tuesday after the car auctioneer
reported a weaker-than-expected fiscal fourth-quarter profit due to
higher expenses. Though revenue growth topped analysts' expectations, the bottom line
surprisingly fell 8% from a year ago as Copart's expenses--including
yard operation and vehicle sale costs--jumped from the prior year.
Shares slid 11% to $30.35 in after-hours trading.
- Cashing Out After Post-Fed Rally. The stock market's surge is pushing some investors to cash in a few
of their chips. Even as shares climbed to new highs in recent weeks,
some money managers pared their equity holdings. Their reasons: after
such a strong run, the rally may be losing steam and the Federal Reserve
will soon begin withdrawing the massive monetary stimulus it has been
injecting into the economy since the financial crisis. Contributing to the shift out of stocks are valuations that many
investors are finding less attractive and jitters about the renewed
brinkmanship in Washington, D.C., over upcoming budget battles. To be
sure, the fund managers say they are not turning bearish on stocks.
Rather, they're deciding that a dose of defense is warranted.
Fox News:
Zero Hedge:
ValueWalk:
Business Insider:
Reuters:
- Fighting in Syria between moderate rebels, al Qaeda intensifies -U.S. Moderate Syrian rebels are
engaged in their fiercest fighting to date with al
Qaeda-affiliated fighters on Syria's northern and eastern
borders, a senior U.S. State Department official said on
Tuesday. "There is a real firefight," the official said of battles
between al Qaeda's Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and the
Free Syrian Army led by Salim Idriss, a more moderate group of rebels
trying to oust Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
- Netanyahu says Rouhani speech 'cynical', Iran buying time. Israeli Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday that Iranian President
Hassan Rouhani's U.N. address was "cynical" and Tehran was
stalling for time in order to develop nuclear arms. "It was a cynical speech full of hypocrisy," Netanyahu said
in a statement after Rouhani addressed the annual gathering of world leaders at the United Nations General Assembly.
Evening Recommendations
Keefe Bruyette:
- Raised (CME) to Outperform, target $89.
Night Trading
- Asian equity indices are -.75% to +.25% on average.
- Asia Ex-Japan Investment Grade CDS Index 151.0 +1.5 basis points.
- Asia Pacific Sovereign CDS Index 116.0 +15.75 basis points. (new series)
- NASDAQ 100 futures +.09%.
Morning Preview Links
Earnings of Note
Company/Estimate
Economic Releases
8:30 am EST
- Durable Goods Orders for August are estimated to fall -.2% versus a -7.3% decline in July.
- Durables Ex Transports for August are estimated to rise +1.0% versus a -.6% decline in July.
- Cap Goods Orders Non-defense Ex Air for August are estimated to rise +2.0% versus a -3.3% decline in July.
10:00 am EST
- New Home Sales for August are estimated to rise +1.5% versus a -1.5% decline in July.
10:30 am EST
- Bloomberg consensus estimates call for a weekly crude oil inventory decline of -1,000,000
barrels versus a -4,368,000 barrel decline the prior week. Gasoline
supplies are estimated to fall by -750,000 barrels versus a -1,627,000
barrel decline the prior week. Distillate supplies are estimated to fall
by -925,000 barrels versus a -1,079,000 barrel decline the prior week.
Finally, Refinery Utilization is estimated to fall by -.88% versus unch. the prior week.
Upcoming Splits
Other Potential Market Movers
- The Eurozone GFK Confidence report, Germany Import/Export Prices reports, 5-Year T-Note auction, weekly MBA mortgage applications report, 2Q Household Networth Change and the KBW Insurance Conference could also impact trading today.
BOTTOM LINE: Asian indices are mostly lower, weighed down by industrial and technology shares in the region. I expect US stocks to open mixed and to weaken into the afternoon, finishing modestly lower. The Portfolio is 50% net long heading into the day.
Broad Equity Market Tone:
- Advance/Decline Line: Higher
- Sector Performance: Mixed
- Market Leading Stocks: Performing In Line
Equity Investor Angst:
- Volatility(VIX) 13.90 -2.87%
- Euro/Yen Carry Return Index 138.80 -.19%
- Emerging Markets Currency Volatility(VXY) 9.77 +.51%
- S&P 500 Implied Correlation 48.17 -4.16%
- ISE Sentiment Index 98.0 +48.48%
- Total Put/Call .84 -15.15%
Credit Investor Angst:
- North American Investment Grade CDS Index 78.97 -1.94%
- European Financial Sector CDS Index 137.14 -1.92%
- Western Europe Sovereign Debt CDS Index 86.0 -1.15%
- Emerging Market CDS Index 273.72 +2.80%
- 2-Year Swap Spread 15.25 +.75 basis point
- TED Spread 24.0 -.5 basis point
- 3-Month EUR/USD Cross-Currency Basis Swap -3.75 +1.75 basis points
Economic Gauges:
- 3-Month T-Bill Yield .01% +1 basis point
- Yield Curve 232.0 -5 basis points
- China Import Iron Ore Spot $132.70/Metric Tonne +.23%
- Citi US Economic Surprise Index 46.20 +.3 point
- Citi Emerging Markets Economic Surprise Index 5.10 +1.5 points
- 10-Year TIPS Spread 2.20 -6 basis points
Overseas Futures:
- Nikkei Futures: Indicating +23 open in Japan
- DAX Futures: Indicating -1 open in Germany
Portfolio:
- Slightly Higher: On gains in my tech sector longs and emerging markets shorts
- Disclosed Trades: Covered some of my (IWM)/(QQQ) hedges, then added them back
- Market Exposure: 50% Net Long
Bloomberg:
- Merkel’s Cold Embrace Leaves SPD Wary of Coalition Talks.
At the end of Angela Merkel’s first term, her Social Democratic
coalition partner recorded its worst election result since World War II.
The phenomenon was repeated two days ago when the Free Democrats, the
German chancellor’s second-term ally, were bounced out of parliament for
the first time since 1949. The SPD, the second-place finishers in the Sept. 22 vote, may be
reluctant to try again, picking up what its chairman suggested yesterday
was a poisoned chalice.
- European Stocks Rise as Telecommunication Companies Climb.
European stocks advanced, following a two-day decline, as
telecommunications companies climbed, outweighing U.S. consumer
confidence and regional manufacturing reports that trailed economists’
estimates. Telecom Italia SpA gained 1.7 percent as Telefonica SA agreed
to increase its stake in the phone operator. Nokia Oyj
added 2.4 percent after a U.S. judge found that HTC Corp.
violated two of its patents. Total SA climbed 2.6 percent after
Barclays Plc raised its rating on the oil producer. Burckhardt
Compression Holding AG slid 7.3 percent after saying fiscal first-half
net income will decline from the year-earlier period. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index added 0.2 percent to 313.2 at
the close in London.
- Chinese Cities Hooked on Land Revenue Fuel Housing Costs. Chinese cities, addicted to the
money they raise by selling land to developers, are undermining
the government’s multiyear campaign to contain housing costs. Municipal residential land deals, measured by area, rose 26
percent in the first eight months of the year from the same
period in 2012, according to China Investment Securities Co. The
average price per square meter jumped 43 percent, pushing
proceeds up 80 percent to 816.5 billion yuan ($133 billion).
- Indonesia Seeks to Boost Bilateral Swaps as Rupiah Slumps. Indonesia said it will seek to
enlarge bilateral swap agreements with its north Asian neighbors
as Southeast Asia’s biggest economy battles a slumping currency. The
country plans to boost swap arrangements to almost $40
billion by signing deals with China and South Korea and
increasing an existing agreement with Japan, Industry Minister
M.S. Hidayat told reporters in Jakarta after meeting with the central
bank today. It may sign an agreement with China next month when
President Xi Jinping visits Indonesia, he said.
- Schneiderman Calls Traders With Early Data Growing Threat. Elite
investors with high-speed
trading systems who gain early access to sensitive information
are a growing threat to the integrity of U.S. financial markets, New
York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman said at a conference. Schneiderman said today at the Bloomberg Markets 50 Summit
in New York that that his office is looking at combating the
advantages won by securing early access to market-moving data.
Calling the issue “Insider Trading 2.0,” Schneiderman said
that the combination of high-speed trading and early data access
unfairly sets up a small group of investors to reap enormous
profits.
- Lennar(LEN) Quarterly Profit Beats Estimates as Prices Climb. Lennar
Corp., the third-largest U.S. homebuilder by revenue, reported a jump
in quarterly earnings that beat analyst estimates as the company sold
more homes and raised prices. Net income climbed to $120.7 million,
or 54 cents a share, in the three months through August from $87.1
million, or 40 cents, a year earlier, the Miami-based company said in a
statement today. Analysts expected Lennar to earn 45 cents, the average
of 18 estimates compiled by Bloomberg.
- Twitter Said to Lean Toward NYSE for IPO Listing. Twitter Inc., the microblogging service that plans an
initial public offering, is leaning toward listing its shares on the New
York Stock Exchange, a person with knowledge of the matter said. A
final decision hasn’t yet been made, said the person, who asked not to
be identified because the deliberations are private.
Wall Street Journal:
- Obama Sets Stage for Shift With Iran. President, in U.N. Address, Weighs In on Syria Resolution.
President Barack Obama told world leaders that an agreement with Iran
to contain its nuclear program should be achievable and offered Tehran
improved diplomatic
relations, setting the stage for heightened efforts this week to forge a
rapprochement between Washington and Tehran.
Fox News:
CNBC:
- Malls mulling security boosts after Nairobi attack. The deadly assault on a luxury Nairobi mall Saturday has sent shock
waves around the world, raising concerns about security at shopping
centers amid fears of copycat violence or other terror attacks,
according to industry officials and other experts.
Zero Hedge:
Business Insider:
New York Times:
Reuters:
Telegraph:
Der Spiegel:
- Warming Plateau? Climatologists Face Inconvenient Truth. Data shows global temperatures aren't rising the way climate
scientists have predicted. Now the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate
Change faces a problem: publicize these findings and encourage skeptics
-- or hush up the figures.
Caixin:
- Northern Chinese City Shijiazhuang's Debt Ratio at 241%. Debt
ratio of northern Chinese city of Shijiazhuang was 241% at end-June
2012, highest among all 11 prefecture-level cities in Hebei province,
citing a report by the Hebei office of the Ministry of Finance. Debt
ratios of six of Heibei's 11 prefecture-level cities were more than 100%.
Style Underperformer:
Sector Underperformers:
- 1) Coal -1.35% 2) Gold & Silver -.73% 3) Software -.40%
Stocks Falling on Unusual Volume:
- CLMT, TLK, CY, RHT, CCL, CUK, RCL, SFUN, SWI, ALDW, NSR, ATHN, UL, AEPI, CTXS, MNRO, CLMT, PTCT, SA, SRCL, FFIV, CRAY, TLK, WAG, DO and NSM
Stocks With Unusual Put Option Activity:
- 1) ESRX 2) CTL 3) AMAT 4) CCL 5) RHT
Stocks With Most Negative News Mentions:
- 1) WFC 2) BBRY 3) JCP 4) T 5) MSFT
Charts:
Style Outperformer:
Sector Outperformers:
- 1) Homebuilders +2.89% 2) Airlines +1.27% 3) Oil Tankers +1.12%
Stocks Rising on Unusual Volume:
- KNDI, RGEN, CBEY, TSU, PAM, GWAY, AMAT, DQ, BOBE, LRCX, KMX, BNNY, ABMD, TSU, CNC, TTWO, BEAT, CLDX, LEN, JNY, FB, KBH and CBST
Stocks With Unusual Call Option Activity:
- 1) ABBV 2) VRNG 3) IRM 4) CCL 5) RCL
Stocks With Most Positive News Mentions:
- 1) LMT 2) MSFT 3) NEOG 4) RGEN 5) GLD
Charts:
Evening Headlines
Bloomberg:
- Bernanke Taper Delay Clouds Kuroda Inflation Fight: Japan Credit. The
Federal Reserve’s surprise
decision to delay tapering stimulus as inflation remains subdued
suggests Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda faces an uphill battle
to stoke price increases with quantitative easing. Japan’s implied forward yield, which indicates bond investor expectations of the two-year note rate in 2015, has
fallen to the lowest since April 4 when Kuroda began
unprecedented stimulus, at 0.24 percent last week. That suggests
the market doesn’t expect inflation pressure to push up yields
for at least two years. The equivalent rate in the U.S. declined
to a month low of 1.8 percent on Sept. 18.
- Rupiah Falls to Lowest Since April 2009 as Companies Buy Dollars. Indonesia’s rupiah weakened to the lowest level since April 2009 on
speculation local companies increased dollar purchases after the
currency had its best week since November 2012. Government bonds
fell. The
rupiah advanced 0.5 percent last week as the Federal Reserve refrained
from reducing the stimulus that has spurred demand for emerging-market
assets. Indonesia’s trade shortfall surged to a record $2.3 billion in
July, weighing on the current account that has remained in deficit for a
seventh straight quarter through June. The government will release
trade data for August on Oct. 1.
- China Reforms Face Headwinds at Home and Abroad. Rapid growth has come at the expense of significant distortions in
interest rates, wages, currency and legal structures, along with
political capture of the benefits of growth. An almost inevitable result
has been a very distorted national balance sheet, marked by burgeoning
debt and decreasing ability to finance that debt. It is now clear that
China must come to terms with these distortions and reverse them, and
that this task will prove difficult.
- China’s Stocks Drop After Biggest Gain in Two Weeks; Vanke Falls.
China’s stocks fell after the benchmark index climbed the most in two
weeks yesterday. China Vanke Co. and Poly Real Estate Group Co. dropped
more than 2 percent after the China Securities Journal reported the
government is accelerating a property-tax trial expansion. Ping An Bank
Co. paced declines among lenders, losing 4.5 percent. Apple Inc.
suppliers, including GoerTek Inc., jumped after a record number of
iPhones were sold in the week-end debut. The Shanghai Composite Index slipped 0.8 percent to 2,203.25 as of 10:04 a.m. local time.
- Asia Stocks Fall as Copper to Aussie Drop; Gold Rebounds. Asian stocks dropped, dragging down
the benchmark gauge from a four-month high, as Japanese
exporters retreated on a stronger yen. Australia’s dollar
declined with copper prices, while precious metals rebounded. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index lost 0.8 percent at 11:44 a.m. in Tokyo. Japan’s Topix Index dropped 0.9 percent, the most this
month.
- Rubber Declines for Second Day as Oil Extends Losses, Yen Gains. Rubber fell for a second day as
weakening crude oil prices and a stronger yen cut its appeal. The contract for February delivery on the Tokyo Commodity
Exchange lost as much as 2.3 percent to 277.3 yen a kilogram
($2,825 a metric ton) and traded at 278.80 yen at 11:18 a.m.
- Rebar Falls as Li Says China Has Chosen Steady Monetary Policy. Steel reinforcement-bar futures
fell in Shanghai after Premier Li Keqiang said the government
has chosen steady monetary policy, damping speculation for more
economic stimulus. Rebar for delivery in January on the Shanghai Futures
Exchange fell 0.4 percent to 3,641 yuan ($595) a metric ton at
10:49 a.m. local time. Futures have lost 2.9 percent this month.
- Citigroup(C) to Cut 1,000 Jobs in Mortgage Business.
Citigroup Inc. (C), the fifth-biggest U.S. mortgage originator last
year, is cutting about 1,000 jobs in its home-lending business. The job
reductions will come in mortgage sales,
underwriting, fulfillment and default roles, primarily in Las
Vegas and Irving, Texas, the New York-based company said today
in an e-mailed statement.
- Fisher Says White House Mishandled Fed Chairman Succession. Richard Fisher, president of the
Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, said the White House botched the
nomination for Chairman Ben S. Bernanke’s successor by allowing
an unprecedented public debate over who would be the best
choice. “The White House has mishandled this terribly,” Fisher
said today in response to a question from the audience after
giving a speech in San Antonio, Texas. “This should not be a
public debate,” he said, adding that the Fed “must never be a
political instrument.”
Wall Street Journal:
- U.S. Readies Civil Suit Against J.P. Morgan on Mortgages. Flurry of Negotiations Take Place.
Justice Department officials are preparing to file a civil lawsuit
against J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. over the bank's handling of
residential mortgage-backed securities before the financial crisis,
according to people familiar
with the matter. Government lawyers had notified the bank that
they planned to file the lawsuit as early as Tuesday, but a flurry of
renewed discussions Monday could change that schedule, according to a
person familiar with the talks. Even as they prepare a civil case
against the bank, federal
prosecutors are weighing whether to bring any criminal charges stemming
from the case, according to a person familiar with the case.
- Kenya Says It Believes All Hostages Are Free. Security Forces Comb Through Upscale Mall to Search for Any Remaining Survivors, Attackers After Raid. The remaining hostages held by Islamic militants in an upscale
Nairobi mall during a three-day siege appeared to have been freed,
Kenyan officials said early on Tuesday, as security forces continued to
conduct operations in the building. The declaration came after the security forces mounted a major
assault on Monday afternoon in an effort to free the remaining people
Kenyan officials still believed to be inside. Gunfire and explosions
erupted as the operation started, accompanied by a black plume of smoke
billowing into the air.
Fox News:
- One man's ObamaCare nightmare. Andy and Amy Mangione of Louisville, Ky. and their two boys are just the
kind of people who should be helped by ObamaCare. But they recently got
a nasty surprise in the mail.
Zero Hedge:
NY Times:
- Asia at Risk as Economies Put Off the Inevitable. Economists say the Federal Reserve’s decision to keep pumping money into
the American economy is only a temporary reprieve for Asia — one that
could tempt policy makers in the region to put off the structural
changes they believe are essential to improve long-term growth prospects
across the region.
Reuters:
Telegraph:
China Daily:
- Some China Local Govts Overuse Finance Vehicles. Some local Chinese governments overused financing vehicles to borrow money for city construction and created "relatively large scale" of debt, according to an article written by Wang Baoan. China should change the model that residents can only buy properties from developers, Wang wrote.
China Securities Journal:
- China to Start New Round of Property Tax Training. China will start 2nd round of property tax training for those working in taxation system next month, signaling acceleration of property tax trial expansion, citing people familiar with the matter.
Evening Recommendations
Night Trading
- Asian equity indices are -1.0% to -.25% on average.
- Asia Ex-Japan Investment Grade CDS Index 149.50 +8.5 basis points.
- Asia Pacific Sovereign CDS Index 100.25 +2.0 basis points.
- NASDAQ 100 futures -.07%.
Morning Preview Links
Earnings of Note
Company/Estimate
Economic Releases
9:00 am EST
- The S&P/CS 20 City MoM SA for July is estimated to rise +.8% versus a +.89% gain in June.
- The House Price Index for July is estimated to rise +.8% versus a +.7% gain in June.
10:00 am EST
- The Richmond Fed Manufacturing Index for Sept. is estimated to fall to 12.0 versus 14.0 in August.
- Consumer Confidence for September is estimated to fall to 80.0 versus 81.5 in August.
Upcoming Splits
Other Potential Market Movers
- The Fed's George speaking, Fed's Pianalto speaking, weekly retail sales reports, Goldman Sachs Communacopia Conference, BofA Merrill Power/Gas Conference, (VAR) investor meeting, (PDCO) investor day, (MCO) investor day and the (INTU) investor day could also impact trading today.
BOTTOM LINE: Asian indices are mostly lower, weighed down by real estate 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 50% net long heading into the day.