Stocks Higher into Afternoon on Diminishing Russia/Ukraine Tension Hopes, Dollar Weakness, Short-Covering, Tech/Alt Energy Sector Strength

Broad Equity Market Tone:

• Advance/Decline Line:  Substantially Higher
  

• Sector Performance: Almost Every Sector Rising
  

• Volume:  Around Average

• Market Leading Stocks: Outperforming
  

Equity Investor Angst:

• Volatility(VIX) 25.8 -8.9%
• Bloomberg Global Risk On/Risk Off Index 3,458.0 +186.0 points

• Euro/Yen Carry Return Index 135.31 +.55%

• Emerging Markets Currency Volatility(VXY) 9.3 -2.4%

• CBOE S&P 500 Implied Correlation Index 43.1 -6.2% 

• ISE Sentiment Index 117.0 +37.0 points
  

• Total Put/Call 1.07 -4.5%

• NYSE Arms 1.08 unch.

Credit Investor Angst:

• North American Investment Grade CDS Index 66.19 -2.0%
  

• US Energy High-Yield OAS 421.14 -.62%

• European Financial Sector CDS Index 74.66 -2.4%

• Italian/German 10Y Yld Spread 165.0 -4.0 basis points
  

• Asia Ex-Japan Investment Grade CDS Index 99.26 -.4%
  

• Emerging Market CDS Index 217.28 -2.8%
  

• China Corp. High-Yield Bond USD ETF(KHYB) 31.34 -.33% 
• Ukraine Sovereign Debt Credit Default Swap 847.20 -12.5%
  

• 2-Year Swap Spread 20.0 unch.
  

• TED Spread 11.0 -5.75 basis points
  

• 3-Month EUR/USD Cross-Currency Basis Swap -13.75 +1.25 basis points
  
• MBS  5/10 Treasury Spread  98.25 +.75 basis point
  
• iShares CMBS ETF 51.20 -.06%
  

Economic Gauges:

• Bloomberg Emerging Markets Currency Index 54.61 +.39%
• 3-Month T-Bill Yield .39% +3.0 basis points
  

• Yield Curve 41.75 -.5 basis point
  

• China Iron Ore Spot 136.5 USD/Metric Tonne -4.1%

• Citi US Economic Surprise Index -7.1 -3.9 points

• Citi Eurozone Economic Surprise Index 44.0 -1.5 points
  

• Citi Emerging Markets Economic Surprise Index 32.9 +.5 point

• 10-Year TIPS Spread 2.5 -1.0 basis point
  
• 0.0%(unch.) chance of no change at May 4th FOMC meeting, 0.0%(unch.) chance of no change at June 15th meeting

US Covid-19:

• 359 new infections/100K people(last 7 days total). 21.0%(-2.0 percentage points) of 1/14 peak -44/100K people from prior report.
  
• New Covid-19 patient hospital admissions per 100K population -55.1%(unch.) from peak 7-day avg. of 1/9/21 - 1/15/22
  

Overseas Futures:

• Nikkei 225 Futures: Indicating +535 open in Japan 
• China A50 Futures: Indicating +72 open in China

• DAX Futures: Indicating -5 open in Germany

Portfolio:

• Slightly Higher: On gains in my tech/industrial/medical/consumer discretionary sector longs
  

• Disclosed Trades:  Covered some of my (IWM)/(QQQ) hedges
  

• Market Exposure:  Moved to 50% Net Long