Stocks Higher into Final Hour on Lower Long-Term Rates, Diminishing Global Virus Lockdown/Mandate Fears, Short-Covering, Airline/Gambling Sector Strength

Broad Equity Market Tone:

• Advance/Decline Line:  Substantially Higher
  

• Sector Performance: Every Sector Rising
  

• Volume:  Around Average

• Market Leading Stocks: Outperforming
  

Equity Investor Angst:

• Volatility(VIX) 20.2 -6.0%
• Bloomberg Global Risk On/Risk Off Index 3,914.0 +12.0 points

• Euro/Yen Carry Return Index 135.95 +.08%

• Emerging Markets Currency Volatility(VXY) 8.93 -1.5%

• CBOE S&P 500 Implied Correlation Index 36.0 -4.3% 

• ISE Sentiment Index 128.0  +5.0 points
  

• Total Put/Call .90 -8.2%

• NYSE Arms .66 -14.3%

Credit Investor Angst:

• North American Investment Grade CDS Index 61.33 -2.7%
  

• US Energy High-Yield OAS 398.17 -1.33%

• European Financial Sector CDS Index 71.27 -1.5%

• Italian/German 10Y Yld Spread 154.0 -4.0 basis points
  

• Asia Ex-Japan Investment Grade CDS Index 94.8 -2.3%
  

• Emerging Market CDS Index 206.75 -2.9%
  

• China Corp. High-Yield Bond USD ETF(KHYB) 31.44 +.29% 
• Ukraine Sovereign Debt Credit Default Swap 737.96 -3.3%
  

• 2-Year Swap Spread 17.5 -.25 basis point
  

• TED Spread 9.0 +.25 basis point
  

• 3-Month EUR/USD Cross-Currency Basis Swap -11.5 +.5 basis point
  
• MBS  5/10 Treasury Spread  91.0 +2.5 basis points
  
• IHS Markit CMBX BBB- 6 75.0 unch.
  

Economic Gauges:

• Bloomberg Emerging Markets Currency Index 54.72 +.47%
• 3-Month T-Bill Yield .27% +2.0 basis points
  

• Yield Curve 63.0 -.25 basis point
  

• China Iron Ore Spot 148.0 USD/Metric Tonne +.2%

• Citi US Economic Surprise Index -6.5 +.8 point

• Citi Eurozone Economic Surprise Index 48.3 -1.7 points
  

• Citi Emerging Markets Economic Surprise Index 29.3 +.3 point

• 10-Year TIPS Spread 2.44 unch.
  
• 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:

• 535 new infections/100K people(last 7 days total). 31.0%(-1.0 percentage point) of 1/14 peak -6/100K people from prior report.
  
• New Covid-19 patient hospital admissions per 100K population -41.3%(-5.8 percentage points) from peak 7-day avg. of 1/9/21 - 1/15/22
  

Overseas Futures:

• Nikkei 225 Futures: Indicating +190 open in Japan 
• China A50 Futures: Indicating +70 open in China

• DAX Futures: Indicating +35 open in Germany

Portfolio:

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

• Disclosed Trades:  None
  

• Market Exposure:  75% Net Long