Day Traders Diary

10/25/13

U.S. equity futures trade modestly higher. The Nasdaq futures lead with an advance of 0.8% versus fair value as shares of Amazon.com (AMZN 358.75, +26.54) contribute to the early strength. The online retail giant holds a pre-market gain of 8.0% after reporting top- and bottom-line results ahead of analyst expectations.

Reviewing overnight developments:

Asian markets ended broadly lower. Hong Kong's Hang Seng -0.6%, China's Shanghai Composite -1.5%, and Japan's Nikkei -2.8%.
In regional economic data:
Japan's national CPI rose 1.1% year-over-year (0.9% expected, 0.9% prior) while national core CPI increased an in-line 0.7% (0.8% previous). In addition, Tokyo CPI rose 0.6% year-over-year (0.5% forecast, 0.5% prior) while the Tokyo core CPI ticked up 0.3%, as expected (0.2% last). Also of note, the Corporate Services Price Index (CSPI) rose 0.7% year-over-year (0.8% expected, 0.7% prior).
South Korea's GDP rose 1.1% quarter-over-quarter (1.0% expected, 1.1% prior) while the year-over-year reading indicated growth of 3.3% (3.2% forecast, 2.3% previous).
Singaporean industrial production jumped 9.3% year-over-year (5.2% expected, 4.0% prior).
In news:
In China, the ongoing liquidity crunch manifested itself through the Shanghai Interbank Offered Rate (SHIBOR), which continued climbing with the two-week and one-month rates registering most notable increases. The two-week rate rose 98 basis points to 5.86% and the one-month rate jumped 102 basis points to 6.42%.
Major European indices trade mixed. France's CAC +0.1%, Great Britain's FTSE +0.2%, and Germany's DAX +0.3%. Elsewhere, Italy's MIB -0.8% and Spain's IBEX -0.4%.
Looking at economic data:
Eurozone M3 money supply rose 2.1% year-over-year (2.4% expected, 2.3% prior). Separately, private loans fell 1.9% year-over-year, as expected (-2.0% previous).
Germany's Ifo Business Climate slipped to 107.4 from 107.7 (108.0 forecast) as Business Expectations fell to 103.6 from 104.2 (104.5 forecast) and the Current Assessment ticked down to 111.3 from 111.4 (111.6 expected).
Great Britain's Q3 GDP grew 0.8% quarter-over-quarter while the year-over-year reading reflected growth of 1.5%, as expected. Separately, the Index of Services rose 0.6% (0.5% forecast, 0.5% last).
Italian retail sales were unchanged month-over-month (-0.2% forecast, -0.2% prior) while the year-over-year reading indicated an uptick of 0.2% (-0.8% last).
Spain's PPI ticked up 0.1% year-over-year (-0.2% forecast, -0.1% prior).
In news:
European Central Bank Executive Member Jorg Asmussen said he does not have any specific concerns with respect to exchange rates as the euro has held within its historical range. The single currency trades at a two-year high against the dollar.
In U.S. corporate news:

Express Scripts (ESRX 61.00, -2.74): -4.3% after reporting in-line earnings on above-consensus revenue.
Microsoft (MSFT 35.85, +2.13): +6.3% following better-than-expected earnings and revenue.
National Oilwell Varco (NOV 79.51, +0.38): +0.5% after beating earnings estimates by two cents.
Procter & Gamble (PG 80.49, -0.12): -0.2% following its in-line quarterly report.
UPS (UPS 96.10, +1.61): +1.7% after beating bottom-line estimates by one cent on in-line revenue.
Weyerhauser (WY 30.93, +0.63): +2.1% after beating on earnings and revenue.
Wynn Resorts (WYNN 170.00, -2.85): -1.7% despite beating on earnings and revenue.
September durable orders will be reported at 8:30 ET, the final reading of the Michigan Consumer Sentiment Survey will cross the wires at 9:55 ET, and August wholesale inventories will be announced at 10:00 ET.

All comments contained herein are for informational purposes only, and should not be considered as a solicitation to buy or sell any security. The firm does not guarantee the accuracy or completeness of the information or make any warranties regarding results from it's usage.