Day Traders Diary
7/24/14
U.S. equity futures hover near their pre-market highs amid upbeat action overseas. The S&P 500 futures trade four points above fair value.Reviewing overnight developments:
Asian markets ended mixed. Japan's Nikkei -0.3%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng +0.7%, and China's Shanghai Composite +1.3%
In economic data:
China's HSBC Manufacturing PMI jumped to 52.0 from 50.7 (consensus 51.0)
Japan's trade deficit narrowed to JPY822 billion from JPY909 billion (expected deficit of JPY643 billion) as exports fell 2.0% (expected 1.0%, previous -2.7%) and imports rose 8.4%, as expected. Separately, Manufacturing PMI slipped to 50.8 from 51.5 (expected 51.9)
Hong Kong's trade deficit widened to $43.10 billion from $42.40 billion (expected deficit of $48.50 billion)
The Reserve Bank of New Zealand hiked its key interest rate 25 basis points to 3.5%, as expected
In news:
China's Shanghai Composite outperformed the region after the HSBC Manufacturing PMI surged to an 18-month high. According to an HSBC economist, the improvement was supported by the cumulative impact of the mini-stimulus measures being deployed by Beijing.
Major European indices trade higher across the board. Great Britain's FTSE +0.1%, Germany's DAX +0.4%, and France's CAC +0.8%. Elsewhere, Italy's MIB +1.7% and Spain's IBEX +1.8%
Participants received several data points:
Eurozone Manufacturing PMI ticked up to 51.9 from 51.8 (expected 51.7), while Services PMI jumped to 54.4 from 52.8 (consensus 52.7)
Germany's Manufacturing PMI rose to 52.9 from 52.0 (expected 52.0), while Services PMI jumped to 56.6 from 54.6 (consensus 54.5)
Great Britain's Retail Sales rose 0.1% month-over-month (expected 0.3%, previous -0.5%), while the year-over-year reading increased 3.6% (consensus 3.9%, prior 3.7%). Core Retail Sales slipped 0.1% month-over-month (expected 0.3%, previous -0.5%), while the year-over-year reading jumped 4.0% (consensus 4.6%, prior 4.5%)
French Manufacturing PMI slipped to 47.6 from 48.2 (expected 48.1), while Services PMI improved to 50.4 from 48.2 (expected 48.4)
Italy's Retail Sales fell 0.7% month-over-month (consensus 0.4%, previous 0.3%), while the year-over-year reading slipped 0.5% (expected 1.0%, prior 2.7%). Separately, Consumer Confidence fell to 104.6 from 105.6 (consensus 105.0)
Spain's Unemployment Rate eased to 24.5% from 25.9% (expected 25.2%)
Among news of note:
French Prime Minister Manuel Valls discussed the regional economy once again, saying eurozone growth remained too weak, while the euro was still too strong.
In U.S. corporate news:
American Airlines (AAL 43.20, -0.13): -0.3% despite beating bottom-line estimates
AT&T (T 35.30, -0.58): -1.6% after missing earnings and revenue estimates
Caterpillar (CAT 106.40, -1.98): -1.8% beat on earnings, but missed revenue estimates and issued cautious guidance
Facebook (FB 77.51, +6.34): +8.9% after beating expectations
General Motors (GM 36.42, -0.99): -2.7% after reporting in-line results
Gilead Sciences (GILD 91.00, +0.66): +0.7% following its better than expected results
Qualcomm (QCOM 77.91, -3.69): -4.5% after its below-consensus Q4 earnings guidance overshadowed its better than expected results
United Continental (UAL 47.60, +1.60): +3.5% after beating earnings estimates and authorizing a $1 billion repurchase program
Weekly initial claims (Briefing.com consensus 308K) will be reported at 8:30 ET, while the New Home Sales report for June (consensus 475K) will cross the wires at 10:00 ET.
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