DAILY INSIGHTS

Memorial Day Holiday. LPL Financial and the markets will be closed Monday, May 25, in recognition of Memorial Day. We will resume normal business hours Tuesday, May 26.

Stocks pared earlier losses and opened slightly lower. The S&P 500 index is trying to add to its 3% week-to-date gain this morning ahead of the long weekend, despite an increase in geopolitical tensions and concerns that stocks may have come too far too fast. Global markets were jittery overnight after Beijing announced plans to impose a national security law on Hong Kong. The Shanghai Composite slipped 1.9%, while stocks in Europe were slightly higher, led by Italy and Spain. Gold prices rose while oil fell. Continue reading →

Economic Blog

Leading economic indicators are signaling that the pace of economic deterioration may be slowing. As shown in the LPL Chart of the Day, the Conference Board’s Leading Economic Index (LEI), a composite of leading data series, fell 4.4% month over month in April. Continue reading →

DAILY INSIGHTS

Memorial Day Holiday. LPL Financial and the markets will be closed Monday, May 25, in recognition of Memorial Day. We will resume normal business hours Tuesday, May 26.

Equities head lower. US stocks opened lower after Wednesday’s rally, following Asian and European market sell-offs. Initial weekly jobless claims came in at 2.4 million, for a total of 39 million claims since mid-March, once again showing how fragile the state of the economy is, even though states are slowly starting to open up. Continue reading →

Economic Blog

Most economic charts we look at in the LPL Research Department look alike. Many segments of the US economy came to an abrupt halt in March when the lockdowns and business closures began, making most economic charts covering March and April look like a steep drop on a roller coaster. Continue reading →

DAILY INSIGHTS

Memorial Day Holiday. LPL Financial and the markets will be closed Monday, May 25, in recognition of Memorial Day. We will resume normal business hours Tuesday, May 26.

Stocks trend higher. Stocks opened higher after a weak showing on Tuesday, given the sobering news that vaccine experts were unable to use Monday’s data to draw firm conclusions on the effectiveness of Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine. Continue reading →

Market Blog

The incredible rally off the March 23 lows continues for equities, with the S&P 500 Index now up more than 32% in 40 trading days. As impressive as the rally has been, we do have some near-term concerns, as we discussed in Downside Risk Remains. Higher valuations, US-/China relations, weakening technicals, and the historically troublesome summer months all could play a part in potential weakness after the record run. Continue reading →

Economic Blog

There’re plenty of people who think negative interest rates are a good policy. But we don’t really think so at the Federal Reserve. And I think it’s an area of real uncertainty in the central banking world.

-Fed Chair Jerome Powell, 60 Minutes interview, 5/13/20 Continue reading →

DAILY INSIGHTS

Digesting Monday’s rally. Stocks opened slightly lower this morning after yesterday’s solid gains amid optimism surrounding vaccine development and progress toward reopening the economy. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell’s 60 Minutes interview also helped propel stocks to a strong start to the week by reaffirming the central bank’s commitment and ability to further aid in the economic recovery. Asian equities tracked Monday’s gains in the United States and closed solidly higher, though European markets traded lower midday along with the United States. Continue reading →

Economic Blog

As the economic data continues to pile in, much of it is showing some of the largest drops ever. Not surprisingly, small businesses are also suffering, as the NFIB Small Business Survey for April dropped significantly for the second consecutive month, but there were some silver linings. For starters, it wasn’t anywhere near as low as it was during the financial crisis; also, it came in better than what economists expected and didn’t drop as much as it did the previous month. Continue reading →

DAILY INSIGHTS

Stocks getting back a big chunk. Stocks opened sharply higher in the United States, while European stocks were up even more in midday trading, and most Asian markets ended higher. Tensions between Beijing and Washington continued to ratchet higher over the weekend and will remain in focus for markets this week. Meanwhile, vaccine developments and Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s assertion that the central bank has a lot of ammunition left are also lifting sentiment this morning. Continue reading →