Stimulus always works because every uptick and improvement is attributed to it no matter how small and ultimately inconsequential. That has been the history of the past four years now, as the slowdown has not come at a steady pace. Nothing goes in a straight line except mainstream extrapolations of every positive variation. And when…
Markets enjoyed a month of strong gains following the resurgence in oil prices and reassurances from the Fed about rate hikes. The rising possibility of a production freeze and weaker-than-expected increases in crude inventories were among the factors fueling the rise in prices. Additionally, an earlier reluctant Iran has shown indications of joining talks on…
Every time you think that the embarrassment known as Valeant Pharmaceuticals International, Inc. (VRX) could not worsen, the company proves you wrong. Just two weeks after announcing the return of CEO J. Michael Pearson after a well-deserved sick leave and the withdrawal of 2016 earnings guidance, VRX announced new guidance and earnings that sent its…
A week ago we had an NFTRH update (now public) about the Healthcare sector. With a nod to this morning’s Market Psych 101 article, I was at a point of having to admit that the ‘terminal bounce’ scenario may be a faulty one and I saw some interesting things in the beaten down Healthcare sector that looked interesting….
So far, so good; let’s just hope this trend stays intact!
123RF After a long wait, Facebook (NASDAQ:FB) is shipping its Oculus Rift Virtual Reality (VR) headset. The Oculus Rift deliveries began on March 28, shipping to more than 20 countries and regions. “This is a historic moment,” says the announcement. “Soon people all over the world will be experiencing fully-immersive VR in their own homes.” VR technology…
Tadas continues with the financial blogger wisdom series today asking: Think back to the last edition of this series a couple of years ago. Have you changed your mind about something (big or small) over that time period? If so, what and why? My answer alluded to a rather substantial change of opinion: Ben Bernanke would beat Paul Krugman in…
With US crude production starting to drop, the lagged plunge in oil rig counts appears to be having some effect. Baker Hughes reports that the number of US oil rigs dropped 10 to 362 (14th weekly drop of last 15), the lowest since Nov 2009. The total rig count tumbled 14 to 450, fresh record 41-year lows….
China’s manufacturing and non-manufacturing PMI data for January and February 2016 indicated freefall in economic activity and global financial markets were under stress at the beginning of the year. However, PMI data for March 2016 serves as a breather for policymakers and investors globally. While several concerns sustain for China’s economy (swelling debt and potential banking…
The headlines say construction spending declined – and below expectations. The backward revisions make this series very wacky – but the rolling averages again improved. Econintersect analysis: Growth acceleration 0.3 % month-over-month and Up 11.4 % year-over-year. Inflation adjusted construction spending up 10.4 % year-over-year. 3 month rolling average is 10.5 % above the rolling average one year ago, and up 0.6 % month-over-month….
