Price Return Last Week
S&P 500 +0.4% S&P Mid Cap +1.8% Russell 2000 +2.5%
MSCI EAFE (0.2%) MSCI EM +0.1%
10 Yr US Treasury Rate – fell from 4.22% to 4.19%
Source: Refinitiv Eikon
Recent News
Core PCE – February: 0.3% (Reuters Poll est. 0.3%) January: 0.4%
February core inflation data was in-line with estimates while January data was revised higher 0.1%. The year-over-year increase remained the same as the previous month at 2.8%. Subsequent to the report, Fed Chair, Jerome Powell, noted that the data was “not as low as most of the good readings we got in the second half of last year, but it's definitely more along the lines of what we want to see."
Source: Thomson Reuters
Home Sales – February showed home sales increasing 9.5% compared to the previous month. The first time in over two years that home sales have increased for two consecutive months. Economists had predicted an increase of just 3.1%. Of the home purchases that took place, first-time homebuyers represented only 26%, equaling the lowest percentage ever for first-time homebuyers.
Source: The Wall Street Journal, Refinitiv Eikon
Cocoa Surge – The cost for one ton of Cocoa surpassed $9,000 for the first time ever. Concerns over supply from Ghana, the second-largest grower, and bad weather and crop disease in West Africa are contributing to the recent surge. At current levels, the price for a ton of cocoa exceeds the price for a ton of copper.
Source: Bloomberg L.P.
Poisson d’Avril – Many believe that the tradition of April Fools’ dates back to 16th century France when they changed New Year’s Day from April 1 to January 1. Those that continued to celebrate New Year’s on April 1 were called fools (“Poisson d’Avril”) and others would play tricks on them.
Source: CNN
Upcoming Events
4/1 – ISM Manufacturing PMI
4/2 – JOLTS Job Openings
4/3 – ADP National Employment, ISM Non-Manufacturing PMI, Notable Earnings
Reports: Exxon Mobil
4/5 – Jobs Report
Source: Refinitiv Eikon