The year started on a high note with positive data from China, Europe, the United States, and other emerging markets (EM). During the week, we saw an increase in trading volumes as investors came back from the long holiday. The equities, commodities, and forex markets saw major movements during the week. In the United States, the major indices hit new records with the most significant one being the Dow, which hit the 25,000 milestone. The surge was attributed to the tax reform, which Trump signed into law a few days before Christmas. It was also attributed to positive data from the U.S. On Thursday, ADP released the non-farm employment change...
MORRISVILLE, N.C., Jan. 05, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Novan, Inc. (“the Company” or “Novan”) (Nasdaq:NOVN) today announced the pricing of the Company’s underwritten offering of 10 million shares of its common stock and accompanying warrants to purchase up to 10 million shares of common stock with an exercise price of $4.66. The shares and warrants are being sold at a public offering price of $3.80 per share and accompanying warrant. The gross proceeds from this offering to Novan are expected to be approximately $38.0 million, before deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and other estimated offering...
ECRI’s WLI Growth Index which forecasts economic growth six months forward remains in expansion. ECRI released their inflation index this week and is shown below. Analyst Opinion of the trends of the weekly leading indices This index is indicating modest growth six months from today – but the rate of growth would be little changed from what we see today. Here is this week’s update on ECRI’s Weekly Leading Index (note – a positive number indicates growth): Coincident Index: ECRI produces a monthly coincident index – a positive number shows economic expansion. The November index value (issued in December) sho...
When I was a graduate student in the late 1960s, I had an opportunity to hear a lecture by the legendary Milton Friedman who explained the difference between easy and tight monetary policy. He argued that low-interest rates are a sign of a tight monetary policy, rather than the conventional thinking that low rates mean the central banks are easing up.At that time, the U.S. economy was growing around 5% in real terms, inflation was hovering around 2% and, most importantly, bank credit was expanding sufficiently to support economic expansion. At the time, however, I did not grasp the full import of Friedman’s argument. Fast forward to the m...
U.S. services sector expanded at the weakest pace in four months in December, the Institute for Supply Management reported Friday. The services index declined from 57.4 to 55.9 in December, falling below 57.6 predicted by most economists. A reading above 50 indicates expansion. Also, the gauge of new orders fell from 58.7 to 54.3, making it the lowest number since August 2016. However, employment index showed job creation climbed to 56.3 from 55.3, suggesting that the sector is still creating jobs. The surprise decline is in contrast to the manufacturing data released on Wednesday that showed the sector expanded at the fastest pace in three...
The Institute of Supply Management (ISM) has now released the December Non-Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI), also known as the ISM Services PMI. The headline Composite Index is at 55.9 percent, down 1.5 from 57.4 last month. Today’s number came in below the Investing.com forecast of 57.8 percent. Here is the report summary: “The NMI® registered 55.9 percent, which is 1.5 percentage points lower than the November reading of 57.4 percent. This represents continued growth in the non-manufacturing sector at a slower rate. The Non-Manufacturing Business Activity Index decreased to 57.3 percent, 4.1 percentage po...
Craig Hemke, Editor at TFMetalsReport.com joins me today to look at the similarities and differences for gold in 2018 vs last year. We discuss the USD and inflation in terms of how they impact the gold market. (Audio length 00:11:39)...
Ok, here comes payrolls. As usual, the focus will be on average hourly earnings, which have (generally speaking) dictated trading after the last six employment reports. The story is the same as it ever was against a backdrop of (basically) full employment but still subdued inflation: the market is looking for signs that wage growth is picking up while the actual headline payrolls print has been relegated to also-ran status. Here’s what everyone was expecting: Change in Nonfarm Payrolls est. 190k (prior 228k) Change in Private Payrolls est. 192k (prior 221k) Change in Manufact. Payrolls est. 18k (prior 31k) Unemployment Rate est. 4.1% (prior...
The first trading days of 2018 are confirming signs of renewed investor interest in the precious metals sector after a long period of malaise. Gold and silver markets entered the year with some stealth momentum after quietly posting gains late in 2017. Gold finished the year above $1,300/oz. – its best yearly close since 2012. Over the past five years, the yellow metal has been basing out in a range between $1,050 and $1,400. A push above $1,400 later this year would therefore be significant. It would get momentum traders and mainstream financial reporters to take notice. The alternative investing world was enthralled by Bitcoin in 2017. Wh...
This report highlights last month’s top performers and features a stock from the current portfolio. Recap from November’s Picks Our Dividend Growth Stocks Model Portfolio outperformed the S&P 500 in November. The Model Portfolio rose 2.0% on a price return basis and rose 2.3% on a total return basis. The S&P 500 rose 1.7% on both a price and total return basis. The portfolio’s best performing stock was Discover Financial Services (DFS), which was up 12%. Overall, 17 out of the 30 Dividend Growth Stocks outperformed the S&P last month, and 23 had positive returns. The long-term success of our model portfolio strategies h...