Tag: stock market

China’s central bank on Monday cut the reserve-ratio requirement for banks by 0.5 percentage points, according to media reports. The ratio refers to the amount of cash China’s lenders must keep as reserves. Global markets came under pressure on Monday after the central bank guided the yuan lower for a fifth straight session. Investors are concerned that a weaker yuan is a major tool in China’s arsenal to help combat an economic slowdown, even after officials gathered at the Group of 20 meeting over the weekend tried to reassure markets to the contrary. The announcement to ease the reserve-ratio requirement came after the close of markets in China, which ended with a 2.9% loss for the Shanghai Composite Index . U.S. stock futures pointed to opening losses.

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From:: Stock Market News

U.S. stock futures fell sharply on Monday, tracking losses out of China where the Shanghai Composite slid over 4%. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures fell 109 points, or 0.7%, to 16,492, while S&P 500 futures dropped 13.7 points, or 0.7%, to 1,929. Nasdaq 100 futures slid 40.5 points, or 1%, to 4,189.25. The last trading day of the year was set to end on a sour note in China after the central bank guided the yuan to its lowest level in three weeks. That’s as officials in China spent the weekend G-2- meeting trying to reassure investors that their strategy does not rely on a weaker currency. Investors flocked to the yen as stock markets weakened around the globe. The dollar slid to ¥112.82 from ¥113.94 late Friday in New York. U.S. oil prices were tipping slightly lower.

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Space X’s latest attempt to land its reusable rocket on an offshore platform was scrubbed Sunday evening, seconds into the launch sequence. It was the third cancelled launch of the Falcon 9 rocket in the past week. Three previous attempts over the past 14 months to successfully land the rocket at sea have failed, and this mission has low expectations due to the rocket’s heavy payload, which will use up more fuel for liftoff, leaving less for landing maneuvers.

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From:: Stock Market News

U.S. stocks closed slightly lower Friday, but logged a second straight weekly gain as oil prices stabilized. The S&P 500 finished 3,68 points, or 0.2%, lower at 1,948.01. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 57.52 points, or 0.3%, lower at 16,639.83. The Nasdaq Composite closed 8.27 points, or 0.2%, higher at 4,590.47.

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Oil futures turned lower late Friday, but still finished the week higher for the second time in a row as the market continued to mull the likelihood of a slowdown in global production. West Texas Intermediate crude “ran into some resistance technically” and pulled back, said Colin Cieszynski, chief market strategist at CMC Markets. Prices also likely saw some “profit-taking ahead of the weekend just like we’ve been seeing in the Dow today.” April West Texas Intermediate crude fell 29 cents, or 0.9%, to settle at $32.78 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It gained more than 3% for the week.

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From:: Stock Market News

Oil futures turned lower late Friday, but still finished the week higher for the second time in a row as the market continued to mull the likelihood of a slowdown in global production. West Texas Intermediate crude “ran into some resistance technically” and pulled back, said Colin Cieszynski, chief market strategist at CMC Markets. Prices also likely saw some “profit-taking ahead of the weekend just like we’ve been seeing in the Dow today.” April West Texas Intermediate crude fell 29 cents, or 0.9%, to settle at $32.78 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It gained more than 3% for the week.

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Southwestern Energy Co.’s stock tumbled 19% in active afternoon trade Friday, as oil and gas company’s 2016 operational outlook prompted analyst Jonathan Wolff at Jefferies to swing to bearish from bullish. Wolff slashed to stock’s rating to underperform, after being at buy for the last year. He cut his stock price target to $4, which is 27% below current levels, from $11, which was 62% above Thursday’s closing price of $6.77. The company provided late Thursday a 2016 production outlook that Wolff said was well below expectations, and said it currently had no rigs running. Wolff said financial leverage could become a concern, given Southwestern’s current cash flow position relative to its high debt burden. “Clearly, we were too optimistic about [Southwestern’s] ability to navigate weak macro conditions,” Wolff wrote in a note to clients. Wolff had kept his buy rating since Feb. 2, 2015 despite the stock tumbling 74% through Thursday’s close, and despite the company announcing in January it would lay off about 45% of its workforce. “Recent staff reductions may have come too late,” Wolff wrote, “given the now urgent need to address lofty debt levels rather than on focusing on maintaining the asset base.”

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From:: Stock Market News

Gold futures settled sharply lower on Friday, making their gains for the week disappear, amid pressure from a stronger U.S. dollar as well as recent gains in oil prices. April gold fell $18.40, or 1.5%, to settle at $1,220.40 an ounce. For the week, prices were down roughly 0.8%.

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From:: Stock Market News

Oil prices held onto their gains after data Friday from Baker Hughes showed that the number of active U.S. oil-drilling rigs fell for a tenth week in a row. It was down by 13 to 400 as of Friday. The total active U.S. rig count, which includes natural-gas rigs, was down 12 at 502. Compared to last year, the total U.S. rig count has fallen by 765, with oil rigs down by 586. April crude was at $33.42 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, up 35 cents, or 1.1%. It was trading at $33.47 before the data.

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Chris Christie endorsed fellow Republican Donald Trump for president on Friday, giving the New York billionaire one of his highest-profile endorsements yet. Christie said Trump is the best person to beat Hillary Clinton, who is leading polls for the Democratic nomination. Christie, the governor of New Jersey, ended his own bid for the presidency earlier this campaign season.

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From:: Stock Market News