US mortgage home applications to buy and to refinanc increased last week as most borrowing costs fell in step with US bond yields tied to worries about slowing economic growth, data from the Mortgage Bankers Association showed on Wednesday. The Washington-based industry group’s seasonally adjusted index on mortgage activity rose 2.3% to 384.0 in the week […]
FLASH: President Trump’s top economic adviser offered sharp criticism of the European Central Bank’s (ECB) revival of stimulus measures to spur the EU’s economy. National Economic Council Director Larry Kudlow said that a ECB decision Thursday to extend a new round of cheap loans to the banking system wouldn’t be enough to fix the continent’s […]
$EUR FLASH: ECB will maintain current level of rates through the end of Y 2019 and launch new targeted longer-term refinancing operation (TLTRO-III) in September European Central Bank presented a huge set of monetary policy initiatives Thursday that sent economists and analysts on Twitter spinning. Below are some of their quick reactions as the EUR […]
$JMP, $GS, $USD FLASH: Jamie and ‘Goldie’ have different outlooks JPMorgan (NYSE:JPM) CEO Jamie Dimon does not agree with economic doomsayers. The boss of the largest US bank acknowledged a growing number of potential obstacles to the economy that carried his firm to record profits last year. That caution was reflected in JPMorgan Chase & […]
$BAC, $C, $JPM, $WFC,$FITB, $BKX, $SPY We do expect US bank shares to continue to outperform after better-than-expected Q-4 earnings and outlooks and their cheap stock prices finally broke a losing streak, thus leading the next leg of this historic Bull Market. The gains will be driven by management teams reiterating their ability to drive […]
US fund investors charged into high-yield corporate bonds during the latest week, shoveling $3.3-B, the most cash flowing into that market since late Y 2016, Lipper said Thursday, boosted by dovish words from Fed Chairman Powell. Underscoring investors’ appetite for some risk-taking, investors pulled $15-B net cash from US-based money market funds, according to the […]
The number of US consumers who applied for loans to buy a home and to refinance 1 rose to an 11-month high last week, signaling that the recent drop in interest rates is reviving housing activity, the Mortgage Bankers Association said in a report Wednesday. The Washington-based industry group’s seasonally adjusted gauge on mortgage applications increased 13.5% […]
Chinese Investors Sentiment is Very Weak, Conditions Abroad Have Little Influence $ALMMF, $CHL, $PTR Market sentiment is very weak. President Xi’s government is struggling to dispel such gloom and talk stock prices back up with promises of tax cuts, more bank lending and a media campaign. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index sank 30% from January […]
The Cost of Bank Consumer Loans is Falling $JPM, $C, $WFC, $BAC, $V, $MA. $GS Readers are asking the Big Q: Why when interest rates tick up are consumer loan cost ticking down? The Big A: When interest rates tick higher, consumers carrying too much debt start to default, that is the assumption, but Americans […]
The Trump Effect: Low Unemployment Makes Economy ‘as Good as it Gets’ $DIA, $SPY, $QQQ, $RUTX, $VXX Current economic conditions are “as good as it gets” for the Fed, a Key policymaker said Thursday. Looking ahead, investors will receive the Employment Situation report for August Friday, the consensus expecting an increase of 187,000 in NFPs, an […]
Student Loan Borrowers Defaults Increase New research shows more than 1-M student loan borrowers each year go into default and nearly 40% of borrowers are expected to default on their student loans by Y 2023. Outstanding education debt in the US has 3X’d over the last decade and now exceeds $1.5-T, posing a greater burden […]
The Trump Effect at Work: US Household Wealth Tops $100-T $DIA, $SPY, $QQQ, $RUTX US household wealth topped the $100-T mark for the 1st time in Q-1 of Y 2018, the Fed reported late Thursday. The Fed said the net worth of the nation’s households and nonprofits rose to $100.8-R in the 1st frame of the year, […]
US Economic Growth ‘Robust’ and On Track Strong business borrowing, rising consumer spending, plus tight labor markets indicate the US economy remains on track for continued growth, the Fed reported Wednesday, the risks of a global trade war the only outlier. In its periodic “Beige Book” summary of contacts with businesses in its 12 regional districts, the […]
Lawsuit Alleges Obama Administration Inflated Student Loans Conservative watchdog group Judicial Watch filed a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Education for records of the Obama Admin’s reported “coding error” which caused inflated College Scorecard repayment rates. “The Obama administration’s Obamacare legislation also included provisions that resulted in the federal takeover […]
US Household Debt Near Record on Student Loans US household debt hit near an all-time high in Q-4, reaching $12.58-T, as credit was more readily available for mortgage, auto and student loans, a Federal Reserve Bank of New York survey showed Thursday. Total debt was up $460-B from a year ago and is now just […]
The Key Reasons Banks Turn Down Small Business Loans Over the last several years, large banks have been reducing the amount of loans that they issue to small businesses. The WS-J reports that it may be because of, “Weak demand, tighter lending standards and high costs have put a lid on small business borrowing” following […]
Sub-prime Car Loan Delinquency Augurs Trouble for Auto Industry $F, FCAU, GM The New York Fed warns that surging delinquency rates for subprime auto loans are a “significant concern” about the real health of the car industry. “The worsening in the delinquency rate of subprime auto loans is pronounced, with a notable increase during the […]
Donald Trump Will “Trash” Obama’s No-Growth Orders $DIA, $SPY, $QQQ, $VXX The Trump Rally extends, US stocks finished higher Tuesday, with the DJIA hitting a record high close for the 4th session running as tech stocks rebounded from a post-election hammering and energy stocks were boosted by a sharp rise in Crude Oil prices. Tuesday, […]
US Long Dated Treasuries Up Signaling Rising Inflation $SPY Donald Trump’s victory in the US Presidential race is driving mutual fund managers out of dividend stocks and into the shares of financial, industrial and materials companies that benefit from rising inflation. Although inflation remains subdued by most measures, US longer-dated Treasury yields rose Thursday to […]
The “Headaches” of the Legal Marijuana Industry The legal-marijuana industry faces many challenges to doing business. Most companies in the space are frozen out of bank, cannot use credit cards for transactions, and cannot get loans, huge headaches for the industry. And marijuana is like any other commodity: when there’s a supply glut, the price […]
Vast Majority of Small Business Loan’s are Rejected by Banks No one likes to be rejected. Whether it’s a “No” from a job you interviewed for, the person you’re in love with or the bank, it hurts. And if you’re a startup or small business owner, you may be very familiar with the sting of “no” from […]
China’s Banks Sponsor Growth of ‘Green’ Economy Chinese banks offered strong credit support for the growth of the Green economy in Y 2015. The total balance of Green loans issued by China’s 21 major financial institutions rose 16.42% last year to RMB 7.01-T, according to a report released Friday by the China Banking Association. It […]
China’s Banks Not Vulnerable to Financial Crisis China’s banks are in pretty good shape and not vulnerable to a potential financial crisis despite a rapid rise of corporate debt in the country, a US expert said Wednesday. “While lending more to corporates unable to pay interest and principal on previous loans means financial risks are […]
US Consumer Spending, Residential Investment Driving a Weak Economy $DIA, $SPY, $QQQ, $VXX The demand side of the US GDP accounts shows that the nations economic engine has 6 cylinders, they are: consumer spending residential investment capital spending inventories net exports government spending. In recent Quarters, it seems like most of the US economy’s power […]
Former US President Bill Clinton Crashed the Housing Market The way to trading and business riches is simple “Buy low, Sell high.” Donald Trump has been very good at buying low and selling high, and it helps account for his success in business. Last week the Democratic front-runner, Hillary Clinton painted that a crime. While […]
Regulators Cannot Protect The World From Financial Crisis “Much of it is very bad. Much of it gives so much power to the regulators that the bankers are unable to function,” Donald Trump said Dodd-Frank regulations. Yale University Economics Professor and Nobel Laureate Robert Shiller says that no amount of regulation can really protect the […]
Elon Musk Buys His Company’s Stocks & Bonds on Credit, Pledges His Shares $TSLA, $SCTY, $GS, $MS Elon Musk is Risky Business SolarCity Corp. (NASDAQ:SATY) has tried in vain since October 2014 to lure individual (retail) investors to the solar-power business by pitching $214-M of what he dubs “solar bonds” through the company’s website. The […]
UAE Business Loan Demand Grows, Lenders Reluctant Central bank report finds improving demand in Q-1, as conditions tighten UAE businesses are demanding more loans but lenders appear less willing to supply them, according to a report from the country’s central bank. In its Q-1 report, the bank said the appetite for business credit improved from […]