Good Morning,
US stocks closed fairly “flat” overnight (DOW + 13 points)
“The S&P 500 is at what I consider to be a key resistance area in that 2,090 range, so it’s going to take some good news to push through that,” said Alan Gayle, a senior strategist at Atlanta-based RidgeWorth Investments, which has about $37 billion in assets.
“The FOMC starts its deliberations now and so it would appear at this critical positioning in the market near resistance that traders may be just waiting on the sidelines until the FOMC is done before making any real bets.”
The Fed concludes its meeting Wednesday, with investors pricing in no chance of an interest-rate increase….. The Bank of Japan’s outcome is a day later and most analysts predict Governor Haruhiko Kuroda will unveil a stimulus boost.
In the U.S., Apple Inc. has just released its result….
Apple Inc. reported its first year-over-year decline in iPhone sales Tuesday, a sign of an increasingly saturated smartphone market. Compounding the issue are signs people are upgrading their phones less frequently, a slowdown in demand in China, a broader economic decline and expectations that the new iPhone SE and Apple Watch are selling below expectations.
Looks like a miss…. Vs. estimates…
impact on our technology sector?
sure.... EPS estimates are important and the market will be watching for quarterly reports here in Oz...
In commodities news, Oil closed at the highest level in more than five months, with futures rising 3.3 percent to settle at $44.04 a barrel amid signs that, while global markets remain oversupplied, the surplus is gradually diminishing.
U.S. crude stockpiles probably expanded by 1.5 million barrels last week, according to a Bloomberg survey before an Energy Information Administration report Wednesday.
Gold has gone from the best-performing commodity in the first quarter to a metal in wait-and-see mode.
The SPI is up 7 points this morning.
By Niv Dagan
