(Bloomberg) — The world’s biggest bond market got hit as a solid retail sales report had traders trimming their bets on Federal Reserve rate cuts this year.
Most Read from Bloomberg
Treasury yields climbed as the figures fanned doubts over how quickly the central bank will ease policy. Swap contracts priced in a total of 41 basis points of easing over the November and December meetings. An advance in equities waned after the S&P 500 hit fresh all-time highs. Netflix Inc. dropped ahead of its earnings report. Nvidia Corp. rallied after a bullish outlook from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.
US retail sales strengthened in September by more than forecast in a broad advance, illustrating resilient consumer spending that continues to power the economy. The data followed a blowout jobs report and hotter-than-estimated consumer inflation figures released earlier this month that only reinforced the view the economy is nowhere near a recession.
“There’s a narrow path toward a Fed pause in November, but it would likely require every notable economic report between now and then indicating a stronger-than-assumed US economy,” said Matthew Weller at Forex.com and City Index. “Regardless of what the Fed does in November though, the projected path for interest rates looking out into 2025 and beyond is higher than it’s been in weeks.”
The S&P 500 was little changed. The Nasdaq 100 climbed 0.3%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.3%.
Treasury 10-year yields advanced nine basis points to 4.10%. The euro fell as traders added to bets the European Central Bank will need a bumper rate cut in December. The yen slid to touch the key psychological level of 150 per dollar, bringing the risk of intervention by Japan back into focus.
West Texas Intermediate crude rose 0.5% to $70.76 a barrel
“This morning’s data highlight undeniable strength across the economy,” said Ellen Zentner at Morgan Stanley Wealth Management. “Strong data will encourage some pushback from Fed participants to cutting again in November, but Chair Jerome Powell is unlikely to be swayed from forging ahead with steady, quarter-point moves.”
Jeff Roach at LPL Research says strong consumer spending in September suggests economic growth in the previous quarter was solidly above trend. Looking ahead, investors need to monitor any signs that the unemployed are finding it more difficult to earn a paycheck.
“Retail sales came in well above expectations and continue to defy the weak economy thesis,” said Quincy Krosby at LPL Financial. “The implications for monetary policy center on whether the Fed worries that the renewed strength in the economy fuels an uptick in inflation, although expectations remain that there will be a 25 basis-point cut at the next meeting.”
A string of stronger-than-estimated data points sent the US version of Citigroup’s Economic Surprise Index to the highest since April. The gauge measures the difference between actual releases and analyst expectations.
To Bret Kenwell at eToro, if the data continues to come in strong, it could force investors to lower their expectations of Fed rate cuts going forward.
“While rate cuts do matter for the market, they’re not the only thing that matters. Consider how well the market has done this year despite wild fluctuations in interest rate expectations, as earnings and the economy have powered stocks higher,” he noted. “So long as these pillars remain in place, it should bode well for equities.”
While US stocks are hovering near a record, at least one group of investors — sytematic funds — is reducing its equity exposure amid rising price swings. But if history is any guide, the trend will reverse after the election.
The CBOE Volatility Index, or the VIX, is trading near 20, up from its average reading of 15 this year through September. That’s created selling pressure for rules-based systematic funds that typically take cues from the market direction.
Historically, price swings tend to rise leading up to the US Presidential Election as political uncertainty gets on traders’ nerves, before subsiding shortly after, says Tanvir Sandhu, Bloomberg Intelligence’s chief global derivatives strategist.
Corporate Highlights:
-
Travelers Cos.’s net income exceeded analyst estimates in the third quarter, even as the firm posted a larger-than-anticipated catastrophe loss driven by the damage caused by Hurricane Helene.
-
Allstate Corp. posted $630 million in catastrophe losses in September related to Hurricane Helene.
-
Elevance Health Inc. tumbled after the insurer cut its annual outlook, signaling wider problems in the sector that sent rival insurers’ shares down.
-
Amazon.com Inc.’s Amazon Web Services, the world’s biggest cloud-computing provider, said that new systems running Nvidia Corp.’s Blackwell chips probably won’t be online until early next year, a later timeline than originally anticipated.
-
Boeing Co. filed to sell as much as $25 billion of equity and bonds this week, but the planemaker is still awaiting what is typically immediate clearance from regulators, a move that could take days or even weeks and inserts another layer of uncertainty into the process.
-
CSX Corp. received a subpoena from the US Securities and Exchange Commission focused on previously disclosed accounting errors and certain non-financial performance metrics.
-
The US Federal Trade Commission is investigating tractor giant Deere & Co. over whether its agricultural equipment repair practices violate antitrust or consumer protection laws.
-
Expedia Group Inc. rallied after the Financial Times reported that Uber Technologies Inc. explored a possible bid for the online travel-booking company.
-
Blackstone Inc. posted an increase in third-quarter profit as its credit arm was boosted by an influx of investor cash and became the firm’s biggest business by assets.
Key events this week:
-
China GDP, Friday
-
US housing starts, Friday
-
Fed’s Christopher Waller, Neel Kashkari speak, Friday
Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
-
The S&P 500 was little changed as of 2:19 p.m. New York time
-
The Nasdaq 100 rose 0.3%
-
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.3%
-
The MSCI World Index rose 0.1%
-
Bloomberg Magnificent 7 Total Return Index rose 0.1%
-
The Russell 2000 Index fell 0.4%
Currencies
-
The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose 0.1%
-
The euro fell 0.3% to $1.0825
-
The British pound rose 0.1% to $1.3008
-
The Japanese yen fell 0.4% to 150.23 per dollar
Cryptocurrencies
-
Bitcoin fell 1.2% to $66,818.26
-
Ether fell 1.4% to $2,580.78
Bonds
-
The yield on 10-year Treasuries advanced nine basis points to 4.10%
-
Germany’s 10-year yield advanced two basis points to 2.21%
-
Britain’s 10-year yield advanced two basis points to 4.09%
Commodities
-
West Texas Intermediate crude rose 0.5% to $70.76 a barrel
-
Spot gold rose 0.7% to $2,691.65 an ounce
This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.
Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek
©2024 Bloomberg L.P.
No Comment! Be the first one.