Advance estimates of retail and food services sales in the United States, adjusted for seasonal variation and holiday and trading-day differences but not for price changes, rose by 9.8% from the previous month to reach $619.1 billion, way above analysts’ expectations, the Census Bureau’s report revealed on Thursday. Total sales for the period between starting with January throughout March went up by 14.3% in comparison to the same period the previous year. Retail trade sales increased by 9.4% on a monthly level and by a staggering 26.9% on an annual basis. Nick Note: i have NEVER EVER seen numbers this hot: This market is hotter then Becky in her leopard skin thong thing drinking Champaign in my hot tub…..
US stocks rose on Thursday following blockbuster earnings results from three large banks.
Coinbase made its splash on the Nasdaq, closing its first day of trading at a valuation of $86 billion.
Fed Chair Powell said the central bank will scale back bond purchases before lifting interest rates
US stocks edged higher on Thursday after three of the largest US banks beat analyst expectations with their first-quarter results, and Coinbase began trading at a valuation of more than $100 billion. The crypto exchange’s shares closed 14% lower at $328.28 per share on Wednesday, giving it a valuation of $86 billion on a fully diluted basis. Futures on the Dow Jones, S&P 500, and Nasdaq rose between 0.3% and 0.6%, suggesting a higher open for US indices later in the day. JPMorgan reported a 25% jump in trading revenue even as analysts expected lower volumes across the market, with an overall revenue of $33 billion for the quarter. Revenue estimates were $30.4 billion. Goldman Sachs too posted a profitable quarter on the back of strong trading and deal-making. Wells Fargo’s earnings topped estimates as its quarterly net income rose to $4.7 billion, helped by a larger than expected release of loan loss reserves. Fed Chairman Jerome Powell reiterated on Wednesday the central bank won’t taper its emergency asset purchases until it sees progress on its goals of above 2% inflation and maximum employment. Powell disclosed he hasn’t had conversations on policy with President Joe Biden – a sharp contrast from how former President Donald Trump frequently urged the Fed to lower interest rates and critiqued its independence. Elsewhere in Europe, ECB President Lagarde said at a Reuters event the euro zone economy is still standing on “two crutches” of monetary and fiscal stimulus, and they shouldn’t be removed until full recovery. Members of the ECB are scheduled to meet next week for the first time since they increased the pace of the Pandemic Emergency Purchase Programme to decelerate the surge in bond yields. Nick Note: What you are seeing here is a new kind of Animal. This rally is something very new. A war time economy opening back up that does not have to rebuild. You literally flick on the light switch, call back your employees and you are dinning again, flying again or screwing your fuck buddy in the sand. So that means the algo guys and momentum players are not understanding how Hot the economy really is. the old valuation models don’t apply. They are afraid of this rally and are holding back. Their econometric models are flashing caution the market is too hot. When in reality the stock market is underestimating the coming profits or the speed those profits will show up on the balance sheets…… All i can Say when they figure it out and rush in we will sell them some!
(RTTNews) – Bank of America Corporation (BAC) released a profit for its first quarter that advanced from last year. The company’s profit totaled $7.56 billion, or $0.86 per share. This compares with $3.54 billion, or $0.40 per share, in last year’s first quarter. Analysts had expected the company to earn $0.66 per share, according to figures compiled by Thomson Reuters. Analysts’ estimates typically exclude special items. The company’s revenue for the quarter rose 0.2% to $22.82 billion from $22.77 billion last year. Bank of America Corporation earnings at a glance:
Earnings (Q1): $7.56 Bln. vs. $3.54 Bln. last year. -EPS (Q1): $0.86 vs. $0.40 last year. -Analysts Estimate: $0.66 -Revenue (Q1): $22.82 Bln vs. $22.77 Bln last year.
Nick Note: WOW this is some hot shit… A star is born you will be seeing a red HOT economy and it WILL give us a rally in stocks like we have never seen before:
According to the study, published in the journal Antiviral Research, the drug, Ivermectin, stopped the virus, SARS-CoV-2, from growing in cell culture within 48 hours. Researchers have found that an anti-parasitic drug already available around the world can kill the novel coronavirus grown in cell cultures within 48 hours, an advance that may lead to the development and trial of a new clinical therapy for COVID-19. According to the study, published in the journal Antiviral Research, the drug, Ivermectin, stopped the virus, SARS-CoV-2, from growing in cell culture within 48 hours.
“We found that even a single dose could essentially remove all viral RNA by 48 hours and that even at 24 hours there was a really significant reduction in it,” said study co-author Kylie Wagstaff from Monash University in Australia.
The scientists said Ivermectin is an approved anti-parasitic drug that has also been shown to be effective in vitro against a broad range of viruses including HIV, Dengue, Influenza and Zika virus. However, Wagstaff cautioned that the tests conducted in the study were in vitro and that trials needed to be carried out in people. “Ivermectin is very widely used and seen as a safe drug. We need to figure out now whether the dosage you can use it at in humans will be effective – that’s the next step,” Wagstaff said. “In times when we’re having a global pandemic and there isn’t an approved treatment, if we had a compound that was already available around the world then that might help people sooner,” she said. Although the mechanism by which Ivermectin works on the virus is not known, the scientists said it is likely, based on its action in other viruses, that it works to stop the virus ‘dampening down’ the host cells’ ability to clear it. “As the virologist who was part of the team who were first to isolate and share SARS-COV2 outside of China in January 2020, I am excited about the prospect of Ivermectin being used as a potential drug against COVID-19,” said Leon Caly, study co-author from the Royal Melbourne Hospital in Australia. The scientists further cautioned that the use of Ivermectin to combat COVID-19 would depend on the results of future pre-clinical testing and ultimately clinical trials Nick Note: This is an amazing story. It should be in your bag of tricks… See PDF of the study below…
(Ruters) – Wall Street indexes closed mixed on Wednesday, with the Nasdaq Composite and S&P 500 falling despite another record intraday high for the latter and big banks’ stellar results on the first day of earnings season. Shares of Goldman Sachs Group Inc and Wells Fargo & Co rose 2.3% and 5.5% respectively on bumper first-quarter profits. Goldman capitalized on record levels of global dealmaking activity, and Wells reduced bad loan provisions and got a grip on costs tied to its sales practices scandal. JPMorgan Chase & Co’s shares fell 1.9% despite the largest U.S. bank’s earnings jumping almost 400%, as it released more than $5 billion in reserves to cover coronavirus-driven loan defaults. “The bank earnings were strong, but the market expected them to be strong,” said Christopher Grisanti, chief equity strategist at MAI Capital Management. “So the question becomes how do the bank stocks rise more from here. That’s not clear. They have had a nice ride. I think there will be other places to make money more easily in the future.” Despite bumper trading and investment-banking revenue, lending by both JP Morgan and Wells Fargo fell from a year ago. Investors will be watching this metric carefully in the upcoming earnings of smaller banks, which are more focused on traditional lending and deposit-taking. The KBW Regional Banking Index has outperformed the KBW Bank Index year to date, although the latter – which represents 24 of the largest U.S. banks – has beaten the index of smaller institutions over the last month. “Financials have done well for a while, so we’re happy with that now, but will we reach a point of diminishing returns in that sector? I don’t know,” said Drew Horter, president and chief investment officer of Tactical Fund Advisors in Cincinnati. The S&P 500 financials sector was one of the first quarter’s best performers, rising 15% even as the Federal Reserve pledged to keep interest rates low in the near future. It rose 0.7% on Wednesday. The S&P 500 energy sector was the largest gainer among the 11 sub-indexes, advancing 2.9% as it tracked higher oil prices. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 53.62 points, or 0.16%, to 33,730.89; and the S&P 500 lost 16.93 points, or 0.41%, at 4,124.66. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 138.26 points, or 0.99%, to 13,857.84, weighed by technology-related stocks including Apple Inc, Microsoft Corp and Tesla Inc. Coinbase Global Inc jumped upon its listing on the Nasdaq on Wednesday, at one point hitting $429.54 per share versus a reference price of $250. The cryptocurrency exchange closed at $328.28. Cryptocurrency and blockchain-related firms including Riot Blockchain and Marathon Digital Holdings fell 15.4% and 15.8% respectively, after soaring ahead of Coinbase’s debut and as bitcoin hit a record high of over $63,000 on Tuesday. Volume on U.S. exchanges was 9.50 billion shares, compared with the 11.27 billion average for the full session over the last 20 trading days. Advancing issues outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by a 1.45-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 1.22-to-1 ratio favored advancers. The S&P 500 posted 68 new 52-week highs and no new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 96 new highs and 32 new lows.
Wall Street stock markets closed mostly lower on Wednesday as the Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell noted that the economic rebound from the COVID-19 pandemic could still be in danger, likely to new infections. Meanwhile, Coinbase officially debuted on the Nasdaq, initially trading at $384.45 per share with a 53.6% surge from its original reference price of $250. US President Joe Biden announced that May 1 would be when the US troops finally start to withdraw from Afghanistan, ending America’s longest war of 20 years. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.16% at the closing bell with The Goldman Sachs Group Inc. gaining 2.34%. The Nasdaq 100 was down 1.31% led by Atlassian Corp dropping by 4.42%, while the S&P dipped 0.41% as Discovery fell by 4.95%. Nick Note: Perfect… we need the market to climb a wall of worry. Today’s downturn is the healthiest thing imaginable. In the past 20 trading days the NASDAQ has climbed 2000 points. I do not believe the rally is over. Powell will not derail this rally. Earnings are stupendous and after fits and starts the vaccines are bringing the pandemic under control…….
National economic activity accelerated to a moderate pace from late February to early April. Consumer spending strengthened
Employment growth picked up over the reporting period, with most Districts noting modest to moderate increases in headcounts.
Consumer spending strengthened
Reports on tourism were more upbeat
Auto sales grew, even as new-vehicle inventories remained constrained by microchip shortages
The picture in nonfinancial services generally improved
Despite widespread supply chain disruptions, manufacturing activity expanded further with half the Districts citing robust growth
Outlooks were more optimistic than in the previous report, boosted in part by an acceleration in COVID-19 vaccinations
Prices accelerated slightly since the last report, with many Districts reporting moderate price increases and some saying prices rose more robustly. Input costs rose across the board, but especially in the manufacturing, construction, retail, and transportation sectors-specifically, metals, lumber, food, and fuel prices. Cost increases were partly attributed to ongoing supply chain disruptions, temporarily exacerbated in some cases by winter weather events. There were widespread reports of increased selling prices also, but typically not on pace with rising costs. Contacts generally expect continued price increases in the near term. In the smaller breakdowns, you have the Boston Fed noting that “several contacts expressed growing concerns about inflation.” Expect to see more of that in the coming months. The Cleveland Fed was more constructive:
Contacts generally expected cost pressures to persist in the near term, with one suggesting that “the imbalances causing costs to rise are not likely to be resolved quickly.” However, many expect supply chain challenges to dissipate later in the year, and this will ease cost and price pressures. Ultimately, it comes down to pricing power, something the Atlanta Fed touched on: Reports on pricing power were mixed. Industries with strong demand have managed to pass through most input cost increases, while others plan to implement price increases over the coming year as activity returns The KC Fed also said this: Among firms experiencing price pressures, more than half indicated that they were able to pass a majority or all of their cost increases through to customers.
Coinbase Inc. started trading at $384.45 per share on the Nasdaq on Wednesday, reaching the market capitalization of around $100.4 billion. It is trading under the ticker COIN. Coinbase, which decided to sidestep the initial public offering (IPO) and opt for a direct listing, surged 53.6% from its reference price of $250. The world’s two most well-known cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin and Ethereum, climbed to their new all-time highs the day before. Coinbase continued to rise, going for $420.34 at 1:33 pm ET, up 9.33% compared to the opening figure. The shares rocketed to $429.26 a minute later, before paring the spike. Nick Note: this valuation is ridiculous….. Goldman IS valued the same. But this proves that insanity is the order of the day. And their is plenty of money out their to fuel this stock market insanity…..
Bernard Madoff, the mastermind behind the worst financial scam in history, has died in prison at the aged of 82, US media reported Tuesday. Madoff was sentenced to 150 years in prison in 2009 for running a pyramid-style scheme that defrauded tens of thousands of people around the world. The scheme was estimated to be worth anywhere between $25 billion and $63 billion. For decades, Madoff enjoyed an image as a self-made financial guru whose Midas touch defied market fluctuations. A former chairman of the Nasdaq stock market, he attracted a devoted legion of investment clients – from Florida retirees to celebrities such as famed film director Steven Spielberg, actor Kevin Bacon and Hall of Fame pitcher Sandy Koufax. But his investment advisory business was exposed in 2008 as a multibillion-dollar Ponzi scheme that wiped out people’s fortunes and ruined charities and foundations. He became so hated he had to wear a bulletproof vest to court. Madoff pleaded guilty in March 2009 to securities fraud and other charges, saying he was “deeply sorry and ashamed”. “He stole from the rich. He stole from the poor. He stole from the in between. He had no values,” former investor Tom Fitzmaurice told the judge at the sentencing. “He cheated his victims out of their money so he and his wife (…) could live a life of luxury beyond belief.” US District Judge Denny Chin showed no mercy, sentencing Madoff to the maximum 150 years in prison. “Here, the message must be sent that Mr. Madoff’s crimes were extraordinarily evil and that this kind of irresponsible manipulation of the system is not merely a bloodless financial crime that takes place just on paper, but it is instead (…) one that takes a staggering human toll,” Chin said. Madoff was born in 1938 in a lower-middle-class Jewish neighbourhood in Queens. In the financial world, the story of his rise to prominence – how he left for Wall Street with his brother Peter in 1960 with a few thousand dollars saved from working as a lifeguard and installing sprinklers – became legend. In the 1980s, Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities occupied three floors of a midtown Manhattan high-rise. There, with his brother and later two sons, he ran a legitimate business as middlemen between the buyers and sellers of stock. Madoff raised his profile by using the expertise to help launch Nasdaq, the first electronic stock exchange, and became so respected that he advised the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on the system. But what the SEC never found out was that behind the scenes, in a separate office kept under lock and key, Madoff was secretly spinning a web of phantom wealth by using cash from new investors to pay returns to old ones. Authorities say that over the years, at least $13 billion was invested with Madoff. An old IBM computer cranked out monthly statements showing steady double-digit returns, even during market downturns. As of late 2008, the statements claimed investor accounts totaled $65 billion. The ugly truth: No securities were ever bought or sold. Madoff’s chief financial officer, Frank DiPascali, said in a guilty plea in 2009 that the statements detailing trades were “all fake”. The massive fraud brought fresh meaning to “Ponzi scheme,” named after Charles Ponzi, who was convicted of mail fraud after bilking thousands of people out of a mere $10 million between 1919 and 1920.
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. reported on Wednesday that its net revenues totaled $17.7 billion in the first quarter of fiscal 2021, soaring 102% in comparison to the same timespan during the previous year. Net earnings amounted to $6.84 billion in the three months ending with March 31, 2021, skyrocketing 464% from the same trimester last year. The company’s diluted earnings per common share stood at $18.60, up almost sixfold compared to the first quarter of 2020 while operating expenses jumped 46% year-on-year to $9.44 billion. “Our businesses remain very well positioned to help our clients reposition for the recovery, and that strength is reflected in the record revenues and earnings achieved this quarter,” Chairman and CEO David Solomon noted in a statement. Goldman Sachs’s shares increased by 1.85% in premarket trade following the release of the report. Nick Note: So be good boys and girls and let the bankers make you money hand over fist…… Ride Em Cowboys!