Randy C. Benning, CFP Presents:
INFLATION PRESSURE WEAKENS
The Consumer Price Index was unchanged in June, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That left its yearly advance at only 1.6%, nearly half a point below the Federal Reserve’s target (the core CPI was up 1.7%). After the announcement, some economists and market strategists wondered whether the Fed would rethink its plans for a third interest rate hike in 2017. The Producer Price Index rose 0.1% in June, leaving its yearly increase at 2.0%.1,2
RETAIL SALES, CONSUMER SENTIMENT INDEX DECLINE
For the second month in a row, households scaled back their retail purchases – retail sales were down 0.2% in June following a 0.1% May decline. Core sales fell 0.2% after a May retreat of 0.3%. The University of Michigan’s preliminary July consumer sentiment index lost 2.0 points off its final June mark to a reading of 93.1.1,2
OIL RALLIES
A projection of rising demand and news of a pipeline shutdown in Nigeria sent the price of light sweet crude 5.2% higher in a week. WTI crude settled at $46.54 on the NYMEX Friday, its best close since July 3.3
DOW ENTERS RECORD TERRITORY AGAIN
Friday, the Dow 30 notched its third straight record close: 21,637.74. At the same time, the S&P 500 also settled at a new record of 2,459.27. The Nasdaq Composite finished Friday’s market day at 6,312.47, a half-percent away from its all-time peak. For the week, the Dow rose 1.04%; the S&P, 1.41%; the Nasdaq, 2.59%.4,5
THIS WEEK: Monday’s earnings parade includes announcements from BlackRock, Charles Schwab, J.B. Hunt, and Netflix. On Tuesday, Wall Street examines earnings from Bank of America, CSX, Comerica, Goldman Sachs, Harley-Davidson, IBM, Johnson & Johnson, Lockheed Martin, TD Ameritrade, and UnitedHealth Group. Wednesday sees data on June housing starts and building permits, plus earnings from American Express, Fidelity National Financial, Morgan Stanley, Northern Trust, Qualcomm, T-Mobile, U.S. Bancorp, United Rentals, and W.W. Grainger. A new weekly initial claims report arrives Thursday, plus earnings news from Abbott Labs, Alliance Data Systems, American Airlines Group, BB&T, BoNY Mellon, Capital One, Cintas, eBay, E*TRADE, GATX, KeyCorp, Microsoft, NCR, Nucor, Philip Morris, Sherwin-Williams, Skechers, Snap-On, Travelers Companies, Union Pacific, Visa, and Whirlpool. On Friday, Colgate-Palmolive, Fifth Third Bancorp, General Electric, Honeywell International, Regions Financial, Schlumberger, and SunTrust Banks present earnings.
| % CHANGE | Y-T-D | 1-YR CHG | 5-YR AVG | 10-YR AVG |
| DJIA | +9.49 | +16.92 | +13.87 | +5.56 |
| NASDAQ | +17.26 | +25.40 | +23.41 | +13.32 |
| S&P 500 | +9.85 | +13.66 | +16.25 | +5.84 |
| REAL YIELD | 7/14 RATE | 1 YR AGO | 5 YRS AGO | 10 YRS AGO |
| 10 YR TIPS | 0.57% | 0.08% | -0.59% | 2.73% |
Randy C. Benning, CFP®, President, License # 0816882, Benning Financial Group, LLC. Investment Advisory Services offered through Benning Financial Group, LLC, A Registered Investment Advisor, Benning Financial Group, LLC, is not affiliated with Triad Advisors. Securities offered through Triad Advisors Member FINRA, SIPC
Sources: wsj.com, bigcharts.com, treasury.gov – 7/14/175,6,7,8
Indices are unmanaged, do not incur fees or expenses, and cannot be invested into directly. These returns do not include dividends. 10-year TIPS real yield = projected return at maturity given expected inflation.
Citations.
1 – cnbc.com/2017/07/14/lack-of-inflation-raises-new-doubts-about-fed-ability-to-hike-interest-rates-this-year.html [7/14/17]
2 – investing.com/economic-calendar/ [7/14/17]
3 – marketwatch.com/story/oil-gains-pause-but-optimism-remains-after-iea-report-2017-07-14 [7/14/17]
4 – money.cnn.com/2017/07/14/investing/dow-record-trump-rally-wall-street/index.html [7/14/17]
5 – markets.wsj.com/us [7/14/17]
6 – bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=7%2F14%2F16&x=0&y=0 [7/14/17]
6 – bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=7%2F14%2F16&x=0&y=0 [7/14/17]
6 – bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=7%2F14%2F16&x=0&y=0 [7/14/17]
6 – bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=7%2F13%2F12&x=0&y=0 [7/14/17]
6 – bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=7%2F13%2F12&x=0&y=0 [7/14/17]
6 – bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=7%2F13%2F12&x=0&y=0 [7/14/17]
6 – bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=7%2F13%2F07&x=0&y=0 [7/14/17]
6 – bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=7%2F13%2F07&x=0&y=0 [7/14/17]
6 – bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=7%2F13%2F07&x=0&y=0 [7/14/17]
7 – treasury.gov/resource-center/data-chart-center/interest-rates/Pages/TextView.aspx?data=realyield [7/14/17]
8 – treasury.gov/resource-center/data-chart-center/interest-rates/Pages/TextView.aspx?data=realyieldAll [7/14/17]