STATE OF THE MARKETS
Stocks mixed in choppy markets . US stocks closed mixed on Thursday as investors prepare for the NFP Friday that may see a reduction in payroll signaling a slowing economy. Dow (-0.26%), Russell (-0.13%) and S&P (-0.08%) fell lower while the tech-laden Nasdaq (+0.41) eked minor gains. The Dollar index retreated to the 105.70 mark while the 10Y benchmark was little changed at 2.70%
In the commodity markets, demand concerns on global recession continue to plague crude as the black gold fell deeper to below $87.20/bl as New York closed. Similar fate ruined iron ore as the commodity fell to $107.00/tn. On the other hand, gold continues to climb higher nearing the $1,800/oz handle as markets demand for safety.
In the FX space, safe haven demand continued to escalate as Yen reigned in the medium and long term accounts while flipping back to demand alongside Euro and Swiss in the short term accounts. King Dollar was offered ahead of the NFP alongside Sterling, Loonie and Aussie.
On Friday, traders may look to cash some profits ahead of the weekend while waiting for earnings results from Telus Corp (TU), Trimble (TRMB), Icahn Enterprise (IEP), Western Digital (WDC), DraftKings (DKNG) and Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.B) and the very much awaited latest NFP figure.
OUR PICK – No New Picks
No new picks going into the weekend. Smart money is moving funds into safety as taxable bonds funds received inflows of $3.9 billion while equities had another outflows of $5.1 billion. Short term money markets experienced an outflow of $14.1 billion as funds exit on maturities. At this point, we are waiting to see if domestic equities receive an inflow as major averages move higher. So far, for the past 4 weeks, none. This tells us that long term investors are still skeptical of the rally and rather liquidate holdings, if any, than building new longs.
Trades updates:
Equities: VIPS (36% undervalued with 4.73 z-score), CRON (25% undervalued with 27.82 z-score) and M (48% undervalued, 3.57% yields) were firm as markets seemed to have bottomed at least for the short term. We still see T (21% undervalued, 6.08% yields) and WBA (32% undervalued, 4.93% yields) offer better opportunities for long term investors.
**FX & Commodities: GBP/CHF **and **AUD/CAD **have reached short term TP1, XAU/USD has reached short term TP2 and we remain bearish AUD/JPY.
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Disclaimer:
This article is for general information purpose only. It is not an investment advice or a solicitation to buy or sell any securities. Opinions expressed are of the authors and not necessarily of MFM Securities Limited or any of its affiliates, subsidiaries, officers or directors. Leveraged trading is high risk and not suitable for all. You could lose all of your deposited funds.