Author: starbpo

President Donald Trump is prepared to implement significant changes to the government-owned housing finance behemoths Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. He may also defy Republican convention by keeping the federal conservatorship that the businesses have been operating under for almost 20 years. In two social media tweets over the last nine days, the president claimed that Fannie (FNMA) and Freddie (FMCC) are “amazing companies” that are “throwing off cash,” and he made the case that the time has come for the United States to monetize them for taxpayers by going public. Nevertheless, he claimed that the United States had a…

According to U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, he has a plan that should contribute to lowering long-term Treasury yields, which serve as a standard for interest rates. However, there is still a significant question: Will it work? In theory, banks should be able to hold more U.S. government debt, lend more freely, or both if the supplementary leverage ratio is likely to be lowered. Established in 2014, the SLR mandates that banks maintain a certain level of high-quality capital in relation to their overall leverage exposure in order to guarantee that they have enough capital to withstand losses, especially during…

The macroeconomic strategist at Deutsche Bank claims that recent indications of price increases in the United States are “hard to reconcile with the lack of concern seen in market-based inflation expectations.” By some indicators, the market appears unconcerned about the possibility of a surge in consumer prices, despite worries that President Donald Trump’s “liberation day” tariffs could fuel inflation. Henry Allen, a macroeconomic strategist at Deutsche Bank, stated in a research note on Tuesday that “even though several inflation indicators are gaining momentum, U.S. inflation swaps have barely moved since Liberation Day.” “They’ve seen incredibly little movement” in spite of…

Due to record unaffordability, home prices in the 20 largest U.S. metropolitan areas dropped for the first time in more than two years, and they may continue to decline in the months to come. In March, the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller 20-city home-price index had its first monthly dip since January 2023, down 0.12% from the previous month. Seasonality was applied to the data. Data on repeat sales is measured by the Case-Shiller index. It typically shows a three-month moving average and has a two-month lag. Annually, home prices continue to rise. The 20-city index has increased 4.1% from the same…

Although Southwest Airlines Co. customers may be upset about paying for something that was previously free for decades, at least one Wall Street analyst thinks it will increase the company’s earnings and stock price. After announcing in March that it would be discontinuing its bags-fly-free policy, Southwest said Tuesday that a single piece of checked luggage would cost $35 and a second piece would cost an extra $10. Except for “A-List Preferred” members of the Rapid Rewards reward program and Business Select tickets, the surcharges will take effect on May 28. Southwest’s shares (LUV) rose 5.6% in afternoon trading, suggesting…

A growing number of young workers in China’s fiercely competitive labor market are opting out of the “996” work culture, which entails working six days a week from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. In the past, this represented aspiration and achievement. Rather, they are embracing a lifestyle that prioritizes their personal fulfillment over what their employers want of them. The way individuals work in this country has changed significantly. This movement, known as bai lan (let it rot) and tang ping (laying flat), reflects the disillusionment of China’s youth with the world. These terms characterize a passive defiance of social…

It’s scary that the stock market is higher now than it was at the start of the year, even though trends are getting worse. Take business gains. Standard & Poor’s says that the S&P 500’s (SPX) stated earnings per share for the year would be $250.66 at the start of January. This was what most people on Wall Street thought. After only five months, the average estimate has dropped almost four percent, to $241.33, and even this lower estimate comes with even more doubt than usual. Since the S&P 500 is a little higher now than it was on January…

The stock of Advanced Micro Devices Inc. was upgraded to a hold recommendation by analysts at HSBC Global Research on Tuesday, noting the company’s planned artificial-intelligence processors and the possibility of future upside due to a new agreement between the United States and Saudi Arabia. The Trump administration stated earlier this month that Saudi Arabia would spend $600 billion in a number of U.S. businesses, including defense and technology. Despite describing the purchase as “appealing in terms of long-term TAM (total addressable market) opportunity,” the analysts stated that it is still uncertain whether there will be any upside in 2025.…

The stock of CoreWeave Inc. has been soaring, but according to a MoffettNathanson analyst, investors should stay away from it. Although CoreWeave (CRWV) shares have increased 177% since their $40 IPO price, Nick Del Deo of MoffettNathanson stated that the advance is not indicative of a significant improvement in the data center company’s fundamentals. He pointed out that “trading dynamics” could better explain a large portion of CoreWeave’s spectacular stock increase, despite certain encouraging announcements, such as an enlarged agreement with OpenAI. He pointed out that the stock’s average daily trading since its most recent earnings release has been comparable…

According to some analysts, firms might effectively quit attempting to predict consumer demand due to the unpredictable nature of President Donald Trump’s tariff and trade measures. Instead, they could remove their financial forecasts. Few of them have, however, done so thus far. According to a FactSet analysis on Friday that focused on companies that reported first-quarter results through May 22, only eight of the 259 S&P 500 companies that have provided commentary on their profit outlook for the year have stated that they would withdraw or otherwise postpone updating their full-year earnings-per-share forecasts. According to FactSet, six of the eight…