Author: starbpo

According to a recent report, homeowners in the United States currently have an impressive $11 trillion in tappable equity, thanks to the continuously rising home prices. However, the current high mortgage rates are discouraging individuals from taking advantage of the opportunity. Homeowners, who purchased or refinanced their homes during the pandemic and currently enjoy mortgage rates below 4%, are witnessing a significant rise in the value of their properties and the equity they hold. According to monthly data from Intercontinental Exchange, homeowners had a whopping $16.9 trillion in housing equity available to them in the first quarter of this year.…

For the time being, Donald Trump seems to be prevailing in his fight against short sellers. The social-media company of the former president, Trump Media & Technology Group Corp. DJT, +2.61%, has successfully recovered on the stock market, attributing its previous share price difficulties to naked short selling. Ever since the company behind the Truth Social platform took a stand against short sellers in mid-April, its stock price has experienced a significant surge. Starting from a low of $22.84, it has now reached a closing price of $47.93, more than doubling its value. The price fluctuations have caused significant changes…

Last week, oil traders decided to reduce the risk premium that had been factored into prices since the beginning of the year. However, there is increasing worry about the likelihood of an Israeli invasion of Rafah in Gaza, which is causing oil prices to become more volatile on Monday. According to Rob Thummel, a senior portfolio manager at Tortoise, an event in Rafah would not cause any disruptions in the physical oil market. Nevertheless, the heightened uncertainty surrounding potential retaliatory measures from Iran may be reintroducing a geopolitical risk premium to oil prices. Iran has a close relationship with the…

Shares of Palantir Technologies Inc. experienced a surge on Monday in anticipation of the software company’s earnings report. However, following the release of the results, the gains were reversed during the extended session. Palantir’s shares experienced a decline of approximately 8% during after-hours trading on Monday. This drop can be attributed, in part, to the high expectations set by investors. It is worth noting that Palantir’s stock has already surged by 47% this year, with an additional 8% gain recorded during Monday’s regular session. Palantir, however, highlighted the ongoing success of its artificial-intelligence platform, AIP, as it raised its outlook…

Citigroup Inc. Chief Executive Jane Fraser highlighted that the consumer economy continues to display a divergent trend, with affluent consumers experiencing positive outcomes while lower-income individuals exercise caution in their financial decisions. The financial services giant has been closely monitoring the spending habits of individuals, observing an upward trajectory for some while others are reducing their expenses. “There has been significant growth in spending, particularly in recent quarters, among the affluent customer,” Fraser shared during her appearance on CNBC at the 2024 Milken Institute Global Conference. There has been a noticeable shift in the spending habits of low-income consumers, with…

In 2024, GMO’s inaugural exchange-traded fund is outperforming the S&P 500, even though it does not include the surging stock of artificial-intelligence sensation Nvidia Corp. According to FactSet data, the GMO U.S. Quality ETF QLTY has outperformed all three major U.S. equity indexes this year, with a gain of 10.6% through Monday. The S&P 500 has experienced an 8.6% increase over the same period, with the Nasdaq Composite showing a slightly higher advancement of 8.9%. Meanwhile, the Dow Jones Industrial Average has seen a more modest increase of 3.1%. Since its launch in November, the GMO U.S. Quality ETF has…

“If they [the Fed] haven’t cut in September, they are likely to cut in December. There’s still a question of will inflation actually decelerate enough by then.” Ken Griffin, founder and chief executive of Citadel According to Citadel founder and chief executive Ken Griffin, the Federal Reserve is expected to reduce interest rates in either September or December. This decision comes as the central bank faces difficulties in addressing the persistent U.S. services inflation and bringing it back to its 2% target. According to Griffin, there are several factors that are impacting the economy, such as wage growth, core inflation,…

U.S. stocks were on the rise on Monday, marking the start of a relatively calm week for economic data. According to BofA Global Research, the stock market tends to perform better during weeks with a quiet macroeconomic calendar, based on historical data. According to a note by a team of strategists at BofA Global Research, the S&P 500 index has shown a 0.6% increase during weeks without any significant macroeconomic data releases. In comparison, other weeks have seen a 0.2% increase on a median basis. According to the data, quiet weeks have consistently generated positive returns over the past 10…

Cash has been outperforming a significant portion of the bond market in 2024, bringing joy to the “T-bill and chill” community. The primary reason for cash’s superior performance compared to bonds has been the Federal Reserve’s decision to delay rate cuts this year, as certain inflationary factors have proven to be more challenging to control than anticipated. So far this year, cash has generated a total return of 1.8% by the end of April, while high-yield bonds, also known as “junk bonds,” have returned approximately 0.9%. Recent market trends have resulted in unfavorable returns for municipal bonds, investment-grade securities, and…

Climate activists staged a demonstration outside the Swiss National Bank’s shareholder meeting, condemning the bank’s investments in environmentally damaging ventures such as fracking and fossil fuel extraction.  The protest coincided with a recent ruling by a European human rights court criticizing Bern’s inadequate response to climate change. With Switzerland experiencing record high temperatures and diminishing snow levels in the Alps, around 50 demonstrators gathered in Bern, urging the SNB to either divest from such companies or pressure them to alter their practices. Holding banners declaring “Stop Fracking Investments End Fossil Finance” and “No Financial Stability Without a Stable Climate,” activists…