Stocks recover losses due to intense inflation reports

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U.S. stocks recovered from early losses and were mostly flat on Thursday after December inflation was slightly higher than economists expected, raising new questions about the Federal Reserve’s interest rate policy The transaction was completed.

The S&P 500 (^GSPC), which was down 0.8% during the session, closed almost flat. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) and Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) are trading just above break-even.

Interest rate-sensitive sectors were the biggest laggards, with real estate and utility stocks closing lower.

Stocks struggled this week as investors counted down December’s U.S. consumer inflation data. This measure showed a slightly larger than expected increase as prices rose 0.3% month-over-month and 3.4% year-over-year. On a “core” basis, which excludes the volatile food and energy sectors, inflation rose 3.9% over the past year.

The print publication was seen as important for traders, who have been increasingly pricing in the possibility of a “soft landing” (inflation retreating to 2% without a recession) since the last CPI report.

Meanwhile, the US Spot Bitcoin ETF (full list here) began trading on Thursday after the SEC granted regulatory approval on Wednesday.

Bitcoin (BTC-USD) hovered above $46,000 per token, but rival Ethereum (ETH-USD) amid bets that the second-largest token will be the next to be greenlit into an ETF. has skyrocketed.

Ahead of Friday’s quarterly earnings report, Citigroup (C) announced that it would take more than $3 billion in one-time provisions and expenses to close the year. The fourth quarter earnings season is critical for the stock market given the dismal performance so far this year.

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Friday, January 12, 2024, 2:34 AM GMT+5:30

Stocks recover losses after CPI beats expectations

U.S. stocks recouped losses to close flat on Thursday after December’s inflation rate was slightly higher than expected, raising new questions about the Federal Reserve’s interest rate policy.

The S&P 500 (^GSPC) ended down just 3 points after creeping towards new highs in the previous session. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) rose 15 points, while the Nasdaq (^IXIC) closed flat.

Interest rate-sensitive sectors such as real estate and utilities were lagging in Thursday’s trading. Technology has moved into green territory. Energy stocks also ended slightly higher.

Cryptocurrency stocks fell in afternoon trading, reversing the gains of the first day of trading for 11 spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
Friday, January 12, 2024, 2:00 AM GMT+5:30

Hertz puts 20,000 EVs up for sale, but inventory declines

Hertz (HTZ) stock fell as much as 4% on Thursday after the rental car company announced it had started selling about 20,000 electric vehicles, about a third of its EV fleet. .

Proceeds from the sale will be used to purchase gasoline-powered vehicles “to meet customer demand.”

The company said part of the reason for the shift away from EVs has to do with maintenance costs.

Last quarter, Hertz said, “costs related to crashes and injuries, primarily related to EVs, remained high.”

Hertz also said it expects depreciation and amortization costs of approximately $245 million in the fourth quarter of 2023 attributable to EV sales.

The company had planned to electrify its rental fleet by ordering 100,000 Tesla (TSLA) Model 3 sedans by 2022 and 65,000 from Polestar (PSNY) over five years.

Hertz announced Thursday that it will implement a series of initiatives to improve the profitability of its remaining EV fleet.
Friday, January 12, 2024 1:45 AM GMT+5:30

Crude oil prices fall, but rise due to tensions in the Middle East

Oil futures closed at a trading high on Thursday.

West Texas Intermediate (CL=F), which had risen more than 3%, settled at about 1% at $72.02 per barrel. Brent futures (BZ=F) lost most of its gains and closed slightly higher at $77.04 per barrel.

Prices soared on Thursday after Iran announced it had seized a tanker carrying Iraqi oil in retaliation for the ship’s confiscation by the United States last year. The incident raised concerns that tensions in the Middle East would escalate.

Meanwhile, U.S. electricity and gasoline prices rose last month, contributing to higher-than-expected inflation in December.

“The Energy Index rose 0.4% for the month, with increases in the Electricity Index and Gasoline Index more than offset the decline in the Natural Gas Index,” the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) said in a statement.

Electricity rates increased by 1.3% from the previous month. The gasoline index rose 0.2% in December, following a 6% decline in November. However, the BLS noted that gasoline prices actually fell 5.8% last month before seasonal adjustments.
Friday, January 12, 2024, 1:15 AM GMT+5:30

Housing costs remain a major contributor to the latest CPI increase, but experts point to signs of hope

Housing costs once again had a big impact on inflation last month, exceeding expectations. But some experts point to a silver lining in the latest data, as highlighted by Yahoo Finance’s Dani Romero.

The index related to shelters in the consumer price index (CPI) rose 0.5% from the previous month in December, further expanding from the 0.4% rise from the previous month in November.

On a year-over-year basis, shelter inflation remains high, rising 6.2% from last year.

How optimistic are you? This is lower than the 6.5% year-on-year comparison in November and the peak of 8.2% in March.

Please see here for the detail.
Friday, January 12, 2024, 12:30 AM GMT+5:30

Crypto stocks reverse gains while spot Bitcoin ETF trades

Cryptocurrency stocks fell in afternoon trading, reversing the gains of the first day of trading for 11 spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

Marathon Digital (MARA), the third most popular ticker on Yahoo Finance, fell 14% on Thursday afternoon despite opening in green territory. Riot Platforms (RIOT) fell as much as 16%.

Coinbase (COIN), a top 5 trending ticker on Yahoo Finance, fell more than 5%. Shares soared more than 5% early in the session.

The recently approved ETF, which readers can track here, allows investors to gain exposure to Bitcoin (BTC-US) without owning it.

Bitcoin soared to $48,000 on Thursday morning, but fell to just above $46,000 by midday.
Thursday, January 11, 2024 11:45pm GMT+5:30pm

Microsoft temporarily overtakes Apple to become world’s most valuable company

Microsoft (MSFT) briefly surpassed Apple’s (AAPL) market cap during trading on Thursday, making it the world’s most valuable publicly traded company.

As Yahoo Finance’s Dan Howley points out, the software giant took the top spot shortly after it began trading, topping the $2.8 trillion mark.

Apple’s market capitalization also traded at more than $2.8 trillion, just shy of Microsoft’s. Apple shares struggled in the first two weeks of the year, as analysts at three banks downgraded the company’s stock over concerns about slowing iPhone demand.

Please see here for the detail.
Thursday, January 11, 2024 11:16pm GMT+5:30pm

Stock price in the red in afternoon trading

The stock fell around 12:45 p.m. ET on Thursday.

The S&P 500 Index (^GSPC) fell about 0.8% on Wednesday after the benchmark closed at its highest close since January 2022, but fell just short of setting a new record. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) fell 0.6%, with the Nasdaq (^IXIC) leading the decline, down almost 0.9%.

Some interest rate-sensitive sectors such as real estate and financials, which have fared well in recent market gains, fell by about 1%. Utilities led the losses, falling more than 2%.

Source: Yahoo Finance
Thursday, January 11, 2024 10:00 PM GMT+5:30

Oil prices soar as tensions in the Middle East intensify

Oil futures soared Thursday after Iran seized an oil tanker in the Gulf of Oman, raising concerns about escalating tensions between the United States and Iran.

West Texas Intermediate (CL=F) advanced more than 3% in the morning session. Brent futures (BZ=F) also rose more than 2.5%, trading above $78 per barrel.

Iran’s military seized a tanker carrying Iraqi oil in retaliation for the ship’s confiscation by the United States last year, Iranian state media said.

“Geopolitical escalation in the Red Sea region has once again reversed the bearish trend in futures prices,” Dennis Kistler, senior vice president at BOK Financial, said on Thursday.

Thursday’s price action was a reversal from the previous session, when futures prices fell more than 1% following the release of weekly storage data. The Energy Information Administration announced that U.S. crude oil inventories increased by 1.34 million barrels last week.
Thursday, January 11, 2024 9:33 PM GMT+5:30

Bitcoin ETF trading begins

Trading of the long-awaited Spot Bitcoin ETF has begun.

Yahoo Finance’s curated list tracks all actions on ETFs. Among the newly issued ETFs, BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin ETF (IBIT) is showing the highest volume in morning trading.

Amid the ETF action, Bitcoin (BTC-USD) was trading around $46,700.

Below is a breakdown of the various fees charged for each ETF.
Thursday, January 11, 2024 8:52 PM GMT+5:30

Expectations for Fed rate cuts remain unchanged even if inflation rises more than expected

December’s inflation report was slightly higher than Wall Street expected, but it hasn’t swayed investors’ view that the Fed’s first rate cut could come in March.

As of Thursday morning, the market was pricing in a roughly 67% chance that the Fed would cut interest rates in March, unchanged from the previous day’s odds, according to the CME FedWatch tool.

“I don’t think just delaying the rate cut will be enough,” Bank of America U.S. economist Stephen Juneau told Yahoo Finance Live. “We’re looking for a march cut that starts the cut cycle. It’s like leaving the door open. We’re never slamming the door shut.”
Thursday, January 11, 2024, 8:07 PM (GMT+5:30)

Stock prices rise despite higher-than-expected inflation

U.S. stocks rose on Thursday morning despite new data showing December inflation was slightly higher than economists expected, and the Federal Reserve’s interest rate policy A new question arose.

The S&P 500 (^GSPC) rose about 0.2% on Wednesday after the benchmark closed at its highest close since January 2022, just shy of setting a new record. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) rose 0.1%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq led the way with a 0.3% rise.
Thursday, January 11, 2024 7:17 PM GMT+5:30
Inflation rate exceeded expectations in December

Thursday’s much-anticipated inflation report showed consumer prices rose slightly more than expected in November.

Let’s take a quick look at the numbers:

Composite CPI, month-over-month: up 0.3% versus expected 0.2%

Total CPI, YoY: 3.4% vs. expected 3.2%

“Core” CPI, YoY: 3.9% vs. expected 3.8%

Yahoo Finance’s Josh Schafer has all the details here.