First Look
Major indices are relatively unchanged Thursday morning. The Federal Reserve met expectations Wednesday after voting to keep interest rates unchanged, despite growing speculation that its next move could be a rate cut. Fed Chair Jerome Powell reaffirmed the central bank’s patient stance, citing low inflation and concerns over global economic growth as reasons for the monetary policy decision. The Nasdaq is up 0.3%, the S&P 500 is up 0.16%, the Dow Jones is up 0.06%.
Today's Sentiment
NeutralQuote of the Day
I would never win an award for not loving pizza.
Dwayne Johnson
Daily Action Trade
Stocks on the Move
Hanesbrands Inc. (HBI), Under Armour Inc Class A (UAA) and Arconic Inc (ARNC) are moving higher this morning, while ABIOMED, Inc. (ABMD), Fluor Corporation (NEW) (FLR) and Mosaic Co (MOS) are headed lower. QUALCOMM, Inc. (QCOM), Clorox Co (CLX) and Arconic Inc (ARNC) were upgraded by analysts this morning, while Estee Lauder Companies Inc (EL), Dynex Capital Inc (DX) and Scotts Miracle-Gro Co (SMG) were downgraded.
International Markets
Stocks in Asia are mixed. The Hang Seng is up 0.83%, the Australia ASX All Ordinaries is up 0.75%, the Mumbai Sensex is down -0.13% and the Nikkei 225 is closed for a holiday. In Europe stocks are mixed. The DAX is up 0.19%, the FTSE 100 is down -0.08%, the Euro Stoxx 50 is down -0.34% and the CAC 40 is down -0.37%.
Futures & Currencies
Energy futures are mixed today. The price for West Texas Intermediate crude oil is down -0.84 at 62.76 per barrel. Brent crude is down -0.93 at 71.25 per barrel. Natural Gas is flat at 2.60. Precious metals are down this morning. Gold is down -4.77 at 1271.99 per ounce. Platinum is down -4.24 at 862.29 while silver is down -0.05 at 14.68. The dollar is mixed compared to the major currencies today. The greenback is down against the euro, up against the Yen and up against the Pound.
Put/Call Ratio
Yesterday, 1,204,723 call contracts traded on the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) compared to 764,643 put contracts. The single-session put/call was 0.63 while the 20-day moving average is now at 0.60.
Today's Economic Calendar
| No. | What's Happening? | Period | Release Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Initial Claims | 04/27 | 08:30 |
| 2 | Continuing Claims | 04/20 | 08:30 |
| 3 | Productivity - Prelim. | Q1 | 08:30 |
| 4 | Factory Orders | Mar | 10:00 |
| 5 | EIA Natural Gas Inventories | 04/27 | 10:30 |
