Greetings, Global Developments: According to the Russian government’s news agency, TASS, … Putin decided to conduct an operation to denazify and demilitarize Ukraine. …Russia will not allow Ukraine to have nuclear weapons. The term “denazify” suggests that Putin intends to remove the Ukrainian government by force, which means a full-scale invasion (the Kremlin has …
Continue reading “The Daily Shot Brief – February 24th, 2022”
Greetings, United States: Despite more robust pay increases since the start of the pandemic, home prices have left wages in the dust. This divergence is only sustainable if mortgage rates stay low. Eurozone: This chart illustrates the Eurozone’s exposure to Russia. Cryptocurrencies: The gold-backed token market has accelerated over the past year …
Continue reading “The Daily Shot Brief – February 23rd, 2022”
Greetings, Emerging Markets: The Ukraine/Russia situation has deteriorated further. Russia-backed separatists currently control less than half of the Luhansk/Donetsk region. Which portion of the region did Putin recognize as “independent”? If it’s the whole area, the act will likely lead to war. Will Russian “peacekeepers” push across the Minsk Protocol buffer zone? …
Continue reading “The Daily Shot Brief – February 22nd, 2022”
Greetings, Equities: Amid the Russia/Ukraine crisis, a number of companies have mentioned Ukraine on their earnings calls. Which firms have exposure to Ukraine/Russia? Credit: Investment-grade credit default swap spreads continue to widen. China: Beijing continues its regulatory crackdown on tech firms. United States: US COVID cases continue to ease. Global …
Continue reading “The Daily Shot Brief – February 21st, 2022”
Greetings, United States: US goods spending has been slowing, … … as disposable income weakens. Cryptocurrency: Here is a look at open interest and volume of BTC and ETH futures compared with major traditional futures markets. Commodities: Bloomberg’s broad commodities index continues to hit record highs. Equities: Friday could be volatile …
Continue reading “The Daily Shot Brief – February 18th, 2022”
Greetings, United States: The FOMC minutes (from the Jan 25-26 meeting) were less hawkish than feared. There didn’t seem to be any signal for a 50 bps rate hike in March. Stocks moved higher. The 2-year Treasury yield dropped. The dollar was down. Canada: Is someone taking the protest against vaccine mandates online? …
Continue reading “The Daily Shot Brief – February 17th, 2022”
Greetings, United States: The PPI report topped forecasts, with both the headline and core indices holding near the highs. Canada: How do Canadians view the recent protests? Europe: Poland’s trade deficit hit a record as energy prices surge. Asia-Pacific: Will Japan’s CPI accelerate once the drag from mobile services ebbs? …
Continue reading “The Daily Shot Brief – February 16th, 2022”
Greetings, United States: Some economists and Fed officials are becoming concerned about the wage-price spiral. Emerging Markets: Some emerging market equity valuations are very attractive vs. their developed market peers. Commodities: Beijing is waging war on iron ore prices. Equities: Fund managers have been reducing their allocations to stocks amid expectations …
Continue reading “The Daily Shot Brief – February 15th, 2022”
Greetings, United States: The U. Michigan consumer sentiment report surprised to the downside, driven by sharp declines in the expectations component. Despite the labor market’s strength, households are increasingly concerned about their finances. Emerging Markets: Russian markets took a hit as the US warned of a looming attack. The Ukraine/Russia tensions continue to …
Continue reading “The Daily Shot Brief – February 14th, 2022”
Greetings, United States: The CPI report surprised to the upside, with inflation hitting multi-decade highs. Europe: The Eurozone has seen a significant increase in capital outflows over the past year (driven by bonds). China: Credit expansion was robust in January. Emerging Markets: With prices surging, Banxico hiked rates again (as expected). …
Continue reading “The Daily Shot Brief – February 11th, 2022”
