It’s the final day of the decade and the S&P 500 and Dow each are likely to close the year with their biggest annual percentage gains in five years, two of the many signs that the worst of the financial crisis is over. Year to date the S&P 500 is up 24.7% while the Dow is 20.2%. The economy may not be in shambles anymore but it’s still far from good, and for anyone who needs a reminder the one data entry today, jobless claims, should helpfully provide a dose of reality. Two hours before the trading session begins, The Dow looks to open 13 points higher at 10,503 while the benchmark S&P 500 looks to open 2.75 points higher at 1,124.75. Commodities are also on the rise with WTI Crude oil trading 36 cents higher at $79.64 per barrel and Spot Gold up $12.48 to $1,105.38…(read more)
It’s the final day of the decade and the S&P 500 and Dow each are likely to close the year with their biggest annual percentage gains in five years, two of the many signs that the worst of the financial crisis is over. Year to date the S&P 500 is up 24.7% while the Dow is 20.2%. The economy may not be in shambles anymore but it’s still far from good, and for anyone who needs a reminder the one data entry today, jobless claims, should helpfully provide a dose of reality. Two hours before the trading session begins, The Dow looks to open 13 points higher at 10,503 while the benchmark S&P 500 looks to open 2.75 points higher at 1,124.75. Commodities are also on the rise with WTI Crude oil trading 36 cents higher at $79.64 per barrel and Spot Gold up $12.48 to $1,105.38…(read more)
It’s the final day of the decade and the S&P 500 and Dow each are likely to close the year with their biggest annual percentage gains in five years, two of the many signs that the worst of the financial crisis is over. Year to date the S&P 500 is up 24.7% while the Dow is 20.2%. The economy may not be in shambles anymore but it’s still far from good, and for anyone who needs a reminder the one data entry today, jobless claims, should helpfully provide a dose of reality. Two hours before the trading session begins, The Dow looks to open 13 points higher at 10,503 while the benchmark S&P 500 looks to open 2.75 points higher at 1,124.75. Commodities are also on the rise with WTI Crude oil trading 36 cents higher at $79.64 per barrel and Spot Gold up $12.48 to $1,105.38…(read more)
The holiday rally is extending as equities look to continue climbing for a seventh consecutive day. One hours before the open, S&P 500 futures are up 3.25 points to 1,126.25. Commodities are mixed with copper hitting a 15-month high ― $7,250 a metric ton at 10:25 a.m. on the London Metal Exchange ― as miners went on strike in England. Meantime, WTI Crude oil is down 9 cents to $78.68 per barrel and Gold is $2.53 lower to $1104.77 per ounce. Tuesday is one of the busier days of this holiday shortened week. The nation’s key measure of home prices is released half an hour before the session begins, and an hour later markets will see if consumer confidence is beginning to rise as the New Year gets underway. Key Releases Today: 9:00 ― Economists anticipate that home prices rose for the…(read more)
Markets have been gaining for four straight days and the futures market suggests they’re not done the holiday cheer yet. The ahead will probably see light trading with markets closing early today and remaining closed for Christmas Day tomorrow. But the data will be significant with durable goods being the key release of the week. Two hours before the opening bell, futures on the Dow are trading 23 points higher at 10,427 and futures on the S&P 500 are up1.90 points to 1,117.50. Meantime, WTI Crude oil is roughly flat at $76.68 per barrel and Spot Gold has climbed $15.83 to $1,103.38 per ounce. In overnight news, the Treasury announced its receipt of $45 billion in TARP repayments from Wells Fargo and Citigroup. Citigroup also canceled an agreement with the government regarding losses…(read more)
The Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development today released New Residential Home Sales survey data for November 2009. The survey is primarily based on a sample of houses selected from building permits. Since a “sale” is defined as a deposit taken or sales agreement signed, this can occur prior to a permit being issued. Changes in sales price data reflect changes in the distribution of houses by region, size, etc., as well as changes in the prices of houses with identical characteristics. It takes four months to establish a trend of new home purchases In last month's release, which reported on October survey data, sales of new single family houses rose 6.2% to a rate of 430,000 annual transactions, much better than the market's expectation for 410…(read more)
I just received an update from the FHA that I believe will spread some holiday cheer. Mr. Jerrold H. Mayer writes re: Delayed Implementation Date for New Requirements in ML 2009-28 If that Mortgagee Letter doesn't ring a bell…it's the one that put FHA loans under HVCC watch. Notice anything else? IT'S BEING DELAYED! From the FHA: Enactment of ML 2009-28, Appraiser Independence, will be delayed until February 15, 2010 . ML09-28 (originally planned for a January 1, 2010 implementation) has two parts: a) prohibition of mortgage brokers and commission-based lender staff from the appraisal process, and b) appraiser selection in FHA Connection. The effective date for both sections of this guidance will now take effect for all case numbers assigned on or after February 15, 2010. This…(read more)
Equities are looking to a strong open ahead of week that, according to economists, should be full of cheery data before Christmas Day. One hour before the opening bell, the Dow looks to open 40 points higher at 10,311 while futures on the S&P 500 are up 5.25 points to 1,103 Meantime, WTI Crude oil is up 36 cents to $74.78 per barrel and Spot Gold is up $0.90 cents to $1,114.10 per ounce. “The U.S. dollar is broadly stronger (except against the Canadian buck), continuing its recent pattern of strengthening alongside a return of risk appetite—a sign of improved sentiment towards the greenback now that the U.S. economy is showing clearer signs of a durable recovery,” said economists at BMO Capital Markets in a morning note. The key release to the four-day week is Durable…(read more)
Equities are looking to a strong open ahead of week that, according to economists, should be full of cheery data before Christmas Day. One hour before the opening bell, the Dow looks to open 40 points higher at 10,311 while futures on the S&P 500 are up 5.25 points to 1,103 Meantime, WTI Crude oil is up 36 cents to $74.78 per barrel and Spot Gold is up $0.90 cents to $1,114.10 per ounce. “The U.S. dollar is broadly stronger (except against the Canadian buck), continuing its recent pattern of strengthening alongside a return of risk appetite—a sign of improved sentiment towards the greenback now that the U.S. economy is showing clearer signs of a durable recovery,” said economists at BMO Capital Markets in a morning note. The key release to the four-day week is Durable…(read more)
Commercial/multifamily mortgage debt, declined slightly during the third quarter according to data released on Thursday by the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA). The conclusion was based on MBA's analysis of the Federal Reserve Board Flow of Funds data. During the third quarter the amount of commercial/multifamily debt outstanding declined by $28 billion or 0.8 percent to a total of $3.43 trillion. The multifamily mortgage debt portion of the total declined $1 billion or 0.1 percent to $912 billion. The bulk of the commercial/multifamily debt is held by commercial banks, which have a 45 percent share or $1.53 billion on their books. The MBA notes, however, that among the holdings of the top 10 commercial real estate bank lenders 48 percent of these mortgages are actually real estate secured…(read more)
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