This week's market focus will be on US economic news. On Thursday, weekly initial unemployment claims are expected to fall -11,000 to 225,000. Also, Nov CPI is expected to be +3.1% y/y, and Nov core CPI is expected to be +3.0% y/y. On Friday, Nov existing home sales are expected to be up +1.2% m/m to 4.15 million. Also, the University of Michigan Dec consumer sentiment index is expected to be revised upward by +0.2 to 53.5 from the previously reported 53.3.US MBA weekly mortgage applications fell -3.8% in t ...

Key focus and themes Global Markets Research Foreign Exchange - Asia ex-Japan/Euro Area/Europe 2026 top trades and HK/SG client FX views Besides the widely expected 25bp hike at the December BOJ meeting, what is your expectation on Governor Ueda's messaging and the impact on USD/JPY (1 session after)? | Fig. 1: Top five top-conviction strategy trades in order (scale 1-5) | | --- | | | ★★★★★ | | Top 5 FX and Rates Trades | | | ★★★★★ | | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | | Countries | Trade ...

The dollar index (DXY00) today is up by +0.17%.  The dollar is moving higher today due to weakness in GBP/USD after UK November consumer prices rose less than expected.  Also, weakness in the yen today is positive for the dollar as Japanese fiscal concerns weigh on the yen.  The dollar fell back from its best level on dovish comments from Fed Governor Waller, who said the Fed can keep cutting rates as interest rates are still 50-100 bp above neutral. The dollar is also under pressure as the Fed boosts li ...

Core Insights - The markets in 2025 have shown volatility, with both bullish and bearish trends impacting investor strategies [1] - The Social Security Administration has projected a 2.8% Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) for 2026, which may not keep pace with rising inflation at approximately 3% [2] High-Yield ETFs - Two high-yield ETFs are highlighted as potential alternatives for income-focused investors: the State Street Blackstone High Income ETF (HYBL) and the State Street SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 High Dividend ETF (SPYD) [3] - The State Street Blackstone High Income ETF (HYBL) has around $545 million in assets under management and offers a dividend yield of 7.2%, significantly higher than the projected COLA increase [5] - HYBL aims to generate strong total returns with high income while maintaining lower volatility compared to broader bond and credit markets, investing in high-yield corporate bonds, senior loans, equity, and U.S. CLO debt tranches [5][6] - The top holdings of HYBL include Fair Isaac Corp 4%, JetBlue Airways Corp / JetBlue Loyalty LP 9.875%, and Cloud Software Group/Balboa/Citrix, reflecting a diversified economic exposure [6] - The SPYD ETF tracks the 80 highest dividend-yielding S&P 500 stocks and has a low fee of 0.07% [7]

This week's market focus will be on US economic news. On Thursday, weekly initial unemployment claims are expected to fall -11,000 to 225,000. Also, Nov CPI is expected to be +3.1% y/y, and Nov core CPI is expected to be +3.0% y/y. On Friday, Nov existing home sales are expected to be up +1.2% m/m to 4.15 million. Also, the University of Michigan Dec consumer sentiment index is expected to be revised upward by +0.2 to 53.5 from the previously reported 53.3.US MBA weekly mortgage applications fell -3.8% in t ...

General Mills Inc. (NYSE:GIS) stock rose Wednesday after the food giant beat second-quarter earnings and revenue estimates and reaffirmed its fiscal 2026 outlook, signaling resilient consumer demand and early traction from stepped-up brand investments even as higher input costs and margin pressure persist.Management pointed to strong execution, brand investments, and steady demand across key segments as drivers of the performance.The company reported second-quarter adjusted earnings per share of $1.10, beat ...

A finalist to replace Powell sees room for 100 basis points of rate cuts. ...

start uh chairman. No, Governor Waller. Let me just call me Chris. >> Chris.Okay. Chris. Um let me start with uh the uh jobs data we got yesterday, which I think is uh people are wondering how uh the Federal Reserve is processing and how you're personally processing this data here.We had a tick up to the unemployment rate at 4.6%. Uh return to job growth in November after job losses in October. What's the state of the labor market in your opinion.Well, earlier this summer when the jobs numbers were looking ...

The September inflation reading of 3% represents moderate price growth, which is above the Federal Reserve's long-term target of 2% but well below the elevated rates seen in 2022 and early 2023. ...

Good morning. CFOs are ending 2025 more confident, even as they confront a mixed growth outlook and mounting pressure to deliver efficiency gains from AI. Deloitte’s Q4 2025 CFO Signals report, released this morning, finds the CFO Confidence Score at 6.6, higher than the Q3 reading of 5.7, and the highest score since late 2021. The score, the highest 10, measures CFO confidence in economic conditions and sentiment about the capital markets. CFOs raised their assessment of the North American economy this q ...