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DATE

RESEARCH REPORT

31-Dec-10	Wake-Up Call -- 31 December 2010 U.S. equity futures point to a modestly lower open for New Year's Eve. The thin-volume environment that has persisted throughout the week is almost certain to continue today. A number of foreign markets were closed for the holiday, including Japan and South Korea in Asia and Germany, Spain and Italy in Europe, while many others were/are open for only half a session. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing yield curve movements across countries
30-Dec-10	Wake-Up Call -- 30 December 2010 U.S. equity futures are showing little direction this morning as global markets continue to experience thin trade ahead of the near year. Treasuries are down modestly following recent volatility. Today's Food for Thought: The global rare-earth mineral market
29-Dec-10	Wake-Up Call -- 29 December 2010 U.S. equity futures point to a flat open on what is expected to be another thinly-traded, end-of-the-year session. The Treasury market appears to be stabilizing following Tuesday's sharp sell-off. Today's Food for Thought: Drivers of the S&P 500 since the Lehman Bros. collapse
28-Dec-10	Wake-Up Call -- 28 December 2010 U.S. equity futures point to a modestly stronger open this morning due to a weaker dollar, despite Chinese markets selling off for a second session following the country's rate hike over the weekend. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing U.S. and OECD tax receipts.
27-Dec-10	Wake-Up Call -- 27 December 2010: U.S. equity futures point to a modestly lower start after China surprised markets with a rate hike over the weekend. Trading volume may be even lower than usual due to winter storms on the east coast. Today's Food for Thought: Small-cap equities lead U.S. year-to-date returns
23-Dec-10	Wake-Up Call -- 23 December 2010: After hitting another fresh two-year high yesterday, equity futures are flat ahead of a bevy of economic data. Participation is expected to be light ahead of the long Christmas weekend. Note: equity markets today are open during normal trading hours while bond markets will close at 2:00 p.m. ET for the Christmas holiday. Today's Food for Thought: A greater percentage of people are working at large companies as smaller companies slashed a larger number of jobs during the recession
22-Dec-10	Wake-Up Call -- 22 December 2010 Equity futures are flat in quiet trading. In upcoming economic data, the final third quarter GDP reading is due at 8:30 a.m. ET. U.S. growth is expected to be revised higher to 2.7% from 2.5%, according to the Briefing.com consensus. Separately, the existing home sales and FHFA home price reports are due at 10:00 a.m. ET. Today's Food for Thought: Divergence between the volatility of the dollar and commodities
21-Dec-10	Wake-Up Call -- 21 December 2010 U.S. equity futures point to another modestly higher open this morning, rallying overnight on strength in Chinese markets. Treasuries have found a slight bid over the last few hours while the dollar is trading modestly lower following volatility in the euro and the pound. Today's Food for Thought: The dollar and commodities
20-Dec-10	Wake-Up Call -- 20 December 2010 U.S. equity futures have rebounded from modest overnight lows and point to a slightly higher open to begin this holiday-shortened week. The dollar is around unchanged though Treasuries just rallied to their best levels of the morning. Today's Food for Thought: A Stocking Full of Coal
17-Dec-10	Wake-Up Call -- 17 December 2010 U.S. equity futures point to a slightly lower open this morning, moving into the red over the last two hours as the dollar regains its overnight losses against the euro and rallies against the pound. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing the rise in the 10-year yield to mortgage rates
16-Dec-10	Wake-Up Call -- 16 December 2010 U.S. equity futures are showing little direction this morning ahead of a large batch of economic data, though they did tick lower following a disappointing quarter from FedEx. Treasuries are rebounding, however. Today's Food for Thought: Investment in clean tech venture capital
15-Dec-10	Wake-Up Call -- 15 December 2010: U.S. equity futures suggest a modestly lower start. Overall it has been a slow news morning. Moody's put Spain's Aa1 rating on review for a possible downgrade, noting the170 bln euros in debt that the country will need to raise in 2011.� Separately, the Senate will vote and is expected to pass the tax cut package today. Today's Food for Thought: Forward price-to-earnings ratios of global equity markets
14-Dec-10	Wake-Up Call -- 14 December 2010 The marketplace is quiet this morning ahead of U.S. economic data and the FOMC policy directive. The one market showing any direction is the currency market, where the dollar is extending yesterday's decline ahead of the Fed announcement as the euro and yen strengthen. That weakness has helped U.S. futures push into modestly positive territory after trading slightly lower overnight. Today's Food for Thought: U.S. companies starting to dip into their cash hordes
13-Dec-10	Wake-Up Call -- 13 December 2010 Global equity markets rallied overnight after China did not raise interest rates over the weekend, despite hotter-than-expected inflation data. U.S. futures have not followed suit, however, only recently pushing into slightly positive territory. The dollar trading higher overnight may have been one reason, but it has since lost those gains and moved lower against currencies like the euro. Today's Food for Thought: How the Bush tax cuts impacted taxpayers
10-Dec-10	Wake-Up Call -- 10 December 2010 U.S. equity futures are trading flat-to-slightly higher this morning as a decision by the People's Bank of China to once again raise its reserve requirement failed to earn much of a reaction from market participants. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing stock market volatility across periods
09-Dec-10	Wake-Up Call -- 09 December 2010 U.S. equity futures are trading modestly higher this morning as Treasuries steady following a sharp sell-off over the last two sessions and most global markets rally. Today's Food for Thought: A divergence among investment banks
08-Dec-10	Wake-Up Call -- 08 December 2010 U.S. equity futures have been in and out of negative territory this morning but currently point toward a flat open for the major averages. Treasuries, however, are under pressure for a second day. The 10-year yield is approaching 3.25% ahead of its auction this afternoon. Today's Food for Thought: The rising cost of a college education
07-Dec-10	Wake-Up Call -- 07 December 2010 Congress and the Obama administration agreed to an extension of the Bush tax cuts late yesterday. U.S. equity futures did not immediately react to the announcement, but have rallied over the last four hours and now point to a stronger open this morning. Today's Food for Thought: The trend of aging populations
06-Dec-10	Wake-Up Call -- 06 December 2010 Global equity markets are showing little direction today as participants digest mixed comments from Federal Reserve Chairman Bernanke. Safety assets, however, are on the rise ahead of a meeting of eurozone finance ministers. Today's Food for Thought: Breaking down the Fed's emergency programs
03-Dec-10	Wake-Up Call -- 03 December 2010 U.S. equity futures are showing little direction this morning ahead of the November employment report. Today's Food for Thought: Speculation continues about Google/Groupon
02-Dec-10	Wake-Up Call -- 02 December 2010 Global equity markets are trading higher for a second day ahead of a speech by European Central Bank President Trichet. Speculation continues as to whether he will announce an expansion to the central bank's bond purchase program. Today's Food for Thought: Unemployment by state
01-Dec-10	Wake-Up Call -- 01 December 2010 European markets are experiencing a relief rally today after ECB President Trichet hinted that the central bank's bond purchase program could see a significant expansion. That is helping U.S. futures rally ahead of the ADP Employment report. Today's Food for Thought: Housing prices since 2000 and the bubble peak
30-Nov-10	Wake-Up Call -- 30 November 2010 U.S. equity futures point to another lower open this morning while Treasuries push higher for a fourth consecutive session. The move is being attributed to continued contagion fears in the eurozone, though there have been no new developments. Today's Food for Thought: Reviewing the Fed's new outlook for GDP and unemployment
29-Nov-10	Wake-Up Call -- 29 November 2010 U.S. equity futures traded modestly higher overnight, aided by reports of strong Black Friday spending, but have followed European markets into negative territory this morning. Today's Food for Thought: Stocks with the biggest changes to hedge fund ownership
26-Nov-10	Wake-Up Call -- 26 November 2010 Sentiment has changed once again today with U.S. futures pointing to a sharply lower open, trading down with European markets and the euro. A report this morning said pressure is being put on Portugal to join Ireland in seeking a bailout. Today's Food for Thought: Effective tax rates among tech stocks
24-Nov-10	Wake-Up Call -- 24 November 2010 U.S. equity futures point to a slightly higher open this morning ahead of a large and important batch of economic data that includes Durable Goods Orders, the jobless claims report and New Home Sales. The releases were moved to today's calendar due to tomorrow's Thanksgiving Day holiday. Today's Food for Thought: The price of Thanksgiving dinner
23-Nov-10	Wake-Up Call -- 23 November 2010 U.S. equity futures point to a sharply lower open on rising bilateral tensions after North Korea and South Korea exchanged fire on an island 75 miles west of Seoul. Today's Food for Thought: The 10 largest hedge funds
22-Nov-10	Wake-Up Call -- 22 November 2010 Global equity markets received a boost overnight after the EU and IMF agreed to bail out Ireland. However, U.S. futures and European markets have given up their gains while Treasuries and the dollar rebound. Participants expected Ireland to ask for aid last week, so it was most likely already priced into the market. Add in the fact that there is continued anxiety about contagion (i.e., Portugal) and that helps explain why equities were unable to hold their gains. Today's Food for Thought: Defense spending on the chopping block
19-Nov-10	Wake-Up Call -- 19 November 2010 U.S. equity futures point to a modestly lower open this morning as participants digest another increase in China's reserve requirement, continued uncertainty about the path for Ireland and a speech overnight from Federal Reserve Chairman Bernanke. Today's Food for Thought: GM, before and after
18-Nov-10	Wake-Up Call -- 18 November 2010 Global equity markets are trading sharply higher today as the negative sentiment that has permeated through the market since last week seems to be dissipating. Ireland is holding talks today with the European Commission, the European Central Bank and IMF officials and participants are optimistic ahead of any announcement. Today's Food for Thought: Measuring market value to GDP
17-Nov-10	Wake-Up Call -- 17 November 2010 U.S. equity futures are trading around unchanged this morning. Participants shrugged off another decline in Chinese markets overnight as they continue to digest the prospects of a bailout of Ireland and await an important batch of economic data (Housing Starts/Permits, CPI). Today's Food for Thought: Those companies with exposure to Wal-Mart
16-Nov-10	Wake-Up Call -- 16 November 2010 U.S. equity futures point to another lower open this morning, led for a second time in three sessions by a sharp drop in Chinese markets. Continued worries about Ireland's debt situation ahead of a key meeting of eurozone finance ministers are also weighing on markets. Earnings from the likes of major retailers Wal-Mart and Home Depot are taking a backseat. Treasuries are confirming the move as they rebound following two sessions of sharp gains. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing corruption across the BRICs, the G3 and the PIIGS
15-Nov-10	Wake-Up Call -- 15 November 2010 U.S. equity futures point to a modestly higher open this morning, despite a rally in the dollar. U.S. Treasury yields are also higher. Today's Food for Thought: Likely opposition to plans to reduce public debt
12-Nov-10	Wake-Up Call -- 12 November 2010 U.S. equity futures point to a lower open this morning after Chinese markets plunged overnight on fears of further tightening measures, but are off their worst levels on rumors of an imminent Irish bailout. Today's Food for Thought: The roller coaster ride in the Irish bond market
11-Nov-10	Wake-Up Call -- 11 November 2010 U.S. equity futures are trading sharply lower this morning following disappointing earnings and guidance from tech bellwether Cisco. NASDAQ futures are seeing an even larger decline. The move lower comes with the U.S. Treasury market closed in observance of the Veterans Day holiday and as the G20 summit kicks off today in South Korea. Ireland remains the story in Europe as the country’s bond yields continue to surge. Today's Food for Thought: The Corruption Perceptions Index
10-Nov-10	Wake-Up Call -- 10 November 2010 U.S. equity futures are showing little direction this morning as the dollar trades mixed against the other major currencies. Treasuries looked to rebound overnight following three consecutive lower sessions, but have given up their modest gains and are trading lower once again this morning. Today's Food for Thought: Renewable energy sources
09-Nov-10	Wake-Up Call -- 09 November 2010 The inverse trade with the dollar continued overnight. U.S. equity futures have been trending higher over the last four hours, moving from slightly negative to slightly positive territory as the dollar trends lower against the other major currencies. The weaker dollar is pushing commodities higher, in particular precious metals. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing M2 and excess reserves
08-Nov-10	Wake-Up Call -- 08 November 2010 U.S. equity futures are trading modestly lower this morning after the dollar rallied overnight. Today's Food for Thought: Breaking down the economic recovery in Germany
05-Nov-10	Wake-Up Call -- 05 November 2010: Stock futures currently suggest a slightly lower start as traders await the October employment report due at 8:30 a.m. ET. A gain of 60,000 nonfarm payrolls is expected in both the headline and private readings, according to the Briefing.com consensus. The unemployment rate is expected to hold steady at 9.7%. Today's Food for Thought: Historic negative correlation between the S&P 500 and the Dollar Index
04-Nov-10	Wake-Up Call -- 04 November 2010 U.S. equity futures point to a higher open this morning, rallying as the dollar sold off, while the 30-year Treasury remains under pressure. Today's Food for Thought: Government and nongovernment debt issuance.
03-Nov-10	Wake-Up Call -- 03 November 2010 U.S. equity futures are showing little direction premarket as the midterm elections played out as the market expected and as participants await the FOMC policy directive, and the (potential) announcement of another round of quantitative easing, this afternoon. That will be preceded by the ADP Employment report a little later this morning. Today's Food for Thought: The Fed's balance sheet versus the Financial Stress Index
02-Nov-10	Wake-Up Call -- 02 November 2010 U.S. equity markets point to a higher open on midterm election day, trending up on a weaker dollar and strength in European markets. Today's Food for Thought: International trade
01-Nov-10	Wake-Up Call -- 01 November 2010 U.S. equity futures point to a higher open this morning following better-than-expected economic data out of China and ahead of this week's two major events -- the midterm elections and the FOMC meeting. Today's Food for Thought: Revisiting the chances republicans taking over the House and Senate
29-Oct-10	Wake-Up Call -- 29 October 2010 U.S. equity futures are trading lower this morning following weakness overseas and ahead of the release of the advance Q3 2010 GDP report at 8:30 a.m. ET. Specifically, Japan released a batch of September economic data overnight that disappointed market participants. They continue to digest third quarter earnings reports, though, with the move lower occurring despite better-than-expected results from tech bellwether Microsoft. Today's Food for Thought: Trends in smoking
28-Oct-10	Wake-Up Call -- 28 October 2010 U.S. equity futures are trading around unchanged this morning as participants digest another large batch of third quarter earnings results. The dollar, however, has already given back its gains from yesterday while Treasuries are rebounding somewhat. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing GDP per capita
27-Oct-10	Wake-Up Call -- 27 October 2010 U.S. equity futures point to a lower open this morning, with the move being attributed to fears any potential quantitative easing from the Federal Reserve may be smaller than expected, which sent the dollar higher. Today's Food for Thought: Unemployment by education
26-Oct-10	Wake-Up Call -- 26 October 2010 U.S. equity futures are trading modestly lower this morning following lower trade overseas and as participants digest the next round of third quarter earnings reports. Today's Food for Thought: The negative TIPS yield from yesterday's Treasury auction should not come as a surprise.
25-Oct-10	Wake-Up Call -- 25 October 2010 U.S. equity futures point to a higher open this morning as global markets rally and the dollar sells off following the G20 meeting. Today's Food for Thought: Measuring stock moves following earnings beats/misses
22-Oct-10	Wake-Up Call -- 22 October 2010 The focus this morning is on the G20 summit that begins today in South Korea and market participants are remaining cautious ahead of it. Treasury Secretary Geithner has already urged countries to not undertake structural currency policies in order to stimulate growth at the expense of their partners. U.S. equity futures have shown little direction overnight and currently point toward a flat open. Participants are also digesting the latest round of third quarter earnings reports, showing a mixed reaction thus far. Today's Food for Thought: Major net exporters/importers of grain commodities
21-Oct-10	Wake-Up Call -- 21 October 2010 U.S. equity futures point to a higher open this morning. They noticeably improved at 3:30 a.m. ET, the same time European markets were rebounding from a modestly lower open following positive economic data. U.S. futures are also benefitting from another strong batch of third quarter earnings results. Today's Food for Thought: World population expectations
20-Oct-10	Wake-Up Call -- 20 October 2010 The market looks to rebound today as U.S. equity futures point to a modestly higher open. The dollar has already given back a good portion of yesterday's rebound rally while participants have another round of earnings results to digest. Today's Food for Thought: Apple's growing balance sheet
19-Oct-10	Wake-Up Call -- 19 October 2010 U.S. equity futures traded lower overnight following disappointing reactions to earnings from tech bellwethers IBM and Apple. While NASDAQ futures continued to trade sharply lower, S&P futures were trending toward unchanged until China surprised the market by raising its 1-year lending and deposit rates by 25 bps. Participants continue to digest earnings reports this morning from a number of market stalwarts, but also have a calendar full of Federal Reserve speakers, as well as housing data in the form of starts and permits at 8:30 a.m. ET. Today's Food for Thought: Internet download speeds by country
18-Oct-10	Wake-Up Call -- 18 October 2010 U.S. equity futures sold off overnight as the dollar rebounded against most of the major currencies and Asian markets gave up their opening gains. European markets also opened lower, but they have rebounded and are trading modestly higher at midday. U.S. futures are also off their worst levels, but still point to a slightly lower open this morning. Today's Food for Thought: Gold exports/imports
15-Oct-10	Wake-Up Call -- 15 October 2010 U.S. equity futures are trading around unchanged this morning as market participants digest earnings reports from two major companies and await a crowded economic calendar. Earnings came in mixed as Google blew away bottom-line estimates in the third quarter but GE missed on the top line. Market participants have a large batch of economic data this morning, including Retail Sales and CPI, but they will be preceded by a speech from Federal Reserve Chairman Bernanke on monetary policy and inflation. Today's Food for Thought: Summarizing currency policy actions thus far
14-Oct-10	Wake-Up Call -- 14 October 2010 U.S. equity futures have a slight bid this morning, ahead of a large batch of economic data at 8:30 a.m. ET that includes the weekly claims report, PPI and the trade deficit. The real story is taking place in currency markets, however, as the dollar moved sharply lower overnight as foreign investors price in further quantitative easing from the Federal Reserve next month. Today's Food for Thought: Some stocks beginning to hit new highs
13-Oct-10	Wake-Up Call -- 13 October 2010 U.S. equity futures point to a sharply higher open this morning following a positive start to third-quarter earnings season and strong trading overseas. Today's Food for Thought: Sherman Antitrust violations
12-Oct-10	Wake-Up Call -- 12 October 2010 U.S. equity futures point to a lower open this morning following weaker trade overseas. The Treasury market, which reopened overnight following yesterday's Columbus Day holiday, is confirming the move as 2-, 3-, 5-, 7- and 10-year Note yields all hit fresh lows. $32 bln in 3-year Notes will be auctioned off later today. Talk in the marketplace continues to focus on the potential for further quantitative easing from the Federal Reserve. This afternoon's release of the FOMC Minutes from the Sept. 21 meeting will be closely read for clues on the central bank's next move. This week's major earnings announcements also begin after the close with Intel and CSX Corp. reporting third quarter results. Today's Food for Thought: The issue of obesity
11-Oct-10	Wake-Up Call -- 11 October 2010 Talk in the marketplace continues to focus on the potential for further quantitative easing from the Federal Reserve, in particular following Friday's disappointing employment report. The speculation has not created much of a bid this morning, however, as U.S. equity futures are flat to very slightly higher against fair value. Today's Food for Thought: GDP growth since the beginning of the recession
08-Oct-10	Wake-Up Call -- 08 October 2010 U.S. equity futures are trading modestly lower ahead of the September employment report at 8:30 a.m. ET. That is actually more direction than they usually show ahead of the highly-anticipated report, as weakness overseas and a slightly stronger dollar offset positive earnings from Alcoa. Today's Food for Thought: Corporate yields at new lows, but spreads remain wide
07-Oct-10	Wake-Up Call -- 07 October 2010 U.S. equity futures are showing little direction on a busy morning that includes European central bank decisions, a continued downtrend in the dollar and September same-store sales results. Today's Food for Thought: Housing vacancy estimates
06-Oct-10	Wake-Up Call -- 06 October 2010 Following yesterday's strong gains, stock futures suggest a relatively flat opening for the cash market after slipping from early morning highs; however, the ADP employment at 8:15 a.m. ET has the potential to shake things up a bit. The Briefing.com consensus expects an increase of 18,000 in private nonfarm payrolls. Today's Food for Thought: The S&P 500 faces a $262 bln pension fund shortfall
05-Oct-10	Wake-Up Call -- 05 October 2010 U.S. equity futures are trading modestly higher this morning following a number of developments overseas. The Nikkei outperformed, rising 1.5% after the Bank of Japan cut its benchmark overnight lending rate from 0.1% to a range of 0.0-0.1% and created a 5 tln yen fund to boost liquidity. European markets rallied in early trade this morning on better-than-expected economic data, but most have moved off their best levels and have only a modest bid at midday. Today's Food for Thought: State funding deficits, part II
04-Oct-10	Wake-Up Call -- 04 October 2010 U.S. equity futures point to a modestly lower open this morning, following European markets lower as the dollar rebounds against the euro. Economic data in the form of August Pending Home Sales and Factory Orders could act as a catalyst later in the morning. Today's Food for Thought: State funding deficits
01-Oct-10	Wake-Up Call -- 01 October 2010 U.S. equity markets are pointing to a higher open this morning following another busy session overseas. Asia rallied overnight, helped by a better-than-expected PMI Manufacturing figure out of China. European markets opened higher earlier this morning, but are trading mixed at midday. Irish and Portuguese bond yields are coming in for a second day, though Greek bond yields are actually seeing the largest move lower. Today's Food for Thought: Gaming market dealing with weak console sales, delays
30-Sep-10	Wake-Up Call -- 30 September 2010 U.S. equity markets are pointing to a modestly lower open this morning, having rebounded from lower levels overnight following busy sessions overseas. Today's Food for Thought: AIG and the Treasury finalize an exit plan.
29-Sep-10	Wake-Up Call -- 29 September 2010 U.S. equity futures are showing little direction this morning, even with HP issuing upside FY11 guidance yesterday after the close, but there has been a lot of action overseas. Today's Food for Thought: A look at the U.S. IPO market
28-Sep-10	Wake-Up Call -- 28 September 2010 Global equity markets traded lower overnight on persistent fears about the eurozone sovereign debt situation. However, they have since rebounded and U.S. futures currently point to a flat open for the major averages. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing Southwest Airlines to other U.S. airlines
27-Sep-10	Wake-Up Call -- 27 September 2010 U.S. equity markets are showing little direction on a slow morning to begin the week. This week's economic calendar is very thin, but there is another round of Treasury auctions beginning with today's 2-year Note sale. While equity markets are not showing much direction, Treasuries are notably higher this morning, regaining their declines from Friday. Today's Food for Thought: Ranking companies by assets
24-Sep-10	Wake-Up Call -- 24 September 2010 U.S. equity markets have a modest bid ahead of a key batch of economic data this morning -- Durable Goods Orders at 8:30 a.m. ET and New Home Sales at 10:00 a.m. ET... There was plenty of volatility in Japan, overnight. The Nikkei traded sharply lower at its open, but regained all of those declines just after midnight as the yen spiked lower against the dollar. Speculation centered on the belief that Japanese authorities intervened in the currency for a second time, but nothing is official at this point. Perhaps because of that, the yen regained its declines against the dollar and the Nikkei closed back down 1%. Today's Food for Thought: Trading the midterm election
23-Sep-10	Wake-Up Call -- 23 September 2010 For the second straight morning, U.S. equity futures traded modestly higher overnight only to sell off with European markets. Europe opened slightly higher early this morning, but sold off over the first 90 minutes of trade, along with the euro, after disappointing preliminary readings for Manufacturing PMI in August suggested a slowdown in the pace of the economic recovery. Helping keep markets at their lower levels was a poor second quarter GDP figure out of struggling Ireland. However, unlike yesterday, there are two potential catalysts on today's economic calendar that could influence trade -- the jobless claims report at 8:30 a.m. ET and Existing Home Sales at 10:00 a.m. ET. Today's Food for Thought: Blockbuster vs. Netflix
22-Sep-10	Wake-Up Call -- 22 September 2010 U.S. equity futures indicate a modestly lower open this morning. They had a slight bid overnight, but sold off as European equity markets gave up their modest opening gains and moved lower in their first hour of trade. The major currencies have extended their post-FOMC gains against the dollar today. Today's Food for Thought: Firms that have missed TARP dividend payments
21-Sep-10	Wake-Up Call -- 21 September 2010 U.S. equity futures are showing little direction this morning ahead of the FOMC policy directive this afternoon. Housing data in the form of starts and permits will also be in focus. European markets are modestly higher at midday following successful debt offerings from Ireland, Greece and Spain that eased sovereign debt fears, at least for one day. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing the length of the recession
20-Sep-10	Wake-Up Call -- 20 September 2010 U.S. equity futures point to a modestly higher open on a very slow morning. Japanese markets were closed for a holiday overnight while participants remain cautious ahead of the FOMC meeting tomorrow. Today's Food for Thought: Agency and nonagency MBS issuance
17-Sep-10	Wake-Up Call -- 17 September 2010 U.S. equity futures point to a modestly higher open this morning on positive corporate news. They had been trading even higher, but have come off their best levels. Technology companies Research In Motion and Oracle reported strong earnings results and guidance yesterday after the close. Texas Instruments also added $7.5 bln to its existing stock repurchase program. We have not seen any reason for the pullback, but would note the dollar, which had been trading lower against the other major currencies, has rebounded over the last 90 minutes. U.S. Treasuries, which also rebounded earlier this morning, have moved even higher over the last hour. Today's Food for Thought: Corporate debt issuance
16-Sep-10	Wake-Up Call -- 16 September 2010 U.S. equity futures are trading modestly lower this morning on what could prove to be a busy day. It began with slightly disappointing earnings results/guidance from FedEx, which will be followed by tech companies Oracle and Research In Motion after the close. There are a number of economic releases today, highlighted by the jobless claims and PPI reports at 8:30 a.m. ET. There is also another large batch of companies presenting at industry conferences. Finally, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner testifies twice today on exchange rate policy, the second time specifically on China. Today's Food for Thought: Average real income by segment
15-Sep-10	Wake-Up Call -- 15 September 2010 Despite volatility in Asia, U.S. equity futures are showing little direction this morning ahead of an industrial production figure at 9:15 a.m. ET and another large batch of companies presenting at industry conferences... Japan surprised participants by intervening in the foreign exchange markets for the first time in six years to weaken the yen. The dollar surged back above 85 against the yen while the Nikkei spiked 2.3% on the session. However, the announcement has not had an effect on global markets. Today's Food for Thought: Topping action recently in spread between 10-year Note and 3-month Bill, but remains above historical average.
14-Sep-10	Wake-Up Call -- 14 September 2010 U.S. equity futures are lower this morning ahead of the August retail sales report at 8:30 a.m. ET. Markets overseas have shown little direction, though there were some notable developments. Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan was reelected overnight, but the announcement sent the yen to a fresh 15-year high against the dollar of 83.07. European markets are modestly lower at midday after Germany's ZEW economic sentiment survey came in at -4.3 in September, well below expectations. Today's Food for Thought: High-yield corporate bond yields move back to lows.
13-Sep-10	Wake-Up Call -- 13 September 2010 U.S. equity futures point to a higher open this morning, led by financial stocks after the Basel Committee released its new capital standards under Basel III that were in-line with expectations and gave lenders a longer-than-anticipated transition period. Asian markets rose overnight, also aided by Chinese economic data for August that, while in-line, showed the country's economy is still growing at a steady pace. European markets opened higher and have held those gains into midday. They were also aided by the EC raising its 2010 GDP growth forecast for the eurozone from 0.9% to 1.7%. Today's Food for Thought: CEO compensation
10-Sep-10	Wake-Up Call -- 10 September 2010 U.S. equity markets look to continue their recent momentum as futures point to a modestly higher open this morning following mixed trade overseas. Today's calendar is very thin, however, so we expect the low-volume trading environment that has persisted this week to continue today. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing jumps in unemployment rates
09-Sep-10	Wake-Up Call -- 09 September 2010 U.S. equity futures are trading with European markets for a third day. After Europe opened modestly lower, markets trended higher from there, showing modest gains at midday. U.S. futures did the same and currently indicate a slightly higher open. In a reversal of yesterday's session, banks are leading the rally in Europe today. Today's Food for Thought: Expected growth in internet traffic, video.
08-Sep-10	Wake-Up Call -- 08 September 2010 U.S. equity futures are tracking European markets for a second day. They opened lower, but have regained those losses over the last two hours, helping U.S. futures move into modestly positive territory. Today's Food for Thought: A look at year-to-date returns on benchmark indices.
07-Sep-10	Wake-Up Call -- 07 September 2010 Following a mixed session in Asia overnight, European markets sold off this morning on capital fears in the banking sector and fears of a potential tax in the mining industry, pushing U.S. futures into negative territory. Today's Food for Thought: Forward versus trailing earnings estimates.
03-Sep-10	Wake-Up Call -- 03 September 2010 As expected, U.S. equity futures are trading around unchanged ahead of this morning's highly-anticipated August employment report at 8:30 a.m. ET. Asian markets edged higher overnight following the extension on Wall Street yesterday, and European markets are trading modestly higher at midday. The Treasury market is seeing more movement as the yield on the 10-year rose to a three-week high just over an hour ago. Finally, the dollar is showing little direction ahead of the data. Today's Food for Thought: The price ratio between gold and oil.
02-Sep-10	Wake-Up Call -- 02 September 2010 U.S. equity futures are showing little direction this morning as market participants sift through a number of items, including August same-stores sales results from retailers and interest rate decisions from foreign central banks. Today's Food for Thought: Apple's changing revenue drivers.
01-Sep-10	Wake-Up Call -- 01 September 2010 U.S. equity futures are pointing to a sharply higher open this morning following positive economic data overseas. U.S. Treasury yields are rebounding, with the 10-year moving higher off yesterday's fresh 52-week low of 2.470%. However, all of that can change at 8:15 a.m. ET when the ADP Employment figure is released for August. Today's Food for Thought: The effect of temporary census workers.
31-Aug-10	Wake-Up Call -- 31 August 2010 U.S. equity markets are set to extend yesterday's declines this morning as futures point to a lower open. Sentiment overseas is very weak as Asian markets closed lower overnight and European markets are lower at midday. Japan continued to lead the way as the Nikkei plunged 3.6% on the weakness on Wall Street yesterday and continued disappointment that the Bank of Japan did not intervene in the yen, which pushed closer to last week's 15-year high overnight. Today's Food for Thought: Smaller banks struggle to repay TARP.
30-Aug-10	Wake-Up Call -- 30 August 2010 U.S. equity futures are showing little direction this morning. With today's calendar light and the long Labor Day holiday upcoming, volume could be thin today and this week, though that can lead to quick moves in the major averages. Treasury yields, however, are moving lower once again this morning following Friday's bounce. Today's Food for Thought: Updating the time line of the 3Par saga.
27-Aug-10	Wake-Up Call -- 27 August 2010 Futures indicate a modestly higher start to the trading day ahead of the second estimate for second quarter GDP and a 10:00 a.m. ET speech from Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke. Today's Food for Thought: U.S. mortgage delinquencies decline in the second quarter.
26-Aug-10	Wake-Up Call -- 26 August 2010 U.S. equity futures are showing little direction early as market participants await the jobless claims report due out at 8:30 a.m. ET. Today's Food for Thought: Measuring the effects of the expiration of the Bush tax cuts.
25-Aug-10	Wake-Up Call -- 25 August 2010 U.S. equity futures oscillated between positive and negative territory overnight and currently point to a modestly lower open. Asian markets fell sharply, but European markets have also oscillated above and below unchanged during morning trade. Today's session should be influenced by July economic data for a second day, as first Durable Goods Orders will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET, followed by New Home Sales at 10:00 a.m. ET. Today's Food for Thought: CBO estimates impact of stimulus.
24-Aug-10	Wake-Up Call -- 24 August 2010 U.S. equity futures point to a sharply lower open this morning following a sell-off in global equity markets and ahead of the July Existing Home Sales figure at 10:00 a.m. ET. The Treasury market is confirming the move as the yield on the 10-year fell to a fresh 52-week low of 2.538%. Today's Food for Thought: Buybacks, M&A appear to be turning the corner.
23-Aug-10	Wake-Up Call -- 23 August 2010 U.S. equity markets may see a bit of short covering this morning as futures indicate a higher open. European markets are trading modestly higher at midday. They shrugged off slightly weaker-than-expected PMI manufacturing data in the eurozone, boosted by continued M&A activity. There is also M&A activity in the U.S., helping to boost futures. Today's Food for Thought: Merrill Lynch corporate-grade A-rated index falls to 7-year low.
20-Aug-10	Wake-Up Call -- 20 August 2010 Sentiment overseas has turned negative today, and that, plus a renewed sell-off in European currencies, has pushed U.S. futures lower. European markets are firmly in the red at midday, led lower by constructions shares, carmakers and banks, in particular in Greece and Spain. That helped pushed European sovereign debt spreads even wider. The currency markets did not help, as the euro and pound have seen a strong move lower against the dollar. Today's Food for Thought: Tech sector starting put its cash to use.
19-Aug-10	Wake-Up Call -- 19 August 2010 U.S. equity futures, European markets and currency markets made some volatile moves overnight. However, all of that volatility merely led to futures indicating a modestly higher open, slightly higher trade in Europe and a mixed currency market. Germany's Bundesbank came out at 6:00 a.m. ET and raised its forecast for the country's growth, increasing its GDP estimate for 2010 to 3.0% from 1.9%. European markets and U.S. futures spiked back into positive territory following the announcement. Today's Food for Thought: Apple retains spot as world's largest tech company.
18-Aug-10	Wake-Up Call -- 18 August 2010 U.S. equity futures are showing little direction this morning, currently pointing to a flat open. Asian markets ended mixed overnight, but European markets are trading modestly lower at midday. Market participants continue to digest earnings reports, with today's list highlighted by Deere and Target, but there is little else on the calendar. Today's Food for Thought: Growing number of U.S. patents, and lawsuits.
17-Aug-10	Wake-Up Call -- 17 August 2010 U.S. equity futures have been slowly trending higher since late last night and currently indicate a stronger open for the major averages. There does not appear to be much behind this morning's move other than short covering. Two major retailers reported this morning, Walmart and Home Depot, but their results and guidance came in mixed. However, market participants may be focusing on Walmart raising its FY11 EPS guidance range. The positive tone will be put to the test later this morning by a large batch of economic data that includes the first figures from July on housing (Starts/Permits) and Industrial Production from last month. Today's Food for Thought: Spread between mortgage and Treasury rates widening.
16-Aug-10	Wake-Up Call -- 16 August 2010 U.S. equity futures point to a modestly lower open this morning following a weaker-than-expected GDP figure out of Japan and disappointing results/guidance from home-improvement retailer Lowe's. A continued decline in U.S. Treasury yields is confirming the move, as the 10- and 30-year saw their yields decline to fresh 52-week lows. Today's Food for Thought: Foreclosure filings may be topping, but remain elevated.
13-Aug-10	Wake-Up Call -- 13 August 2010 Following modest declines yesterday, U.S. equity futures are pointing to a slightly lower open this morning. They had been trading higher overnight, coinciding with strength in Asian markets, but gave up those gains between 5:00 and 6:00 a.m. ET. European markets had opened higher and European currencies had been rebounding against the dollar, but they also reversed course. Today's Food for Thought: The trend of overestimation from sell-side equity analysts may have reversed to underestimation.
12-Aug-10	Wake-Up Call -- 12 August 2010 Following yesterday's sharply lower session, futures moved even lower after tech bellwether Cisco Systems reported weak margins and top-line guidance. Futures have been trending upwards since then, but still point to a modestly lower open this morning. U.S. Treasury yields are rebounding modestly in early trade, ahead of this afternoon's 30-year Bond auction. The euro and pound attempted to do the same overnight, but have since extended yesterday's sharp declines following weak economic data out of Greece and the eurozone. Today's Food for Thought: Fannie, Freddie further extend credit lines with U.S. Treasury.
11-Aug-10	Wake-Up Call -- 11 August 2010 The secondary reaction from global equity markets following the FOMC policy directive has been a sharp move lower. The focus seems to have shifted to the "more modest" economic recovery and what the Fed's Treasury repurchases says about the growth outlook. Along those lines, the Bank of England lowered its growth outlook in its Inflation Report, which helped send European markets and currencies sharply lower. It Asia, Japan led the way lower as the Nikkei lost 2.7% after the yen hit a new 15-year high against the dollar of 84.73. Today's Food for Thought: When Doves Cry
10-Aug-10	Wake-Up Call -- 10 August 2010 Ahead of this afternoon's policy directive from the FOMC, U.S. equity futures indicate a lower open for the market. The sell-off began overnight in Asia, where mainland China's Shanghai Composite fell 2.9% following the first batch of the country's July economic data. Imports grew 22.7% y/y, well below expectations that were closer to June's 34.1%, which could be pointing to slowing global trade. In addition, the dollar has been rebounding against the pound and euro since late last night. Today's Food for Thought: No change to analyst estimates for upcoming quarters despite strong second quarter earnings results.
09-Aug-10	Wake-Up Call -- 09 August 2010 U.S. equity markets used a late-session rally Friday to close with only modest declines. They will look to continue that momentum this morning as futures currently indicate a modestly higher open. However, trade could also be kept in check ahead of tomorrow's policy directive from the FOMC. At the same time, many are speculating that the Fed will announce new quantitative measures. Today's Food for Thought: Negative swap spreads
06-Aug-10	Wake-Up Call -- 06 August 2010 Yesterday's jobless claims report and Wednesday's ADP Employment figure were just preludes to today's highly-anticipated July employment report. As usual, U.S. equity futures are showing little direction ahead of the release at 8:30 a.m. ET. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing bank-failure figures from the S&L crisis and the Great Recession.
05-Aug-10	Wake-Up Call -- 05 August 2010 U.S. equity futures are trading around unchanged on a busy morning. The jobless claims report will be in focus this morning, but market participants also have another batch of second quarter earnings reports, July same-store sales data from retailers and interest rate decisions from two European central banks. Today's Food for Thought: The relationship between NIPA corporate profits and the S&P 500.
04-Aug-10	Wake Up Call -- Caution Ahead of ADP Report Futures have recovered a bit from earlier lows that were reached around 6:00 a.m. ET; however, they are still pointing to a slightly lower open. The focus this morning will be on the 8:15 a.m. ET ADP Employment Change report for July. The median forecast calls for an increase of 25,000 jobs, according to the Briefing.com consensus.
03-Aug-10	Wake Up Call -- Two Year Yield Hits Record Low Following yesterday's rally, stock futures suggest a muted start to the trading day. The two-year note yield hit a record low 0.52% and the 10 year note is up 12 ticks, leaving its yield at 2.92%.
02-Aug-10	Wake Up Call -- Futures Post Strong Gains Following strong gains in overseas markets, stock futures suggest a sharply higher open as traders focus on encouraging earnings reports and shrug off news that China's PMI fell to a multi-month low.
30-Jul-10	Wake-Up Call -- 30 July 2010 This morning, all eyes will be on the Advance report for second quarter GDP at 8:30 a.m. ET. Futures are lower ahead of the release. Asian markets ended lower overnight. Japan's Nikkei led the way, losing 1.6% on continued strength in the yen and following two days of declines on Wall Street, more than offsetting strong first quarter (Jun) earnings reports. The dollar actually fell to an eight-month low against the yen of 86.16 this morning, nearing its 15-year low of 84.83. However, the greenback is trading higher against the euro and pound. That may be pressuring European markets, which are trading lower at midday as they also await the GDP report. Today's Food for Thought: Clean tech venture capital investment.
29-Jul-10	Wake Up Call -- 29 July 2010 U.S. equity futures point to a modestly higher open this morning, rallying in early morning trade with European markets and the euro. European markets opened modestly higher on a batch of strong earnings reports from companies such as France Telecom and AstraZeneca. They then extended those gains just after 4:00 a.m. ET as the euro spiked, coming within a few ticks of breaking above its May 10 high of 1.3094. We have read a myriad of reasons for the spike in the euro, including positive economic data, month-end buying from an Asian central bank and concerns of a slowdown here in the U.S. Today's Food for Thought: BP after the Deepwater Horizon vs. XOM after the Exxon Valdez
28-Jul-10	Wake Up Call -- 28 July 2010 Following a range-bound session yesterday, U.S. equity futures are trading around unchanged this morning. Boeing reported mixed second quarter results and guidance this morning while technical levels are in play in the S&P 500 as it probes its 200-day simple moving average at 1,114. Futures did not receive a boost from strong trading in Asia overnight. Potential catalysts on the calendar today include the Durable Goods Orders report at 8:30 a.m. ET and the Federal Reserve's regional Beige Book economic survey at 2:00 p.m. ET.
27-Jul-10	Wake Up Call -- 27 July 2010 U.S. equity markets look to extend their July rebound this morning as futures currently indicate a modestly higher open. They began trending higher around 2:30 a.m. ET, joined by a higher open for European markets, following another positive batch of second quarter earnings reports. In Europe, bank stocks soared in morning trade following better-than-expected results from UBS and Deutsche Bank. Also helping European banks were reports late Monday that the Basel Committee will scale back many of its proposals to beef up bank capital and liquidity rules. In the U.S., Dow-component DuPont beat and raised guidance.
26-Jul-10	Wake Up Call -- 26 July 2010 U.S. equity futures are trading modestly lower on a slow morning. Market participants are taking a breather following a full calendar last week. Earnings results, economic data and U.S. Treasury auctions will pick up later in the week, with today's calendar only containing the New Home Sales figure for June. That report could be a catalyst, however, as the sector deals with a payback period following the expiration of the homebuyer tax credits in April. The energy sector should also be in focus today following reports that Senate democrats may unveil a slimmed-down energy bill.
23-Jul-10	Wake Up Call -- 23 July 2010 U.S. equity futures are trading flat to slightly higher this morning as market participants digest another large batch of earnings reports and await the results of the European bank stress tests this afternoon. Asian markets caught up overnight following the strength on Wall Street yesterday while European markets are trading modestly higher at midday.
22-Jul-10	Wake Up Call -- 22 July 2010 U.S. equity futures point to a higher open for the market this morning. After European markets opened modestly lower overnight, they and U.S. futures began rallying as the euro and pound rebounded strongly against the dollar following better-than-expected economic data out of Europe (eurozone PMI, U.K. retail sales). The focus is also back on second quarter earnings results this morning, and the market has seen a number of better-than-expected reports.
21-Jul-10	Wake Up Call -- 21 July 2010 U.S. equity futures are trading around unchanged this morning, though NASDAQ futures are outperforming following strong results from Apple, who beat/raised on the top line but continued its practice of providing conservative bottom-line guidance. Yahoo!, though, missed slightly on the top line and issued modestly weaker-than-expected revenue guidance. Results from Morgan Stanley and Wells Fargo are still to come this morning. Overseas, Asian markets ended mixed while European markets are catching up following the strong rebound on Wall Street yesterday. Europe held its opening gains despite a sell-off in the euro that began at 4:00 a.m. ET. A weak auction out of Portugal is the primary reason, though the currency turned lower before the results were released.
20-Jul-10	Wake Up Call -- 20 July 2010 Following yesterday's modest gains, U.S. equity futures point to a sharply lower open for the market this morning. Futures initially moved lower yesterday after the close following disappointing second quarter results from tech bellwether IBM. Texas Instruments also moved sharply lower following its report. Futures extended their declines in early morning trade.
19-Jul-10	Wake Up Call -- Futures Modestly Higher Following the sharp sell off Friday, futures indicate a modestly higher open. There is not a specific catalyst for the buying interest, although some encouraging order news for Boeing (BA) is offering support.
16-Jul-10	Wake Up Call -- 16 July 2010 This morning, the focus is entirely on second quarter earnings as four major companies reported. Google started it off yesterday after the close, but unfortunately the company's first bottom-line miss since Q2 2008 sent shares sharply lower. Market participants are digesting financial earnings this morning, including Bank of America, Citigroup and GE Capital. Overseas markets saw mixed action.
15-Jul-10	Wake Up Call -- 15 July 2010 U.S. equity futures are showing little direction this morning as market participants digest second quarter results from JP Morgan Chase and the euro and pound continue their advance against the dollar after Spain sold €3 bln of 15-year Bonds in an auction that saw solid demand. Asian markets sold off overnight, but those losses did not spread overseas.
14-Jul-10	Wake Up Call -- 14 July 2010 Market sentiment received a boost from Intel after the company reported strong results/guidance yesterday after the close. Futures moved higher in after-hours trade, helping Asian markets rally, including a 2.7% surge in Japan's Nikkei. However, futures began trending lower around 4:15 a.m. ET and have given up a good portion of their gains. Only NASDAQ futures continue to indicate a sharply higher open. A similar story played out in Europe, as equity markets opened modestly higher only to trend lower from there.
13-Jul-10	Wake Up Call -- 13 July 2010 U.S. equity futures initially moved higher overnight following a strong start to the second quarter earnings season, but gave up those gains early this morning. A spike higher at 4:30 a.m. ET, however, aided by strength in Europe and a successful bond offering from Greece, points to a stronger start for the market.
12-Jul-10	Wake Up Call -- 12 July 2010 Following a strong rebound rally last week, U.S. equity futures indicate a modestly lower open for the market this morning. In addition to profit taking, futures are being pressured by worries of easing demand from China, a stronger dollar and caution ahead of second quarter earnings season.
09-Jul-10	Wake Up Call -- 09 July 2010 After a very busy premarket session yesterday, news flow is slow this morning and U.S. equity futures currently indicate a flat open for the market. In the bond market, the 10-year is trading modestly lower this morning. That is keeping its yield above the 3.00% level that it regained yesterday.
08-Jul-10	Wake Up Call -- 08 July 2010 U.S. equity futures are trading flat to modestly lower this morning as market participants digest a busy morning of news. The BOE kept its benchmark interest rate at 0.50% and its asset repurchase program at 200 bln pounds, both as expected. The ECB followed suit by keeping its benchmark rate steady at 1.00%. As usual, all eyes will be on President Trichet's press conference that begins at 8:30 a.m. ET. The IMF made headlines this morning when it increased its 2010 GDP projection for the world by 0.4 percentage points to 4.6%, reflecting stronger activity during the first half of the year. Finally, U.S. retailers are announcing June same-store sales results this morning.
07-Jul-10	Wake Up Call -- Another Slow Morning U.S. equity futures indicate a flat to slightly lower open this morning. Both Asian and European markets are pulling back today after U.S. markets did the same yesterday.
06-Jul-10	Wake Up Call -- Bargain Hunters Drive Global Rally U.S. equity futures indicate a higher open this morning, tracking strong gains in global markets. Most markets overseas did very little yesterday while the U.S. was closed in observance of Independence Day, but bargain hunters are out in force today. News flow has been light as today's move is more about short covering.
02-Jul-10	Wake Up Call -- Employment Report Looms As expected, U.S. equity futures are showing little direction this morning ahead of the employment report at 8:30 a.m. ET. Asian markets closed mixed overnight despite positive developments out of China and Australia. European markets are trading modestly higher at midday, led by the U.K.'s FTSE on strength in banks and miners. In the currency market, the dollar is trading flat against the other majors following yesterday's very sharp sell-off, though it had rebounded overnight against the yen before giving up those gains.
01-Jul-10	Wake Up Call -- Poor China PMI Sinks Global Markets U.S. equity futures indicate a modestly lower open this morning. They spiked sharply lower around 9:00 p.m. ET last night, mimicking a sell-off in Asian markets after China's PMI Manufacturing figure for June came in at a weaker-than-expected 52.1 (prior 53.9). Futures have been slowly rebounding since that time, however. Helping the rebound is the euro, which rallied against the dollar this morning after the ECB lent €111.2 bln in six-day bills to ease the expiration of its 12-month bills today and Spain successfully auctioned off €3.5 bln in five-year notes despite yesterday's comments from Moody's.
30-Jun-10	Wake Up Call -- Liquidity Concerns Ease U.S. equity markets are looking to rebound this morning as futures indicate a higher open. European markets and the euro also opened higher. They had given up some of those opening gains before spiking to their best levels at 5:15 a.m. ET when it was announced that banks, ahead of the expiration of €442 bln in one-year ECB loans on Thursday, bought only €131.9 bln in three-month bills. Expectations had been between €150-250 bln, so today's figure eases the liquidity concerns, showing banks do not need as much money as initially thought. Everything could change at 8:15 a.m. ET, however, when the ADP releases the change to its employment figure in June.
29-Jun-10	Wake Up Call -- Global Markets Sharply Lower Markets are selling off globally, beginning in Asia overnight. Mainland China's Shanghai Composite led the way, losing 4.3% amid tight liquidity ahead of a major IPO. European equities are also selling off sharply, knocked lower by renewed fears over funding in the eurozone ahead of bank repayments to the European Central Bank on July 1.
28-Jun-10	Wake Up Call -- Slow Start to the Week U.S. equity futures spiked into modestly positive territory at 4:00 a.m. ET as European markets were trending higher. Other than the G20 headlines, however, it has been a slow morning thus far. Today's calendar is also relatively light, with the only economic report being Personal Spending/Income at 8:30 a.m. ET.
25-Jun-10	Wake Up Call -- Futures Higher After Financial Reform Deal According to reports, lawmakers worked out an agreement on a financial reform bill. The bill is expected to be approved and signed into law by July 4.The news helped lift the futures market, with the major banks trading higher ahead of the opening bell.
24-Jun-10	Wake Up Call -- Europe Leads the Way Lower U.S. equity futures indicate a sharply lower open this morning. Many are attributing the move to the Federal Reserve's comments yesterday, specifically where it said financial conditions have become less supportive of growth, where before it had said supportive. We would note, however, that the sell-off did not begin until 3:00 a.m. ET, after the euro had already begun trending lower.
23-Jun-10	Wake Up Call -- Modest Rebound Ahead of FOMC U.S. equity market are looking to rebound this morning as futures indicate a modestly higher open despite weakness overseas. The U.S. Dollar Index is trading slightly lower this morning as the pound extended yesterday's gains following the minutes from the latest Bank of England meeting, where committee member Andrew Sentance voted against standing pat at 0.50%, instead preferring an increase in the bank rate of 25 bps. Today's calendar is more than just the FOMC, as market participants will have new home sales at 10:00 a.m. ET, which should provide more insight into the payback period in the U.S. housing market, and the second of this week's longer-term Treasury auctions at 1:00 p.m. ET.
22-Jun-10	Wake Up Call -- Giving Some Back U.S. equity futures indicate a slightly lower open this morning despite some volatility overseas. European markets moved sharply lower, with financials leading the way after Fitch downgraded French bank BNP Paribas late yesterday and Standard & Poor's raised its estimates for loan losses for Spain's banking sector this morning. They fell to fresh lows at 5:00 a.m. ET, coinciding with a sell-off in the euro and pound on the S&P announcement.
21-Jun-10	Wake Up Call -- Yuan Move Sparks Global Rally Global equity markets surged after the People's Bank of China announced on Saturday that it will make its currency's exchange rate more "flexible." The announcement may ease political tensions that have risen between China and the U.S. since last year, including accusations that China was deliberately undervaluing its currency to boost exports. While China made a political statement, however, it did not officially change the yuan peg.
18-Jun-10	Wake Up Call -- A Very Slow Morning China's Shanghai Composite lost 1.8% overnight after an economic advisor on the People's Bank of China's monetary policy committee said that the country's economic growth might slow down in the second half of this year. That, however, is one of the few markets that showed any movement. U.S. futures, European markets, Treasuries and the currency market are all trading basically unchanged. The commodity market is active, however, as gold futures just spiked to a fresh all-time high.
17-Jun-10	Wake Up Call -- Europe Setting the Early Tone U.S. equity futures, European markets, the euro and the pound all moved higher between 4:00 and 5:15 a.m. ET this morning. In the middle of that run, Spain successfully auctioned off approximately €3.5 bln of 10- and 30- year notes and bonds.
16-Jun-10	Wake Up Call -- Spain, FedEx in Focus U.S. equity futures point to a lower open this morning. The euro sold off following a strong two-day surge, particularly between 3:00 and 4:00 a.m. ET, when European markets also came off their strong opening levels. Sovereign debt fears are the cause, with the focus on Spain this morning. The spread between the country's 10-year bond and the benchmark German bund has hit an all-time high. FedEx, meanwhile, issued weak EPS guidance.
15-Jun-10	Wake Up Call -- Positive Momentum Continues U.S. equity futures indicate a modestly higher open this morning, having moved higher with European markets and the euro between 3:00 and 6:00 a.m. ET before pulling back slightly. In Europe, markets opened modestly lower before rebounding, and are attempting to close in the black for the fifth consecutive session. The trend higher is impressive as it continued despite German investor sentiment coming in well below expectations -- ZEW survey 28.7 in June versus 45.8 in May. In the currency market, the euro is extending yesterday's strong gain despite the ZEW survey and yesterday's downgrade of Greece, helped by successful debt offerings in Spain and Ireland.
14-Jun-10	Wake Up Call -- Broad-based Strength U.S. equity futures rallied overnight on strength in overseas markets and weakness in the dollar. Asian markets rallied on Friday's gains in Europe and the U.S., short covering and a stronger euro. Europe followed suit, opening higher. Today's sharp move higher in the euro and pound appears to be merely short covering, but positive comments out of Greece Friday night have also provided support.
11-Jun-10	Wake Up Call -- Taking a Breather U.S. equity futures indicate a flat-to-slightly lower open for the market. The moves in the currency market have also been modest, with the euro basically flat against the dollar and the pound giving back some of yesterday's strong gain.
11-Jun-10	The Closer -- More Late-day Volatility U.S. equity markets opened lower this morning following disappointing Retail Sales data, but quickly regained those declines, helped by stronger-than-expected Michigan Sentiment. They range traded through the majority of the session, but used a late-day push to close with modest gains. However, today's move occurred on the lightest volume in two months.
10-Jun-10	Wake Up Call -- Futures Higher on Weaker Dollar U.S. equity futures began trending higher just after 11:00 p.m. ET, once again coinciding with movements in the currency market as the euro and pound began rallying against the dollar at the same time. The euro was boosted by comments from the head of China's national pension fund, who said the currency would weather Europe's debt crisis.
10-Jun-10	The Closer -- Euro, Pound Lead the Way U.S. equity markets open sharply higher on the back of a weaker dollar, as well as strong global economic data. A slow extension upward in afternoon trade helped them close at highs.
09-Jun-10	Wake Up Call -- Chinese Data Boost Global Markets Asian markets began their overnight session lower, but some rebounded in late trade, led by a 2.8% surge in mainland China's Shanghai Composite after three May economic data points were leaked. China's surge helped European markets open higher, though they are off their best levels. Both European and U.S. markets are also benefitting from a modestly weaker dollar.
09-Jun-10	The Closer -- Another Late-day Decline Wipes Out Gains After opening modestly higher and holding there during the first hour of trade, the major averages trended upwards over the next hour to hit their best levels around 11:30 a.m. ET. Unfortunately, they trended lower from there, accelerating downward in the final hour to close in modestly negative territory.
08-Jun-10	Wake Up Call – Bernanke Boosts Futures U.S. equity futures rallied sharply overnight following an interview of Federal Reserve Chairman Bernanke. He said that there seems to be a "good bit" of momentum in consumer spending and investment, so he expects a continued recovery. However, the pound and European markets sold off sharply early this morning following Fitch comments on the U.K. economy, with U.S. futures following suit and giving up some of their gains.
08-Jun-10	The Closer -- Large-caps Outperform in Quiet Session With most of today's catalysts occurring overnight, U.S. equity markets range-traded throughout the session. The major averages probed, but did not break below their May intraday lows. Large-cap stocks outperformed for a second day. While the market trended higher in the last 45 minutes of trading, only the S&P 500 and Dow broke to fresh session highs, ending with gains of over 1%.
07-Jun-10	Wake Up Call -- Futures, Euro Stabilize Overnight U.S. equity futures continued Friday's sell-off overnight, trading sharply lower. However, they bottomed around 10:00 p.m. ET and have trended higher since, currently sitting in modestly positive territory. Futures traded with the euro once again, as the currency hit a fresh four-year low of 1.1877, also around 10:00 p.m. ET, but has rebounded and is trading basically unchanged against the dollar.
07-Jun-10	The Closer -- Stocks Slip Further on Slow Day Following consolidative morning trade, U.S. equity markets trend steadily lower in the afternoon, extending Friday's sharp decline.
04-Jun-10	Wake Up Call -- New Default Concerns U.S. equity futures traded flat overnight ahead of the May employment report this morning. However, the euro and pound spiked lower against the dollar at 7:00 a.m. ET, and futures followed suit, trading sharply lower ahead of the economic release at 8:30 a.m. ET. The move is being attributed to fears Hungary could be the next country at risk of default following comments from a government spokesman.
04-Jun-10	The Closer -- Jobless Recovery, Hold the Recovery Renewed default fears out of Europe, this time from EU member Hungary, send European currencies and equity markets as well as U.S. futures lower premarket. A very disappointing May employment report pushes futures even lower. Even after the sharply lower open, the major averages trend downwards throughout the session.
03-Jun-10	Wake Up Call -- Stocks Steady Ahead of ADP U.S. equity futures are seeing a very slight bid ahead of the release. Corporate news is light once again, though retailers are announcing May same-store sales results.
03-Jun-10	The Closer -- All Eyes on Tomorrow's Employment Report U.S. equity markets reverse to the downside in morning trade, mimicking the euro's decline against the dollar, but trend higher in the afternoon to close with modest gains. Today's trade once again occurred amid light volume, despite a large batch of economic data, ahead of tomorrow's highly-anticipated employment report.
02-Jun-10	Wake Up Call -- Futures Rebounding, Outperforming Europe U.S. equity markets are looking to rebound this morning, despite weakness overseas, as futures indicate a higher open. European markets opened lower this morning and have remained in the red. They are being led lower by the financial sector on continued fears about the European debt crisis after Spanish newspapers reported the country's second-largest bank, Caja Madrid, asked the government for €3 bln.
02-Jun-10	The Closer -- A Jolt of Energy for the Market U.S. equity markets extend their gains in a late-session surge, finishing sharply higher. The energy sector led the rally, helped by strength in natural gas stocks following favorable comments from President Obama and a modest rebound in shares of BP (BP).
01-Jun-10	Wake Up Call -- Euro Back at Lows While most markets overseas saw little movement yesterday, China's Shanghai Composite fell 2.4%. It lost an additional 0.9% overnight after its two PMI Manufacturing figures came in weaker than expected in May. However, U.S. futures sank to their lows between 3:00 and 5:00 a.m. ET this morning as the euro extended its decline against the dollar, hitting 1.2111, its lowest level since April 2006.
01-Jun-10	The Closer -- June Starts with a Swoon On the heels of one of the worst performances in history for the month of May, the market started June on a negative note as headline risk - both real and perceived - overshadowed some encouraging economic news and pulled down the major averages.
28-May-10	Wake Up Call -- Modestly Higher on Slow Morning U.S. equity futures just pushed into modestly positive territory, but for the most part have shown little direction amid light volume. Many are noting a batch of economic data this morning, but we would note the market has not shown any concerted response to economic results recently.
28-May-10	The Closer -- Roller-coaster Ride Continues U.S. equity markets move lower in volatile afternoon trade after Fitch downgrades Spain's credit rating one notch from Aaa to AA+. Today's action comes ahead of the Memorial Day holiday on Monday.
27-May-10	Wake Up Call -- China News Boosts Stocks U.S. equity futures are sharply higher, benefiting from reports that China remains committed to its diversified foreign exchange reserves, including Europe.
27-May-10	The Closer -- Market Flips the On Switch The on again-off again relationship with stocks was on again in a big way Thursday as global equity markets rallied following a reassuring comment from China about its euro holdings. The S&P 500 surged 3.3%, longer-dated Treasuries got clobbered, and crude futures made a big move for the second straight day.
26-May-10	Wake Up Call -- Buying Efforts Carry Over U.S. equity futures currently suggest the rebound effort will continue today as overseas markets gain. Commodities are garnering some buying interest this morning, with oil futures up 2.9% and gold futures up 1.3%.
26-May-10	The Closer -- True to Uncertain Form The stock market started the day on an upbeat note, but failed to keep its momentum as a faltering euro tripped up the market in the afternoon. Consequently, the market was stopped short again of being able to record two consecutive winning sessions.
25-May-10	Wake Up Call -- Global Turmoil Sinks Stocks Selling interest has carried over today on a global flight out of risky assets. U.S. equity futures are down sharply, trading near session lows. At the same time, the dollar and Treasuries are soaring in a flight-to-safety bid, while crude oil futures are dropping.
25-May-10	The Closer -- Disaster Averted There was fear and loathing in early action when the S&P 500 dropped 3.1% in the first ten minutes of trading. It was a different story by the close, though, as the market bounced back from short-term oversold conditions to log a slight gain.
24-May-10	Wake Up Call -- Lower Open Expected Equity markets are indicated lower, with sentiment hurt by news that Spain's central bank took over a failed lender. The euro is sharply lower against the dollar, falling back to $1.2393.
24-May-10	The Closer -- Buyers Pull Disappearing Act The stock market was unable to build on last Friday's gain as buyers kept to the sidelines in most cases. That was especially true late in the session as a broad-based wave of selling interest in the last 15 minutes sent the major averages well below the unchanged line.
21-May-10	Wake Up Call -- Futures Point to Losses Futures gave up overnight gains and suggest losses at the open. The euro hit as high as $1.2672 overnight but has since retreated to a smaller gain at $1.2534.
21-May-10	The Closer -- Market Trades in Discomfort Zone It was another frenetic day of trading, accented by an early selloff that knocked the S&P 500 down as much as 1.5% in early action and a rush of buying interest in the final 20 minutes that lifted the S&P 500 out of negative territory and produced a 1.5% gain in what amounted to another uncomfortable session.
20-May-10	Wake Up Call -- Futures Turn Sharply Lower Futures turned sharply lower in recent trade with the euro taking a hit at the same time. There has not been a specific news catalyst for the sudden, and sharp, downturn, so uncertainty over the situation in Europe is being touted as the prevailing excuse.
20-May-10	The Closer -- Grappling with Growth Outlook Major averages in the U.S. fell sharply Thursday as participants grappled with concerns about the growth outlook due to a looming slowdown in Europe and China. The S&P 500 fell 3.9%, which was its worst loss this year.
19-May-10	Wake Up Call -- Selling Pressure Continues Selling efforts have continued today, with futures indicating a lower open ahead of the CPI report at 8:30 a.m. ET. European markets are posting sharp losses following news of the German partial short selling ban.
19-May-10	The Closer -- Pick an Angle, Any Angle There was a lot of action in Wednesday's session in many different markets. The euro staged a big rebound, yet the U.S. market did not follow in its wake. In brief, there were a lot of angles to Wednesday's trading but no closure that would suggest the volatility is due to come to an abrupt halt.
18-May-10	Wake Up Call -- Futures Indicate Higher Open Futures indicate a positive start to the trading day ahead of a pair of economic releases at 8:30 a.m. ET -- Housing Starts and Building Permits, and the Producer Price Index.
18-May-10	The Closer -- German Nakedness Not Attractive The U.S. stock market and the euro fared well in early action, but news that Germany is introducing a temporary ban on naked short selling turned things ugly for the euro and led to a broad-based selloff in stocks.
17-May-10	Wake Up Call -- Euro Hits Four Year Low Futures point to a modest recovery effort this morning. The euro briefly hit a four year low of $1.2235, but has since recovered to the $1.23 level.
17-May-10	The Closer -- A Tale of Two Sessions The euro and the U.S. stock market both languished in morning action, but when the former rebounded in the afternoon, the latter followed suit. After being down as much as 1.8%, the S&P 500 managed to eke out a positive finish.
14-May-10	Wake Up Call -- Deflating Euro Deflates Sentiment Futures currently indicate a lower open as European markets tumble on continued concerns regarding Europe's debt situation. A handful of upcoming economic releases are slated for release, including April Retail Sales, and Capacity Utilization and Industrial Production.
14-May-10	The Closer -- In with EU Bang, Out with Euro Whimper The week started on a high note for the market; however, it ended on a low note as the market mood shifted from relief to exasperation over Europe's efforts to stem a sovereign debt crisis.
13-May-10	Wake Up Call -- Market Steadies Ahead of Jobless Claims Futures suggest a flat-to-slightly higher open, with the Nasdaq set to underperform. Weekly new jobless claims are due at 8:30ET. Claims are expected to come in at 440,000.
13-May-10	The Closer -- Euro Sags and Stocks Drag The stock market stopped to catch its breath Thursday while the euro continued to sink further. Losses in the equity market, which had a defensive leaning, were paced by the retail, technology, financial and industrial stocks.
12-May-10	Wake Up Call -- Higher, Aided by Eurozone GDP U.S. futures and European markets spiked into positive territory at 3:30 a.m. ET this morning, then received a further boost a half hour later after the eurozone reported better-than-expected Q1 2010 GDP. That does not mean the safety trade is dead, as gold rallied to a new all-time high of $1,245.40 before pulling back modestly.
12-May-10	The Closer -- Just Like Old Times Wednesday's session had a familiar look to it. Negative news items were ignored, small-cap stocks outperformed, the growth trade was back on, volatility was down, and volume was relatively light. Oh, and the S&P 500 has now reclaimed all that it lost and then some in last week's slide from Wednesday to Friday.
11-May-10	Wake Up Call -- €750 bln Buys You a Day It looks like the new eurozone bailout package only quelled Greece and contagion fears for a day, as U.S. futures and global markets are trading sharply lower this morning on doubts about the success of the plan and the long-term outlook for the eurozone.
11-May-10	The Closer -- A Stalled Rally The stock market put up a good fight in a bid to continue Monday's rally, but concerns related to the EU bailout plan and potential rate hikes in China acted as headwinds that stymied the market.
10-May-10	Wake Up Call -- Now That is a Bailout Plan The EU met yesterday and completely changed its tactics, agreeing to a €750 bln bailout package, which includes €250 bln from the IMF, in exchange for additional austerity measures. The ECB separately announced it will intervene in the public and private debt markets. Global markets have soared on the news
10-May-10	The Closer -- EU Spells Relief There was a major relief rally in equity markets around the globe following news the EU agreed to a support package totaling close to $1 trillion to preserve financial stability in Europe. The euro itself, however, had a strikingly underwhelming performance in the wake of this news.
07-May-10	Wake Up Call -- Futures Lift Ahead of Nonfarm Payrolls Futures suggest a modestly higher open following yesterday's epic trading action, though the April U.S. employment report is likely to set the tone at 8:30 a.m. ET. The UK general election did not result in a decisive winner, and Germany's parliament reportedly approved a draft law on aid to Greece.
07-May-10	The Closer -- Stocks Extend Sharp Decline A larger-than-expected gain in nonfarm payrolls failed to boost the markets as concerns regarding Europe continued to weigh on sentiment.
06-May-10	Wake Up Call -- Equities Look for Direction; Dollar Higher Asian markets tumbled overnight, as the Shanghai Composite fell 4.1% on concerns the Chinese government may take additional steps to curb speculation in the property sector. European markets and U.S. futures are not seeing a similar-sized move, however, trading around unchanged. They have been fluctuating in and out of negative territory based on moves in the currency market.
06-May-10	The Closer -- Uncertainty Grips and Rips the Market The U.S. stock market experienced an historic sell-off intraday Thursday with the Dow falling nearly 1,000 points or 9.2%. While that plunge is being attributed to a "trading error," and the major averages cut their losses considerably, it still cannot be overlooked that the S&P 500 declined 3.2% in another day filled with uncertainty on several fronts.
05-May-10	Wake Up Call -- Trying to Answer U.S. equity markets will attempt to rebound today after the major averages plummeted yesterday on renewed fears about Greece and contagion. European markets and U.S. futures have not gotten off on the right foot, though, trading modestly lower this morning. Things could change at 8:15 a.m. ET, however, when the ADP Employment report is released.
05-May-10	Vote on Greek Bailout in Focus; Moody's Reviewing Portugal The renewed fears on Greece come ahead of a German parliament vote on Friday on whether to approve the Greek bailout package; a vote that the market, at least, believes is not a sure thing. There will be stories throughout the day today on the massive protests taking place in Greece. Despite them, the country is expected to approve the new austerity measures and bailout package.
05-May-10	The Closer -- Stuck in a Euro Rut For the second straight day concerns about sovereign debt risk in Europe weighed heavily on the euro and global equity markets. Losses in the U.S. were less severe than seen on Tuesday, yet a risk aversion trade was clear to see.
04-May-10	Wake Up Call -- Greek Fears Renewed Many credited yesterday's rally to a weekend agreement on a Greek financial aid package, but the euro dropped on the news, which also failed to lift European equity markets or lower bond yields. Skepticism about the plan has continued today. First, the euro continued lower overnight. European markets and U.S. futures followed suit, beginning to sell off just after 4:00 a.m. ET.
04-May-10	The Closer -- On Second Thought Having had more time to contemplate the EU's aid plan for Greece, market participants do not appear confident the plan will stem contagion risk. That concern, and signs of a slowdown in China, precipitated a broad-based selloff in global equity markets.
03-May-10	Wake Up Call -- Short Covering Despite Weakness Overseas Following a busy weekend, futures indicate the market may see some short covering today. European leaders agreed to a €110 bln bailout of Greece in exchange for an additional €30 bln in austerity measures, but the announcement sent the euro lower and failed to boost European equity markets.
03-May-10	The Closer -- No Mayday Call Needed Monday The month of May started on a solid note, as the major indexes all registered gains in excess of 1.0% on a broad-based advance that was led by the consumer discretionary, industrials, and financial sectors.
30-Apr-10	Wake Up Call -- Modestly Higher Ahead of GDP Release U.S. equity futures are showing very modest gains ahead of the GDP report at 8:30 a.m. ET. The dollar is trading lower against the euro this morning following reports that Greece is nearing an agreement on a new austerity plan that would clear the way for the country to receive its long-awaited financial aid package.
30-Apr-10	The Closer -- Volatile Week Ends Poorly Following a two-day rebound rally, U.S. equity markets fell sharply today, closing near the week's lows. They showed little reaction to this morning's Advance GDP release, which came in basically in-line at 3.2% in the first quarter.
29-Apr-10	Wake Up Call -- Greek Fears Ease, at Least for One Day European markets are rebounding today on positive earnings reports, better-than-expected economic data and easing fears on Greece. That, along with a weaker dollar, has helped U.S. futures rally this morning.
29-Apr-10	The Closer -- A Relief Rally with European Roots Major averages in the U.S. registered solid gains, drafting behind a fast-paced move in the financial sector and reports that Germany and the EU will be forthcoming soon with a larger than previously proposed financial aid package for Greece.
28-Apr-10	Wake Up Call -- Modest Short Covering U.S. equity futures are seeing modest short covering this morning. They moved higher over the last two hours, coinciding with European markets rebounding off their worst levels. That does not mean the fears of a Greek default and potential contagion have eased, as yields and credit default swaps continued higher overnight.
28-Apr-10	The Closer -- A Tepid Rebound Effort The major averages ended higher Wednesday, but it was a hard-fought affair with another dovish statement from the FOMC pitted against ongoing concerns about sovereign debt dealings in Europe. Financial shares led the advance in which the consumer discretionary sector (-0.3%) was the only losing sector.
27-Apr-10	Wake Up Call -- Greek, Contagion Fears Continue U.S. equity futures indicate a modestly lower open this morning. They are not seeing as sharp a decline as Asian and European markets experienced overnight, however, with continued worries about financial aid for Greece hitting Europe.
27-Apr-10	The Closer -- Sovereign Debt Concerns Drive Selloff The U.S. stock market did what it could to hang in early, but it ultimately succumbed to broad-based, and heavy, selling interest after a Standard & Poor's downgrade of debt ratings for Greece and Portugal fueled concerns about a sovereign debt default.
26-Apr-10	Wake Up Call -- Global Markets Rally Despite Greece Concerns Asian and European markets rallied overnight, particularly Japan's Nikkei, which surged 2.3% on the strength on Wall Street, a weak yen and strong earnings. U.S. futures, though, are up only very modestly premarket, even following a beat/raise from Caterpillar (CAT), on worries about how and when Greece will receive financial aid.
26-Apr-10	The Closer -- Financials Flag Down Market The broader market put up a fight to log another winning session, but weakness in the financial sector prevented it from doing so. Helped by Caterpillar (CAT), though, the Dow eked out its twelfth gain in the last 13 sessions.
23-Apr-10	Wake Up Call -- Greece Officially Asks for Aid Expectations had been building toward this over the last couple of weeks, and markets are rallying this morning as it temporarily relieves the pressure that has been hanging over the market.
23-Apr-10	The Closer -- Afternoon Buying Leads to Solid Gains The major indices overcame early losses to settle with solid gains after steady buying interest throughout the afternoon. Most companies reported better-than-expected earnings. In economic news, new home sales surged 27% y/y.
22-Apr-10	Wake Up Call -- Lower on Greece; Earnings Also Disappoint Despite a number of companies reporting disappointing earnings/guidance (EBAY, NOK, QCOM) and Asian markets trading lower overnight, European markets and U.S. futures were in positive territory very early this morning. However, things changed around 5:00 a.m. ET, with equities moving lower as the dollar rallied against the euro, after eurozone budget deficit data were released for 2009.
22-Apr-10	The Closer -- A Dip Followed by Another Rebound The stock market suffered some early selling pressure, weighed down by headlines surrounding Greece's fiscal situation and a handful of earnings disappointments. That weakness was fleeting. True to form, it was quickly met with renewed buying interest.
21-Apr-10	Wake Up Call -- Earnings Remain in Focus U.S. futures are a mixed bag as market participants digest earnings reports from many big names. S&P futures are modestly lower, but NASDAQ futures are higher after Apple (AAPL) reported blowout results.
21-Apr-10	The Closer -- Market Churns on Earnings News Faced with a host of earnings news, most of which was better than expected, the stock market ended the day close to where it began the day as neither buyers nor sellers showed a great deal of conviction overall.
20-Apr-10	Wake Up Call -- Futures, Europe Higher U.S. equity futures have rallied over the last three hours on mixed, but generally positive first quarter earnings reports. Markets in Europe are also rallying today, led by Germany after the country's ZEW Survey of Economic Sentiment came in at 53.0 for April, well above the 46.0 consensus estimate.
20-Apr-10	The Closer -- Earnings in the Spotlight The first quarter earnings reporting season has gone into full swing and most companies are beating earnings estimates as expected. Earnings were the focal point Tuesday; and a wide swath of good news there has the S&P 500 on the cusp of recovering all of the ground it lost in the 1.6% decline last Friday.
19-Apr-10	Wake Up Call -- Continued Selling U.S. equity markets moved sharply lower on Friday after the SEC charged Goldman Sachs with fraud, causing that stock and the financial sector to plummet. The sell-off has continued this morning, with equity futures indicating a lower open. Shares of GS are down 1%, while other banks are also modestly lower.
19-Apr-10	The Closer -- An SEC Swing Vote for the Market The stock market was tracking toward another loss on Monday, but word that the SEC voted 3-to-2 to bring a fraud suit against Goldman Sachs for its role in selling collateralized debt obligations turned the tide in the afternoon trade.
16-Apr-10	Wake Up Call -- Modestly Lower Despite Positive Earnings U.S. equity futures are trading slightly lower this morning despite another round of better-than-expected first quarter earnings reports. Separately, Asian markets sold off overnight.
16-Apr-10	The Closer -- A Reason to Sell Shortly into the second hour of trade today, headlines began circulating that the SEC was levying charges of fraud against Goldman Sachs (GS). Shares of GS plummeted, selling off as much as 15% over the next 45 minutes. They closed down 12.8%. The financial sector followed suit, losing 3.8% today. And the major averages were not far behind, breaking their six-session winning streak.
15-Apr-10	Wake Up Call -- Modest Profit Taking U.S. equity futures are seeing modest profit taking this morning as the dollar rallies, despite UPS (UPS) preannouncing better-than-expected first quarter results.
15-Apr-10	The Closer -- Another Day, Another Gain The stock market did not have much to show for its effort at the end of the day, but with the market up 11 out of the last 13 sessions entering Thursday's trade, there is little room to argue about the small gain.
14-Apr-10	Wake Up Call -- Earnings Prop Futures Ahead of Busy Session U.S. equity futures are trading higher this morning following better-than-expected first quarter results from a few big-name companies (INTC, JPM, CSX). There are a number of catalysts on today's calendar that could influence trade, including an important batch of economic data (Retail Sales, CPI), testimony from Federal Reserve Chairman Bernanke and the Fed's Beige Book.
14-Apr-10	The Closer -- In a Word: Encouraging There was a lot of news for the stock market to digest Wednesday. Most of it was encouraging, enabling the S&P 500 to rally to its best closing level since September 2008 on the back of strength in financial and technology issues.
13-Apr-10	Wake Up Call -- Slightly Lower on Alcoa, China U.S. equity futures are trading modestly lower this morning following disappointing top-line results from Alcoa (AA) and after China rebuffed U.S. calls to revalue the yuan.
13-Apr-10	The Closer -- Staying True to Form The stock market began the session on a lackluster note, but true to form the early dip was seen as a buying opportunity and the indices managed to finish the day with slight gains.
12-Apr-10	Wake Up Call -- Greece News Fails to Provide a Lift European markets and U.S. futures opened higher overnight after the European Union finally agreed to the details of a potential aid package for Greece. However, they have given up those gains.
12-Apr-10	The Closer -- Slight Gains Following Slow Session The S&P 500 spent the entire session in positive territory to eke out a slight gain in the end. Overall there was a dearth of corporate news with the exception of a few modest-sized M&A announcements.
09-Apr-10	Wake Up Call -- Dollar Modestly Lower, Greek Fears Fade U.S. equity futures indicate a slightly higher open for the major averages as they spiked into positive territory just before 3:00 a.m. ET. The dollar is modestly weaker this morning against the pound and euro. European markets have regained yesterday's declines as Greek bond yields and credit default swaps have come off their highs as fears about the country's debt situation fade.
09-Apr-10	The Closer -- A Six-Pack for the Market The stock market ended the week on a winning note, once again shaking off any negative press related to Greece's debt issues. Having done so, the S&P 500 recorded its sixth straight weekly gain, leaving it up more than 14% from its February 5 low.
08-Apr-10	Wake Up Call -- Lower on Busy Morning U.S. equity futures are trading lower on a busy morning following declines in Asia and Europe overnight. European markets are trading sharply lower on revived fears about Greek's debt situation. The move comes as both the Bank of England and European Central Bank met today.
08-Apr-10	The Closer -- Retailers Ring Up Gains for the Market The stock market had a hiccup early on concerns about Greece, but it eventually got back on track with the support of the retail stocks, which jumped in the wake of March same-store sales that were the highest since 1999.
07-Apr-10	Wake Up Call -- Treasury Auction, Bernanke Eyed U.S. equity futures sold off modestly overnight. Two midday catalysts could provide direction today, beginning with the results of a 10-year Note auction amid concerns about rising yields, followed by a speech from Federal Reserve Chairman Bernanke.
07-Apr-10	The Closer -- Stocks, Consumer Credit Fall The major indices spent most of the session in negative territory, extending declines in the final hour trading following a larger-than-expected drop in consumer credit. Meanwhile, Treasuries saw solid gains following a stronger-than-expected demand for a 10-year note auction.
06-Apr-10	Wake Up Call -- Greece Back in the News The euro moved broadly lower against the world's currencies overnight on worries about the EU/IMF aid plan for Greece. Reports this morning say Greece wants to amend the deal to bypass an IMF financial contribution due to concerns it would impose tough conditions in exchange for aid.
06-Apr-10	The Closer -- Still Waiting on Dow 11,000 The stock market stood its ground Tuesday and gained a little more with most of the major averages posting modest gains. The Dow was the lone exception as its bid to take out 11,000 was denied.
05-Apr-10	Wake Up Call -- Boost from Employment Report U.S. equity futures are trading higher this morning following Friday's employment report, though they have come off their best levels from overnight. Nonfarm Payrolls came in at a slightly weaker-than-expected 162,000 (consensus 184,000) in March, but the increase in hiring was driven by the private sector rather than government hiring.
05-Apr-10	The Closer -- Bullish Outlook Persists Trading conditions were thin as many participants at home and abroad remained on holiday. Nevertheless, a pro-growth trade prevailed again following some better-than-expected economic data that sent the yield on the 10-year note to 4.00% for the first time since June 2009.
01-Apr-10	Wake Up Call -- Higher on Strength Overseas Asian markets rallied overnight, led by China after the People's Bank of China reaffirmed its loose monetary policy stance and following two upbeat business surveys. PMI readings in the U.K. and eurozone also came in modestly better than expected.
01-Apr-10	The Closer -- New Quarter, Same Rally Despite volatile afternoon trade, U.S. equity markets used an opening rally to begin the new quarter on a higher note ahead of tomorrow's highly-anticipated March employment report and the long holiday weekend.
31-Mar-10	Wake Up Call -- Quiet Ahead of ADP U.S. equity futures are showing little direction ahead of the ADP Employment report at 8:15 a.m. ET. European markets are also flat, while Asia saw modest declines overnight. The dollar is on the move, though, giving up yesterday's gains as it trades weaker against the pound and euro.
31-Mar-10	The Closer -- Driven by Data... Sort Of The last day of the first quarter ended with a whimper as some mixed economic data stirred some profit taking. Still, the S&P 500 managed to turn in its best start to a year since 1999.
30-Mar-10	Wake Up Call -- Looks Like Another Higher Open U.S. equity futures point to a modestly higher open this morning. The dollar is flat against the euro and yen, but sold off against the pound overnight.
30-Mar-10	The Closer -- Move On, Nothing to See Here The stock market appeared to be on break Tuesday, both literally and figuratively. The volume total across all U.S. exchanges was the fourth lowest this year as participants pretty much ignored better-than-expected economic news.
29-Mar-10	Wake Up Call -- Futures Higher on Dollar U.S. equity futures indicate a higher open for the market this morning. The dollar is weaker against the other major currencies. The euro, specifically, continued Friday's advance overnight, rallying on short covering following the financial safety net European leaders put in place for Greece late last week.
29-Mar-10	The Closer -- Riding the Green Wave The major averages never saw red figures Monday as they started in positive territory and held in positive territory throughout a session that was highlighted more by the absence of sellers than it was by the conviction of buyers.
26-Mar-10	Wake Up Call -- Plenty of Volatility The EU announcement overnight appears to be the same as the headlines that made the rounds yesterday afternoon. So it appears yesterday's late-day move was a "sell the news" reaction, especially as most of these parameters were already known, and the market is attempting to make up for it this morning.
26-Mar-10	The Closer -- Deja Vu All Over Again Friday's trade looked a lot like Thursday's in that the stock market started the session on an upbeat note, but then succumbed to afternoon selling pressure that reclaimed most of the morning gains and left the indices close to unchanged when the closing bell rang.
25-Mar-10	Wake Up Call -- Sovereign Debt Concerns Easing U.S. equity futures are trading higher after Germany backed a Greek rescue proposal and the Dubai government committed to Dubai World's restructuring. These headlines have led to profit taking in the dollar, as the U.S. Dollar Index has given up about one-third of yesterday's sharp gains.
25-Mar-10	The Closer -- A "Very, Very Bad" End to Day The stock market was cruising to new recovery highs until a caustic remark from European Central Bank President Trichet served as a turning point. Every major index had been up at least 0.9% at one time. Every index, with the exception of the Dow, ended with a loss.
24-Mar-10	Wake Up Call -- Futures Lower on Portugal; Dollar Surging European markets and U.S. futures moved lower around 6:00 a.m. ET after Fitch downgraded Portugal's long-term foreign and local currency Issuer Default Ratings to AA- from AA, with a Negative outlook. However, both European and U.S. markets have rebounded off their lows. The modest size of the move is noteworthy, particularly as the dollar surges against the other major currencies.
24-Mar-10	The Closer -- Modest Declines in Equities A Fitch downgrade of Portugal's default ratings led to a lower open, and a disappointing 5-year Note auction ended a rebound attempt and kept the major averages modestly lower. Bond yields and the dollar soared.
23-Mar-10	Wake Up Call -- Futures Flat, Dollar Higher U.S. equity futures are showing little direction ahead of a full calendar that includes Existing Home Sales and the first of this week's longer-term U.S. Treasury auctions. Secretary Geithner will also testify on the housing market. One market showing direction this morning is the currency market, as the dollar is trading higher.
23-Mar-10	The Closer -- Market Stays Long and Strong The stock market continued its winning ways, rallying into the close and leaving the S&P 500 at its highest closing level in 18 months. Small-cap stocks continued their outperformance as did the financial and industrials sectors.
22-Mar-10	Wake Up Call -- Health Care Reform, Greece in Focus U.S. equity futures are trading lower this morning after the House of Representatives passed the health care reform bill and on continued concerns over Greece's debt situation.
22-Mar-10	The Closer -- Trading Against the Expected Grain No one would have faulted the U.S. stock market for taking an extended breather Monday. Many participants thought it likely following some contentious headlines in the early going, yet the market defied conventional wisdom once again and closed higher.
19-Mar-10	Wake Up Call -- Little Movement U.S. equity futures are trading around unchanged as a stronger dollar and poor earnings offset higher trade overseas.
19-Mar-10	The Closer -- Market Finally Moves Lower Stocks open unchanged but quickly come under pressure, with the major indices all ending the day lower. Volume was heavy due to quadruple-witching.
18-Mar-10	Wake Up Call -- Greece Worries Return U.S. equity futures are trading around unchanged ahead of a large batch of economic data that includes CPI and claims. Meanwhile, the euro is lower against most of its counterparts. It fell following reports quoting a Greek official as saying his country was growing increasingly pessimistic about the prospect of help at a EU summit on March 25 and may seek IMF aid.
18-Mar-10	The Closer -- Market Stuck in Neutral The Dow Jones Industrial Average scored its eighth consecutive gain; meanwhile, the S&P 500 barely budged from its starting level in what was a mixed and lackluster day of trading.
17-Mar-10	Wake Up Call -- Global Markets Rally Following FOMC, BOJ The Bank of Japan voted after a two-day policy meeting to double the amount available under its short-term lending program, to 20 tln yen from 10 tln yen. The dollar is weaker against the pound this morning after the U.K.'s Office for National Statistics released much better-than-expected employment data.
17-Mar-10	The Closer -- Market Sticks to Winning Ways Buying momentum persisted on Wall Street as the market once again rode the outperformance of the financial sector to close at its highest level in nearly 18 months. The small-cap and mid-cap averages, though, continued to outpace their large-cap counterparts.
16-Mar-10	Wake Up Call -- More Dissenters in the FOMC? U.S. equity futures are not surprisingly showing little direction ahead of the FOMC policy directive this afternoon. They are trading slightly higher on a weaker dollar, which is trading lower against the pound and euro.
16-Mar-10	The Closer -- The Fed Feeds the Momentum The S&P 500 ran to another 52-week high Tuesday on the back of a reassuring FOMC directive and prominent leadership from the financial, semiconductor, industrial and basic materials sectors.
15-Mar-10	Wake Up Call -- Futures Modestly Lower on China, Dollar U.S. equity futures are trading modestly lower this morning, moving into negative territory overnight on weakness in Asian markets, particularly China. Also weighing on futures is the dollar, which is stronger against the other major currencies, particularly the pound.
15-Mar-10	The Closer -- A Resilient Market The stock market slipped early on some profit taking, yet it battled back late in the day to finish close to unchanged. Overall trading volume was very light as the specter of a new FOMC directive Tuesday kept many participants sidelined.
12-Mar-10	Wake Up Call -- Dollar Under Heavy Pressure European markets and U.S. futures spiked higher at 5:00 a.m. ET as eurozone industrial production for January came in at 1.7% (consensus 0.6%), while the figure for December was revised to an increase of 0.6% from a decrease of 1.7%. The euro, which was already trading higher against the dollar, spiked to its best levels following the economic data.
12-Mar-10	The Closer -- Stocks End Flat The major indices ended the week on a dull note, sticking to a relatively tight trading range before settling near the unchanged mark.
11-Mar-10	Wake Up Call -- Modestly Lower on China Data; Claims Ahead U.S. equity futures are modestly lower ahead of claims data at 8:30 a.m. ET. They had sold off overnight following the release of China's remaining economic data for February. However, these data were most likely affected by China's Lunar New Year, which fell in February this year but January last year.
11-Mar-10	The Closer -- Last-Hour Rally Leads to Modest Gains U.S. equity markets used a last-hour rally to close with modest gains today. The move occurred on light volume, and was most likely a technical breakout, triggered by the major indices breaking above their midday ranges. For the second straight session the NASDAQ Composite hit a new 52-week high. The S&P 500 nearly did, closing just 0.21 points below the Jan. 19 high at 1150.45.
10-Mar-10	Wake Up Call -- Searching for a Catalyst Following very modest gains yesterday, global markets are for the most part trading unchanged this morning. The dollar is trading mixed against the other major currencies.
10-Mar-10	The Closer -- Modest Gains Led by Financials The stock market settled with modest gains as financials showed strength. Overall, it was another slow session with few corporate developments and a lack of market moving economic items.
09-Mar-10	Wake Up Call -- Dollar Weighing Modestly on Futures U.S. equity futures are trading modestly lower this morning on strength in the dollar. The greenback is rallying against the euro and pound, though it is weaker against the yen. The weakness in the European currencies is due to negative commentary from ratings agencies.
09-Mar-10	The Closer -- Equities Follow Dollar as Volume Returns The opening of equity markets this morning coincided with the day's high in the U.S. Dollar Index. The euro, and to a lesser extent the pound, managed to rebound against the greenback throughout the morning. At the same time, U.S. markets slowly trended higher. But they could not hold their gains, closing only very modestly in the black.
08-Mar-10	Wake Up Call -- Futures Little Changed on Slow Morning Asian equity markets rallied overnight on Wall Street's strength on Friday. This morning, European markets and U.S. futures are little changed. There has been plenty of news flow, but the headlines have had little effect on trade.
08-Mar-10	The Closer -- Extremely Slow Session The week started on a muted note, with the difference between the S&P 500's intraday high and low only 4.3 points.
05-Mar-10	Wake Up Call -- Modest Bid Ahead of Employment Report Yesterday's afternoon rally and the strength in Asia overnight has helped prop up European markets and U.S. futures ahead of the employment report. While stronger against the yen, the dollar is showing little direction against the euro and pound.
05-Mar-10	The Closer -- Strong Rally to Close the Week A better-than-expected employment report for February, which despite expectations was not impacted by weather conditions, helped U.S. equity markets rally in the first hour of trade today.Then, a late-session upside squeeze, which coincided with the first positive Consumer Credit report in a year, helped push them to fresh multi-week highs.
04-Mar-10	Wake Up Call -- Busy Morning, but Futures Flat Overnight, U.S. equity futures traded lower with Asian markets. However, they have regained those declines, while European markets and the dollar are also trading near unchanged. It has been a busy morning, as Greece began its latest bond offering, Europe's two central banks met and U.S. retailers are reporting February same store sales.
04-Mar-10	The Closer -- More Gains on Low Volume The stock market turned the tide Thursday, advancing into the close unlike prior sessions. Strength in the retail and financial sectors underpinned the market, which once again saw low trading volume.
03-Mar-10	Wake Up Call -- Greek Budget Cuts Fail to Move Futures Global equity markets are showing little direction this morning ahead of U.S. employment data. The Greek government announced steps overnight to reduce its budget deficit, but equity markets had already priced in the news, though Greek bonds rallied for a fourth consecutive session.
03-Mar-10	The Closer -- A Familiar Picture In many respects, the trading action on Wednesday looked a lot like what was witnessed on Tuesday. The primary point of emphasis is that the major averages gave up bigger gains from the morning and again ended close to unchanged.
02-Mar-10	Wake Up Call -- Slow Morning, but Dollar Advance Stalls Futures were flat overnight, but rallied over the last two hours as the dollar, which had continued yesterday's advance against the pound and euro overnight, gave up those gains. Otherwise it is a slow morning.
02-Mar-10	The Closer -- Holding Steady The stock market tried to rally early, but selling picked up late in the session driving the S&P 500 back close to unchanged by the end of the day. Weakness in the technology sector was a key weight on the market in afternoon trading.
01-Mar-10	Wake Up Call -- Futures Modestly Higher While Pound Plummets U.S. equity futures indicate a modestly higher open this morning. The move comes despite the dollar trading sharply higher, as the pound plunges on deficit fears. Mining shares are stronger worldwide in response to fears the supply of copper could be hit by the massive earthquake in Chile on Saturday.
01-Mar-10	The Closer -- Forward March The month of March got off to a positive start with all 10 economic sectors recording a gain. The financial sector, though, trailed the market in noticeable fashion and total volume at the NYSE was once again on the low side.
26-Feb-10	Wake Up Call -- Focus on Economic Data U.S. equity futures are showing little direction as market participants await a large batch of economic data this morning, headlined by the second estimate for fourth quarter GDP. The dollar is showing only modest moves against the other major currencies, weaker against the euro but stronger against the yen and pound.
26-Feb-10	The Closer -- Slight Gains in Light Volume Despite several trading catalysts, the major indices stuck near the unchanged mark for most of the session to end the day with modest gains. Economic data were in focus with the release of the second estimate for fourth quarter GDP, existing home sales, consumer sentiment, and Chicago PMI.
25-Feb-10	Wake Up Call -- Greece Concerns Weigh After Standard & Poor's said yesterday that a further downgrade to Greece's sovereign debt rating of one or two notches is possible within a month, Moody's said today that changes in its ratings hinge on the nation smoothly enacting its fiscal reform plans as promised.
25-Feb-10	The Closer -- A Matter of Perspective The U.S. stock market suffered large losses early in the session in the wake of some discouraging initial claims data and revived concerns about Greece's fiscal standing. However, it rallied back in the afternoon session and ended the day with only modest losses.
24-Feb-10	Wake Up Call -- Flat Ahead of Testimony European markets and U.S. equity futures are showing little direction this morning ahead of testimony from both Federal Reserve Chairman Bernanke and Treasury Secretary Geithner (10:00 a.m. ET).
24-Feb-10	The Closer -- Market Does an About Face The major U.S. averages got back on track Wednesday, reclaiming most of the prior day's losses in the wake of monetary policy testimony from Federal Reserve Chairman Bernanke and a strong showing from the retail and financial sectors.
23-Feb-10	Wake Up Call -- The Dollar over Earnings U.S. equity futures are mimicking the trade in currencies this morning, ignoring better-than-expected earnings results from the likes of Home Depot (HD) and Sears Holdings (SHLD).
23-Feb-10	The Closer -- Confidence Low, Losses High Unnerved by a much weaker-than-expected consumer confidence reading, the stock market encountered steady selling pressure Tuesday that led to sizable losses for the major averages and most sectors. Not surprisingly, the safety trade was back in vogue.
22-Feb-10	Wake Up Call -- The Rally Continues Greek Prime Minister Papandreou told the BBC that his country's borrowing needs are covered through the middle of next month, Schlumberger (SLB) is acquiring Smith International (SII) in an over $11 bln equity deal and President Obama will release a new health care reform proposal today ahead of Thursday's health care summit.
22-Feb-10	The Closer -- Drive for Five Stopped Short The stock market failed in its bid to keep last week's winning streak alive. Losses, though, were negligible. The same can be said for the participation rate in Monday's trading. Volume at the NYSE was the second lowest total this year.
19-Feb-10	Wake Up Call -- Fed Raises Discount Rate U.S. equity futures are off their lows this morning. Federal Reserve officials stepped forward last night to calm speculation that yesterday's hike could bring forward broader policy tightening, including speeches by Governor Duke and Presidents Bullard and Lockhart.
19-Feb-10	The Closer -- Small Gains Close Out Big Week The Federal Reserve's bump in the discount rate caused some unnecessary commotion overnight, yet the market eventually calmed itself and recorded some small gains that left it a perfect four-for-four in the shortened week of trading.
18-Feb-10	Wake Up Call -- Mixed Morning U.S. equity futures are trading around unchanged as market participants digest mixed earnings results (DAI, HPQ, WMT) and the dollar trades mixed against the other major currencies.
18-Feb-10	The Closer -- Propped Up by Pro-Growth Trade The stock market continued its rebound effort as the major averages all advanced on the back of a trade that had a pro-growth bias. Unfortunately, the trade did not have much conviction either. Volume at the NYSE was the second lowest total this year.
17-Feb-10	Wake Up Call -- Futures Continue Higher U.S. equity futures are seeing some carryover momentum from yesterday's surge, ahead of today's catalysts that include a large batch of economic data before the open and FOMC Minutes this afternoon. The move is coming in the face of a stronger dollar, which is rebounding against the other major currencies.
17-Feb-10	The Closer -- Buyers Maintain Control On the heels of Tuesday's big advance, the major averages scored modest gains Wednesday following some pleasing economic data. Trading, though, was accented once again by low volume and some striking moves in the foreign exchange market.
16-Feb-10	Wake Up Call -- Many Markets Overseas Remain Closed U.S. equity futures are trading modestly higher this morning. They and European markets had shown stronger gains earlier, but they were trimmed by a quick move lower around 7:00 a.m. ET.
16-Feb-10	The Closer -- Stock Market Stages Relief Rally The major U.S. averages started with a positive bias Tuesday and ended with one, as a sense of relief that headline risk did not rear its ugly head over the long weekend stirred some broad-based buying interest that favored the pro-growth trade.
12-Feb-10	Wake Up Call -- Strong Dollar Weighing on Futures U.S. equity futures are trading sharply lower after disappointing eurozone GDP data hit the euro and the People's Bank of China raised the reserve requirement for its banks a second time.
12-Feb-10	The Closer -- A Mixed (and Mixed-Up) Market China unnerved the market early with news that it is raising the reserve requirement for its large banks by another 50 basis points. The market, however, forged a laborious rebound effort from early losses and ended the day mixed.
11-Feb-10	Wake Up Call -- EU Reaches Deal on Greece The European Union (EU) announced a deal has been reached to help Greece cope with its deficit crisis. EU President Herman Van Rompuy, among others, made the announcement, but would not provide further details. The market seems to have already priced in today's news, as U.S. equity futures and the euro showed only very modest reactions.
11-Feb-10	The Closer -- Boosted by Relief Trade The European Union declared its support for Greece. Despite a lack of detail on what that support entails, the U.S. stock market pushed higher in a broad-based advance that was catalyzed by a weakening (though not weak) dollar.
10-Feb-10	Wake Up Call -- Greek, European Markets Sharply Higher European markets are trading sharply higher this morning, led by Greece's FTSE/ASE, which is up 5%. U.S. equity futures are also looking to continue yesterday's run, up modestly premarket. The dollar, meanwhile, is mixed.
10-Feb-10	The Closer -- Market in a Holding Pattern A swirl of changing headlines regarding the European Union's dealings with Greece, some jarring interest rate commentary from Federal Reserve Chairman Bernanke, and a blizzard in the Northeast all combined to contribute to a mixed market that was in a wait-and-see mode.
09-Feb-10	Wake Up Call -- Speculation Lifts Euro U.S. equity futures indicate a sharply higher open for the market this morning as speculation the European Union could bail out Greece sent the dollar reeling against the euro.
09-Feb-10	The Closer -- Greece Aid Speculation Lifts Market The twists and turns of Tuesday's trading were driven by conflicting reports discussing a possible aid package for Greece. In the end, the market took the hopeful view and staged a broad-based rally that saw all of the major averages gain in excess of 1.0%.
08-Feb-10	Wake Up Call -- Futures Looking for Direction U.S. equity futures have shown little real direction this morning, as the few headlines circulating have had little effect on trading.
08-Feb-10	The Closer -- Market Back on Defensive The stock market staged a half-hearted effort to continue Friday's late rally, but a weak financial sector and a reversal in the dollar ran interference. The major indices rolled over in afternoon trading and closed at their lows for the session.
05-Feb-10	Wake Up Call -- Continued Selling in Europe European markets are seeing continued selling today, with Portugal's PSI 4.9% lower, Greece's Athex down 3.5% and Spain's IBEX off 1.8%. Many eyes are on Portugal as its parliament is to vote on a regional financing bill seen as a crucial test of the government's ability to curb public spending. Meanwhile, U.S. futures are modestly lower ahead of the employment report.
05-Feb-10	The Closer -- A Roller-Coaster Trade The stock market covered a lot of ground Friday as it digested the latest monthly employment report. At their lows for the day, the Dow, Nasdaq, and S&P 500 were down 1.7%, 1.2%, and 1.8%, respectively. With an afternoon rally effort, though, they all ended in positive territory.
04-Feb-10	Wake Up Call -- Lower on Eurozone Worries U.S. equity futures are lower this morning on renewed worry over sovereign debt in some eurozone countries, particularly Spain and Portugal, which has helped the dollar rally.
04-Feb-10	The Closer -- Market in an Anxious State Rattled by concerns about growing budget deficits in the eurozone and a weak initial claims report that set a nervous tone ahead of the January employment report on Friday, the S&P 500 dropped 3.1%, marking its worst decline since last April.
03-Feb-10	Wake Up Call -- Flat Ahead of ADP Despite strength in Asian equity markets overnight, European markets and U.S. futures are showing little direction ahead of the ADP Employment change figure at 8:15 a.m. ET.
03-Feb-10	The Closer -- A Sterile Affair The stock market lacked conviction Wednesday. Big moves were reserved for company-specific issues as the broader market traded mixed ahead of Cisco's earnings report after the close and the January employment report on Friday.
02-Feb-10	Wake Up Call -- Testimony Ahead U.S. equity futures are modestly bid ahead of key Senate testimony from Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker. Australia also surprised economists by keeping its benchmark interest rate steady.
02-Feb-10	The Closer -- Market Sticks with Bullish Bias For the second day in a row, the stock market posted big gains in a broad-based advance that was helped by some generally pleasing economic data and reports of short covering.
01-Feb-10	Wake Up Call -- Attempting to Rebound U.S. equity futures are rebounding modestly this morning. The euro is also rebounding modestly against the dollar following an aggressive slide since mid-January, but the greenback is stronger against the pound.
01-Feb-10	The Closer -- A Reflex Trade The stock market enjoyed a broad-based gain Monday, reclaiming roughly 85% of the prior week's losses. The basic materials, energy, financial and technology sectors helped pace the rebound from short-term oversold conditions.
29-Jan-10	Wake Up Call -- Modestly Higher Ahead of GDP European markets and U.S. futures are modestly higher this morning. There were some positive earnings reports since yesterday's close (AMZN, MSFT), but direction is limited ahead of this morning's Advance GDP report for the fourth quarter.
29-Jan-10	The Closer -- Market Misses Its Mark Again A number of positive items were laid before the market that seemingly should have sparked a nice bounce in the major indices. Once again, though, the market failed to capitalize and closed with broad-based losses as selling into strength remained the default trade.
28-Jan-10	Wake Up Call -- Obama Concentrates on Job Creation Asian equity markets staged a rebound rally overnight, and European markets and U.S. futures are modestly higher this morning.
28-Jan-10	Sellers Stay in Control The stock market had grounds Thursday to extend Wednesday's late rebound effort, yet it got cut down again as Standard & Poor's negative view on the UK banking system enabled sellers to stay in control of the action.
27-Jan-10	Wake Up Call: Waiting on FOMC Futures are trading modestly higher as market participants continue to digest fourth quarter earnings reports and await the release of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) policy directive this afternoon.
27-Jan-10	A Post-FOMC Boost for Market The major indices took their time figuring out where they wanted to go Wednesday. In the end, they closed higher in the wake of the latest directive from the Federal Open Market Committee.
26-Jan-10	Wake Up Call: U.S. Not Following Asia Asian equity markets plunged overnight after Chinese banks began restricting new loans and implemented previously ordered reserve ratio increases. The weakness has not carried over to the United States, however, where equity futures are mixed as market participants digest a number of key earnings reports.
26-Jan-10	The Closer: Market Rocked Early and Rolled Late Aided by Apple's leadership and some pleasing headlines on consumer confidence, the stock market pushed higher in early trading. Some worrisome political headlines late in the day, though, undid things and left the major indices in negative territory by the closing bell.
25-Jan-10	Wake Up Call: Futures Rebound on Bernanke, Dollar Top Republican Senator Mitch McConnell said on Meet the Press yesterday that he expects Bernanke to be approved, meaning he should have bipartisan support. The dollar is also trading modestly weaker against the euro and pound.
25-Jan-10	The Closer: A Wait-and-See Trade The stock market managed to record a gain Monday, but ended well off its highs for the session.

30-Dec-11	Wake-Up Call -- 30 December 2011 Global equity markets are showing little direction Friday, which is expected on the last trading day of 2011 ahead of the long holiday weekend. Today's Food for Thought: Reviewing U.S. index and sector performance in 2011
29-Dec-11	Wake-Up Call -- 29 December 2011: U.S. equity futures are slightly higher as European stocks trade mixed. News flow continues to be light as headlines in Europe continue to garner attention. Today's Food for Thought: Traditional retail stores are improving their online shopping experience
28-Dec-11	Wake-Up Call -- 28 December 2011 Following yesterday’s slow session, futures are trading slightly higher. Trading volume is likely to again be light with no economic reports or major earnings reports for market participants to digest. Today's Food for Thought: S&P 500 volatility by year
27-Dec-11	Wake-Up Call -- 27 December 2011 U.S. equity futures are near the unchanged mark following last week’s solid gains that put the S&P 500 price index into positive territory for the year. Trading volume is expected to be on the light side following the holiday weekend. Today's Food for Thought: A long term look at the S&P 500 TTM earnings yield shows that it is above corporate Baa bonds for the first time since 1980
22-Dec-11	Wake-Up Call -- 23 December 2011 U.S. equity futures suggest the S&P 500 will add to this week’s 2.8% advance. If the S&P 500 holds the indicated gains it will put the benchmark index into positive territory for the year. Corporate news is on the light side but there will be several economic reports to digest. November Durable Goods Orders and Personal Income/Spending both are due at 8:30 a.m. ET followed by November New Home Sales at 10:00 a.m. ET. Today's Food for Thought: The data suggest U.S. equities offer better long-term value relative over bonds at current prices.
22-Dec-11	Wake-Up Call -- 22 December 2011 U.S. equity futures point to a stronger open on a slow Thursday morning, extending Wednesday afternoon’s rebound. They are once again mimicking trade in Europe, where markets are experiencing a rebound of their own. Today's Food for Thought: NAR downwardly revises existing home sales, but the trend remains the same
21-Dec-11	Wake-Up Call -- 21 December 2011 U.S. equity futures are slightly lower following yesterday’s strong gains. The ECB announced a larger-than-expected lending facility for euro-area banks which gave futures a boost shortly after the announcement around 5:30 a.m. ET. U.S. equity futures have since given up those gains and are now below preannouncement levels and recently slipped into negative territory. Today's Food for Thought: The size of the ECB's balance sheet again surpasses the Federal Reserve's
20-Dec-11	Wake-Up Call -- 20 December 2011 After closing at December lows yesterday, U.S. equity futures are higher as the major European bourses advance. European stocks are benefiting from a successful short-term debt sale from Spain and a better-than-expected German business sentiment reading.
19-Dec-11	Wake-Up Call -- 19 December 2011 U.S. futures suggest a modestly higher open as European stocks advance. The major Asian indices fell overnight on concerns of instability in North Korea following news that Kim Jong-il died from natural causes. South Korea’s KOSPI took the brunt of the selling pressure, shedding 3.4%. Today's Food for Thought: Better-than-expected U.S. economic data pushes market expectations of 2012 recession to two-month low
16-Dec-11	Wake-Up Call -- 16 December 2011 U.S. equity futures are pointing to a stronger open Friday morning. Today's Food for Thought: Initial claims at best level since 2008
15-Dec-11	Wake-Up Call -- 15 December 2011 U.S. equity futures point to a stronger open Thursday morning following a much better-than-expected Spanish auction and improving manufacturing data. Today's Food for Thought: S&P 500 net profit margin
14-Dec-11	Wake-Up Call -- 14 December 2011 Following Tuesday’s post-FOMC decline, U.S. equity futures point to a modestly lower open on a slow Wednesday morning. Today's Food for Thought: FOMC Sounds Familiar Message
13-Dec-11	Wake-Up Call -- 13 December 2011 The market is looking to regain yesterday’s declines as futures currently point to a stronger open Tuesday morning. There is a crowded calendar today that could drive trade, beginning with the retail sales report at 8:30 a.m. ET, followed by the 10-year Note auction at midday and culminating with the FOMC policy directive around 2:15 p.m. ET. Today's Food for Thought: Household debt-to-assets ratio rising, but due to larger decline in assets
12-Dec-11	Wake-Up Call -- 12 December 2011 U.S. equity futures are trading lower Monday morning following more signs of slowing economic growth out of Asia and as yields on eurozone debt move higher once again. Today's Food for Thought: Tracking corruption in Europe
09-Dec-11	Wake-Up Call -- 09 December 2011 Leaders have released a draft communiqué at the European Union, and the progress made has please market participants. European markets and U.S. futures have rallied this morning. Today's Food for Thought: Breaking down U.S. exports, particularly to Europe
08-Dec-11	Wake-Up Call -- 08 December 2011 U.S. equity futures are trading around unchanged Thursday morning after the European Central Bank cut interest rates as expected. Today's Food for Thought: Analyzing changes in the labor force participation rate for the prime working age population
07-Dec-11	Wake-Up Call -- 07 December 2011 Following mixed trade Tuesday, U.S. equity futures are trading around unchanged Wednesday morning, having given up earlier gains. Today's Food for Thought: Improvement in PIIGS bond yields has not (yet) spread to LIBOR-OIS
06-Dec-11	Wake-Up Call -- 06 December 2011 U.S. equity futures sold off after the close Monday after Standard & Poor's confirmed it placed the ratings of eurozone nations on "CreditWatch" with negative implications, including Germany. They have rebounded this morning, though, currently trading in modestly positive territory. Today's Food for Thought: CPI versus The Twelve Days of Christmas
05-Dec-11	Wake-Up Call -- 05 December 2011 Following an up and down session Friday, U.S. equity futures point to a strong open Monday morning. Italy unveiled a $40 bln austerity package while participants appear to be optimistic about three key meetings out of Europe this week. Today's Food for Thought: The math behind the labor participation rate
02-Dec-11	Wake-Up Call -- 02 December 2011 This morning brings the always highly-anticipated employment report. Typically, U.S. equity futures show little direction ahead of the release. However, this week’s optimism has carried over to today, with futures showing a strong bid ahead of the release. Today's Food for Thought: Valuing Facebook in the secondary market
01-Dec-11	Wake-Up Call -- 01 December 2011 Following Wednesday’s surge, it is another busy morning for market participants, but U.S. equity futures are showing little direction. Today's Food for Thought: Central banks travel familiar (and rocky) road
30-Nov-11	Wake-Up Call -- 30 November 2011 U.S. equity futures currently point to a slightly higher open Wednesday, spiking after China lowered its reserve requirement for the first time since 2008. That indication will be tested at 8:15 a.m. ET, though, when ADP releases its October employment change. Today's Food for Thought: Tax-loss selling
29-Nov-11	Wake-Up Call -- 29 November 2011 U.S. equity futures point to a modestly stronger open Tuesday morning, rallying with European markets following a successful Italian bond auction. Today's Food for Thought: Taking stock of current GDP growth expectations
28-Nov-11	Wake-Up Call -- 28 November 2011 Hopes for action from IMF and European officials, as well as reports of strong spending during Black Friday and the Thanksgiving weekend, have helped global equity markets surge Monday. Today's Food for Thought: Charge-off and delinquency rates continue downtrend in Q3 2011
25-Nov-11	Wake-Up Call -- 25 November 2011 Following the Thanksgiving Day holiday, U.S. equity futures point to a lower open for Friday’s shortened session. Italian bond yields have spiked again following another disappointing auction, pushing the dollar higher against the euro. Today's Food for Thought: Deere's results show the agricultural super cycle continues
23-Nov-11	Wake-Up Call -- 23 November 2011 Global equity markets are trading lower Wednesday morning. Further capital controls for U.S. banks and weak manufacturing data out of China and the eurozone are pressuring equities. Today's Food for Thought: Profits high at commercial bank and savings institutions
22-Nov-11	Wake-Up Call -- 22 November 2011 Following sharp declines Monday, U.S. equity futures are holding around unchanged Tuesday morning. They had been trading slightly higher, but a recent sell-off wiped out those modest gains. Today's Food for Thought: Congressional super committee meets low expectations
21-Nov-11	Wake-Up Call -- 21 November 2011 U.S. equity futures are pointing to a weaker start to this holiday-shortened week. Not surprisingly, the so-called Congressional “super committee” has failed to reach an agreement on deficit cuts ahead of tonight’s deadline. That, coupled with continued fears regarding the eurozone debt crisis, has sent global equity markets sharply lower Monday. Today's Food for Thought: Changes in hedge and mutual fund ownership of major tech stocks during Q3 2011
18-Nov-11	Wake-Up Call -- 18 November 2011 U.S. equity markets sold off for a second session Thursday, moving sharply lower just before midday as the major indices broke below key support levels. Market participants are looking to make up some lost ground Friday, though, as futures have rallied over the last 75 minutes. They now point to a strong open. Today's Food for Thought: Gold demand increased in the third quarter
17-Nov-11	Wake-Up Call -- 17 November 2011 Following Wednesday’s late-session sell-off, U.S. equity futures are pointing to a modestly lower open Thursday morning, having recently rebounded off of lows. While futures are trading with European markets early, a batch of economic data this morning could influence trade. Today's Food for Thought: A picture of relative strength
16-Nov-11	Wake-Up Call -- 16 November 2011 Following a stronger session Tuesday, the U.S. equity market is indicated to open lower on Wednesday as participants play another game of follow the bouncing eurozone ball. Today's Food for Thought: Berkshire Hathaway Takes a Turn with Technology
15-Nov-11	Wake-Up Call -- 15 November 2011 U.S. and European equity markets are under pressure for a second day Tuesday as fears persist regarding the eurozone debt crisis. Today's Food for Thought: It may by high time for U.S. companies to boost their payout ratios
14-Nov-11	Wake-Up Call -- 14 November 2011 Following a stronger session Friday, U.S. equity futures have given up overnight gains, trading lower with European markets Monday morning. Sentiment shifted after Europe opened this morning, with enthusiasm fading that new governments in both Italy and Greece will be successful in combating the debt crisis. Despite a successful Italian auction, yields in Italy and Spain have risen today. Today's Food for Thought: U.S. bank exposure to PIIGS nations by type of debt
11-Nov-11	Wake-Up Call -- 11 November 2011 U.S. equity markets are looking to close this week on a two-day winning streak, as futures currently point to a higher open Friday morning. The Treasury market is closed today in observance of Veterans Day. Today's Food for Thought: Initial jobless claims decline and job openings rise, but enough to put a dent in the unemployment rate?
10-Nov-11	Wake-Up Call -- 10 November 2011 Following Wednesday's sharp declines, U.S. equity futures are rebounding somewhat Thursday morning, again trading in conjunction with European markets as yields on Italian debt ease slightly. Today's Food for Thought: S&P 500 returns versus Italian yields
09-Nov-11	Wake-Up Call -- 09 November 2011 For the third consecutive session Tuesday, U.S. equity markets traded lower in the morning only to rebound in the afternoon. Participants are hoping for a similar pattern Wednesday, as futures point to a sharply lower open. They sold off with European markets after yields on Italian debt spiked. Today's Food for Thought: Italy's economic performance since 2001 Special Note: Briefing Research will be presenting at Opal's Family Office & Private Wealth Management Forum in Santa Rosa, CA, from November 7-9.
08-Nov-11	Wake-Up Call -- 08 November 2011 Following an afternoon rebound Monday that left U.S. equity markets mixed, futures rallied with European markets early Tuesday morning and currently point to a higher open. Today's Food for Thought: The rise of credit unions? Special Note: Briefing Research will be presenting at Opal’s Family Office & Private Wealth Management Forum in Santa Rosa, CA, from November 7-9.
07-Nov-11	Wake-Up Call -- 07 November 2011 Following modest declines Friday, U.S. equity futures and European markets traded lower overnight as Italian bond yields continued to rise. They have rebounded, however, with U.S. futures pointing to only a slightly lower open Monday morning. Today's Food for Thought: Historical net income margin of the S&P 500 and individual sectors Special Note: Briefing Research will be presenting at Opal’s Family Office & Private Wealth Management Forum in Santa Rosa, CA, from November 7-9.
04-Nov-11	Wake-Up Call -- 04 November 2011 U.S. equity futures had been showing little direction ahead of the release of the October employment report this morning. However, headlines that the G20 has failed to agree on expanded resources for the IMF has sent futures lower. Today's Food for Thought: AAA muni and corporate debt roughly in parity
03-Nov-11	Wake-Up Call -- 03 November 2011 Following mostly lower trade in Asia overnight, U.S. equity futures and European markets have rebounded Thursday morning as the headlines stream out of Europe regarding a potential change of leadership in Greece. Today's Food for Thought: A telling FOMC vote
02-Nov-11	Wake-Up Call -- 02 November 2011 Following another day of sharp declines, U.S. equity futures are rebounding Wednesday ahead of the ADP employment report this morning and the FOMC meeting and Chairman Bernanke’s press conference this afternoon. Today's Food for Thought: Looking closer at Italy's debt situation
01-Nov-11	Wake-Up Call -- 01 November 2011 Some are attributing the late extension lower in the U.S. Monday to headlines that Greece will hold a referendum vote on the new bailout package. That has pressured global equity markets Tuesday as it reminds participants that Greece’s deal is voluntary and has not yet been agreed upon. Today's Food for Thought: GDP growth by component since Q4 2007
31-Oct-11	Wake-Up Call -- 31 October 2011 Doubts are beginning to rise regarding the initial plans European leaders released last week to battle the eurozone debt crisis. Couple that with a stronger dollar, and global equity markets are trading lower on the last day of October. Today's Food for Thought: GDP returns to prerecession levels
28-Oct-11	Wake-Up Call -- 28 October 2011 Following yesterday’s surge, U.S. equity futures point to a modestly lower open Friday morning. While the move is being attributed to profit-taking, a disappointing Italian bond auction could be playing a role. Today's Food for Thought: Tracking Thursday's trade in benchmark government bonds
27-Oct-11	Wake-Up Call -- 27 October 2011 After a somewhat surprising rally yesterday despite a lack of clarity out of a Europe, an overnight agreement on Greece and confirmation of a larger bailout fund has sent global equity markets surging Thursday. Today's Food for Thought: Foreign sales and foreign income taxes among S&P 500 companies
26-Oct-11	Wake-Up Call -- 26 October 2011 As market participants await headlines out of Europe, they are digesting another batch of third quarter earnings reports Wednesday morning. Following modest gains in Asia during a quiet overnight session, U.S. equity futures and most European markets are showing a modest bid. Today's Food for Thought: Tracking historical S&P returns from peaks and troughs
25-Oct-11	Wake-Up Call -- 25 October 2011 Europe remains on the backburner Tuesday morning as market participants await details from the second European Union summit. Participants are instead digesting another large batch of third quarter earnings reports. U.S. futures having a slight bid. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing global equity market moves now and post-Lehman
24-Oct-11	Wake-Up Call -- 24 October 2011 U.S. and European equity markets showed strong gains Friday on optimism ahead of the European Union summit this Wednesday. While Asian markets played catch-up overnight, the U.S. and Europe are showing little direction Monday morning, though Greece is under pressure. Today's Food for Thought: Google search data on "rent" versus "real estate"
20-Oct-11	Wake-Up Call -- 21 October 2011 Following yesterday’s mixed close, U.S. stock futures are higher as once again headlines cross the wires relating to the European debt crisis. Yesterday, reports indicated France and Germany were in disagreement. This morning reports indicate they are on the same page ahead of the European summit. As we have been saying throughout the week, developments in the euro zone, whether real or imagined, continue to dictate the market’s direction. Today's Food for Thought: Major world indices performance from 52-week high and July 26
20-Oct-11	Wake-Up Call -- 20 October 2011 U.S. stock futures are higher following yesterday’s sell off on reports that indicate Germany and France may yet to have reached a deal on the European debt solution. As we said yesterday, developments in the euro zone, whether real or imagined, continue to dictate the market’s direction. Germany and France are reportedly in disagreement of the role of the ECB should have with the EFSF. The two countries will meet Friday ahead of the European summit scheduled for October 23. Today's Food for Thought: Q2 2011 new seriously delinquent student loan debt surpasses credit card debt for the first time
19-Oct-11	Wake-Up Call -- 19 October 2011 Earnings results continue to roll in, but we saw yesterday that developments in the euro zone, whether real or imagined, continue to dictate the market’s direction. Things have cooled off a bit this morning with several pundits casting aspersions on the alleged agreement to increase the EFSF. In addition, a surprising earnings miss from Apple (AAPL), which was still remarkably profitable, has acted as an additional weight that has kept the futures market in check. Today's Food for Thought: Apple's historical earnings surprises
18-Oct-11	Wake-Up Call -- 18 October 2011 Equity futures are extending yesterday’s losses as China’s GDP growth came in lower than expected and Moody’s said it could put a negative outlook on France’s Aaa credit rating in the next three months. Goldman Sachs (GS) reported disappointing earnings, which is also pressuring stocks. Today's Food For Thought: China's real GDP growth slowest since 2009
17-Oct-11	Wake-Up Call -- 17 October 2011 After last week’s strong rally, U.S. equity futures are flat after giving up early gains. In conjunction with U.S. equity futures, European markets gave up early gains and are now trading near the unchanged mark. The G-20 finance leaders met over the weekend, with leaders pressuring Europe to reach a plan by the next EU summit on Oct. 23. According to reports, Germany has said a total fix won’t be provided by Oct. 23. Today's Food for Thought: The spread between German and French 10-year note yields
14-Oct-11	Wake-Up Call -- 14 October 2011 U.S. equity futures indicate a higher open as the G20 finance ministers begin their meeting on the debt crisis. Futures may go on the move at 8:30 a.m. ET when the September retail sales data are released. Sales are expected to increase 0.6% and excluding autos up 0.3%, according to Briefing.com consensus. The October University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment reading is due at 9:55 a.m. ET and is forecast to increase slightly to 60.0. Google (GOOG) is up around 7% in premarket trading after the search giant posted upside quarterly earnings. Today's Food for Thought: Mapping nonfarm payroll growth by state
13-Oct-11	Wake-Up Call -- 13 October 2011: Equity index futures indicate a slightly lower open. JPMorgan Chase (JPM) is active in premarket trading after the company reported third quarter results. Shares are down 1.5% despite topping EPS estimates. The weekly initial unemployment claims and August trade data are both data due at 8:30 a.m. ET. Today's Food for Thought: A look at the ratio of upward and downward EPS revisions within the S&P 500
12-Oct-11	Wake-Up Call -- 12 October 2011 Unfortunately, Slovakia rejected the plan to expand the EFSF and Alcoa disappointed on the bottom line. Fortunately, the market has taken the news in stride, with futures currently pointing to a higher open Wednesday morning following stronger trade overseas. Today's Food for Thought: Third quarter earnings expectations for the S&P 500 and the financial sector
11-Oct-11	Wake-Up Call -- 11 October 2011 Market participants are taking a breather Tuesday morning, as U.S. equity futures currently point to a modestly lower open. Following an empty calendar Monday, today's session could be packed with potentially market-moving headlines. Today's Food for Thought: Small business sentiment
10-Oct-11	Wake-Up Call -- 10 October 2011 U.S. equity markets could not hold early gains Friday that followed the release of the September employment report. They are looking to return to the black Monday morning, though, as futures point to a sharply higher open. Today's Food for Thought: Breaking down the September employment report
07-Oct-11	Wake-Up Call -- 07 October 2011: Futures are slightly lower ahead of the September employment report. Economists forecast that nonfarm payrolls will increase by 60,000 and private payrolls will climb 83,000. Today's Food for Thought: A look at S&P 500 third quarter EPS estimates
06-Oct-11	Wake-Up Call -- 06 October 2011 U.S. equity markets extended Tuesday's late-session surge during Wednesday's session. Participants were looking to keep the rally going Thursday, especially after futures rallied with European markets on continued hope progress is being made in Europe. Futures gave up those gains, though, after the European Central Bank kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged. Today's Food for Thought: The relationship between Yahoo and Microsoft
05-Oct-11	Wake-Up Call -- 05 October 2011 U.S. equity markets surged at the close Tuesday, with the S&P 500 adding about 45 points in 45 minutes. They are looking to extend those gains Wednesday, as futures currently have a slight bid, though the ADP employment report at 8:15 a.m. ET could set the day's direction. Today's Food for Thought: U.S. Google searches for "recession"
04-Oct-11	Wake-Up Call -- 04 October 2011 The global sell-off has continued Tuesday, though it has been a quiet morning. Greece is seeing the largest decline as banks trade lower across Europe following a profit warning from Deutsche Bank. Today's Food for Thought: Diverging corporate yields
03-Oct-11	Wake-Up Call -- 03 October 2011 While there are a number of economic data points and headlines to sift through, global equity markets are playing catch-up Monday morning following the sharp declines on Wall Street Friday. Worries about Greece and the ability to successfully conduct its austerity measures continue. U.S. futures are showing only a slight decline, though, on the first trading day of the month/quarter. Today's Food for Thought: Reviewing third quarter performance across investable assets
30-Sep-11	Wake-Up Call -- 30 September 2011 U.S. equity futures have trended lower with European markets Friday morning following disappointing economic data. German retail sales contracted more than expected in August at -2.9% while eurozone CPI came in hotter-than-expected in September at 3.0%. The latter may dampen hopes of an interest rate cut from the European Central Bank. Today's Food for Thought: U.S. banks have become more reliant on fee income
29-Sep-11	Wake-Up Call -- 29 September 2011 The focus Thursday morning had been the German lower parliament vote on the new, expanded EFSF. It proved to be a non-event, as the lower parliament approved the facility by a wide margin. European markets actually gave up modest gains following the vote while U.S. futures and the euro pulled back slightly but continue to trade higher. Today's Food for Thought: Germany's rising CDS
28-Sep-11	Wake-Up Call -- 28 September 2011 Global equity markets are showing much less direction Wednesday, due in part to a lack of news flow. U.S. equity futures have moved modestly higher over the last three hours, though. Today's Food for Thought: The stunning rise in health insurance costs
27-Sep-11	Wake-Up Call -- 27 September 2011 Following the rebound in U.S. equity markets Monday, global markets rebounded overnight. It seems gains beget gains, at least this morning, as U.S. futures point to a sharply higher open Tuesday. Today's Food for Thought: Research and development dollars by country
26-Sep-11	Wake-Up Call -- 26 September 2011 U.S. equity futures point to a sharply higher open, benefitting from a shift in sentiment early Monday morning. Specifically, there are numerous reports this morning of potential new steps that European leaders could take to stem the eurozone debt crisis. Today's Food for Thought: World oil fundamentals
23-Sep-11	Wake-Up Call - 23 September 2011 Global equity markets suffered sharp losses Thursday. The negative bias remains entrenched this morning, too, as confidence remains low in policymakers' ability to turn the economic tide. A vague pledge of support from the G20 is the latest disappointment. The U.S. equity market appears poised to decline roughly 1.6% at the start of trading. Today's Food for Thought: A Look at Eurozone and U.S. Manufacturing Surveys
22-Sep-11	Wake-Up Call -- 22 September 2011 Barring a reversal, U.S. equity markets will extend their post-FOMC declines Thursday morning, as futures currently point to a sharply lower open. Today's Food for Thought: Showing the shift in the Treasury yield curve
21-Sep-11	Wake-Up Call -- 21 September 2011 It remains unclear whether Greece will receive the next tranche of loans in conjunction with the country's initial bailout in May 2010. That uncertainty has led to some volatile trade so far this week. That debate may be on the back burner Wednesday, though, ahead of the much anticipated FOMC policy directive this afternoon. U.S. equity futures are currently pointing to a flat open ahead of the release. Today's Food for Thought: Reviewing the IMF's new, lowered GDP growth expectations
20-Sep-11	Wake-Up Call -- 20 September 2011 U.S. equity markets are looking to extend Monday's late rebound this morning, as futures currently point to a higher open. The stronger indication is being attributed to bargain hunting, as participants shrug off a downgrade of Italy's credit rating. Today's Food for Thought: Declining real estate values and financial asset values drive net worth lower
19-Sep-11	Wake-Up Call -- 19 September 2011 It will be difficult for the S&P 500 to extend its five-session winning streak Monday as fears of a Greek default have returned to the forefront, sending global equity markets lower. Today's Food for Thought: Fed may need to do what is unexpected
16-Sep-11	Wake-Up Call -- 16 September 2011 U.S. equity futures point to a slightly lower open Friday following a brief sell-off early this morning. While participants may be taking profits here, markets overseas are higher today. The action precedes a meeting of EU finance ministers later in the day. Today's Food for Thought: The decline in state and local government employment
15-Sep-11	Wake-Up Call -- 15 September 2011 Futures have a modest bid Thursday morning, trading higher with European markets. That action precedes a very large batch of U.S. economic data this morning, which includes not only the jobless claims report and industrial production, but the first September data points in the form of two Fed manufacturing surveys. Today's Food for Thought: Australia's yield curve turns convex
14-Sep-11	Wake-Up Call -- 14 September 2011 U.S. equity futures are following Europe's lead Wednesday morning. After trading lower overnight following the Moody's downgrade of French banks, futures rebounded with European markets and the euro. Today's Food for Thought: Median household income at lowest level since 1995
13-Sep-11	Wake-Up Call -- 13 September 2011 U.S. equity futures are trading in lockstep with Europe Tuesday morning. They currently point to a lower open on more rumors regarding French banks and a weak round of bond auctions in Italy. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing Q2 2011 GDP growth rates
12-Sep-11	Wake-Up Call -- 12 September 2011 Concerns regarding a Greek default and the health of the European financial system continue to rise, with global equity markets plunging Monday. Today's Food for Thought: Euro at 10-year low against the yen
09-Sep-11	Wake-Up Call -- 09 September 2011 The components of President Obama's speech last night on job creation and economic growth were largely as expected, although the price for his growth proposals was larger than expected. U.S. equity futures had a modest bid overnight, but are trading slightly lower Friday morning. Today's Food for Thought: U.S. labor participation rate versus other developed economies
08-Sep-11	Wake-Up Call -- 08 September 2011 U.S. equity futures are trading slightly lower Thursday morning ahead of a batch of economic data and a number of important speeches, including President Obama's highly-anticipated speech on the economy and job creation tonight. Today's Food for Thought: Increasing poverty rate led by working age population
07-Sep-11	Wake-Up Call -- 07 September 2011 Global equity markets are rebounding Wednesday morning on bargain hunting. Today's Food for Thought: Foreign officials keeping cash with the Federal Reserve
06-Sep-11	Wake-Up Call -- 06 September 2011 Global equity markets sold off sharply Monday while the U.S. was on holiday. As a result, U.S. futures point to a sharply lower open Tuesday morning. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing mortgage rates to Treasuries and inflation expectations
02-Sep-11	Wake-Up Call -- 02 September 2011 Thursday's weakness has carried over into trading Friday morning. U.S. equity futures currently point to a lower open, but that precedes the release of the August employment report at 8:30 a.m. ET. Today's Food for Thought: Do market corrections correspond with a recession?
01-Sep-11	Wake-Up Call -- 01 September 2011 U.S. equity futures are trading slightly lower Thursday, but they have a wide range thus far on a busy morning. Today's Food for Thought: S&P 500 earnings yield versus Baa corporate bonds
31-Aug-11	Wake-Up Call -- 31 August 2011 U.S. equity futures are pointing to a higher open Wednesday morning, having rallied with European markets. Many are pointing to a batch of economic data out of Germany and the eurozone, but the results were basically in-line. Instead, the rally feels simply like an extension of the recent run, perhaps aided by end of the month buying. That will be put to the test shortly, though, when ADP releases its August employment change at 8:15 a.m. ET. Today's Food for Thought: High-yield spreads on the rise
30-Aug-11	Wake-Up Call -- 30 August 2011 U.S. equity futures point to a modestly lower open Tuesday morning. News flow has been slow thus far, so many are attributing the slight decline to profit-taking. Today's Food for Thought: CDS rates on European banks
29-Aug-11	Wake-Up Call -- 29 August 2011 U.S. equity futures point to a higher open Monday morning on broad-based strength in global markets. Hurricane Irene swept across the East coast over the weekend. While many are without power and some areas are experiencing flooding, it is expected to be business as usual today on Wall Street. Today's Food for Thought: S&P 500 trailing dividend payout ratio at lowest level on records dating back to 1871.
26-Aug-11	Wake-Up Call -- 26 August 2011: Futures are flat ahead of Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's speech at the Jackson Hole Economic Symposium at 10:00 a.m. ET. Today's Food for Thought: ETF flows into equities, fixed income and commodities
25-Aug-11	Wake-Up Call -- 25 August 2011 U.S. equity futures are trading around unchanged Thursday morning. NASDAQ futures are underperforming as shares of Apple trade 2.5% lower after CEO Steve Jobs resigned. Gold has continued its pullback this morning, having now fallen about $200 from Tuesday's record high. Today's Food for Thought: Why a QE3 hint is unlikely at Jackson Hole
24-Aug-11	Wake-Up Call -- 24 August 2011 U.S. equity futures moved lower overnight and have remained in negative territory through morning trade. They traded down with Asian markets. Despite the rally Tuesday on Wall Street, Asia fell overnight after Moody's downgraded Japan's long-term sovereign credit rating one notch to Aa3. Today's Food for Thought: Looking at current valuations in banks following the correction
23-Aug-11	Wake-Up Call -- 23 August 2011 Futures again point to a higher open Tuesday morning, though they are off their best levels. The question is, will U.S. equity markets be able to hold these gains? A new home sales figure this morning and the first of this week's longer maturity Treasury auctions at midday could influence trade. Today's Food for Thought: Reviewing the comparison between the current equity correction and the decline following the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy
22-Aug-11	Wake-Up Call -- 22 August 2011 Sentiment shifted early Monday morning, and U.S. equity futures currently point to a sharply higher open. Asia traded modestly lower overnight while Europe opened slightly lower this morning. Buyers stepped in at that point, however, though there was not one specific catalyst to explain the move. Today's Food for Thought: Rising volatility
19-Aug-11	Wake-Up Call -- 19 August 2011 Following Thursday's very sharp declines, there has been some carryover selling Friday morning. European markets opened modestly lower, but sold off aggressively just after the open, led once again by banks. U.S. futures followed, and currently point to another sharply lower open. Today's Food for Thought: Mutual fund net cash flow
18-Aug-11	Wake-Up Call -- 18 August 2011 There has been only modest news flow thus far Thursday morning. Morgan Stanley became the latest firm to lower its economic outlook, cutting its global GDP forecast for 2011 and 2012. But it appears that was enough to renew concerns among market participants regarding the prospects of sub-par economic growth. Add in the lingering eurozone debt crisis, and global equity markets are trading sharply lower this morning. Today's Food for Thought: Gold search interest
17-Aug-11	Wake-Up Call -- 17 August 2011 U.S. equity futures are trading around unchanged Wednesday morning while European markets have rebounded. They opened lower in reaction to Tuesday's meeting between German Chancellor Merkel and French President Sarkozy that failed to calm fears regarding the eurozone debt crisis. Today's Food for Thought: Actual versus potential U.S. GDP
16-Aug-11	Wake-Up Call -- 16 August 2011 U.S. equity futures point to a sharply lower open Tuesday morning, with Europe in focus. Germany released its second quarter GDP report earlier this morning, and the country saw growth of just 0.1%. The release comes ahead of today's highly-anticipated meeting between German Chancellor Merkel and French President Sarkozy to discuss possible measures to contain the eurozone debt crisis. Today's Food for Thought: Leading indicators by state
15-Aug-11	Wake-Up Call -- 15 August 2011 News flow has been light thus far Monday morning, so a rally in Asia has been enough to send U.S. futures modestly higher. Today's Food for Thought: Spread rises between high yield and Treasuries, but pales in comparison to the financial crisis
12-Aug-11	Wake-Up Call -- 12 August 2011 Following Thursday's strong rebound, U.S. equity markets will look to make it two in a row for the first time since the beginning of the recent correction. Futures currently point to a flat open, though. Today's Food for Thought: The S&P 500 daily range
11-Aug-11	Wake-Up Call -- 11 August 2011: Volatility continues in premarket trading. S&P 500 futures have trended lower and are now negative after giving up a gain of as much as 2.1%. The retreat occurred in conjunction with a rollover in European markets which are now down 1.3%, slipping from a gain of 2.3% at the session high. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing the current equity downturn to the decline following the Lehman Bros. bankruptcy
10-Aug-11	Wake-Up Call -- 10 August 2011 U.S. equity futures point to a lower open Wednesday morning, meaning the market may not be able to build on Tuesday's strong snap-back rally following the FOMC statement. Today's Food for Thought: The S&P 500's profit margin
09-Aug-11	Wake-Up Call -- 09 August 2011 The U.S. equity market is looking to rebound Tuesday morning, with futures currently pointing to a higher open amid volatile trade. The rebound precedes today's FOMC meeting. The market will be looking for reassurance, but it is probably too much to expect anything along the lines of QE3. Today's Food for Thought: The worst and best performers in the S&P 500
08-Aug-11	Wake-Up Call -- 08 August 2011 Global equity markets are trading sharply lower Monday morning after Standard & Poor's became the first ratings agency to downgrade the long-term debt rating of the United States. Today's Food for Thought: The 19 countries that still hold a AAA rating from S&P
05-Aug-11	Wake-Up Call -- 05 August 2011 U.S. equity markets experienced very sharp losses Thursday, as fears of a global economic slowdown, resurfacing worries regarding the eurozone debt crisis and U.S. fiscal concerns have crushed confidence and sent participants running for liquidity. That leads up to this morning's very highly anticipated July employment report. Futures had been trading lower overnight as Asian markets caught up, but have regained most of those declines ahead of the release. Today's Food for Thought: Global equity market and commodity returns after the sell-off
04-Aug-11	Wake-Up Call -- 04 August 2011 Unfortunately, Wednesday's strength has not carried over to Thursday, as U.S. equity futures point to a lower open on a very busy morning. They showed little direction overnight, and all looked well when Europe opened with modest gains earlier this morning. Both Europe and the U.S. have trended lower from there, however. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing home to rent prices
03-Aug-11	Wake-Up Call -- 03 August 2011 U.S. economic concerns could remain in the forefront today when ADP releases its July employment change. U.S. equity futures have a modest bid ahead of the release, however. They showed little direction overnight as Asia played catch-up, but moved higher around 3:30 a.m. ET, coinciding with European markets rebounding off their opening lows and a sell-off in the dollar. Today's Food for Thought: The foreign currency reserves of China and Japan
02-Aug-11	Wake-Up Call -- 02 August 2011 U.S. equity futures are currently pointing to a lower open Tuesday morning. The budget deal has progressed as expected, with the House approving the bill last night and the Senate expected to vote on it at 12:00 p.m. ET. Instead, today's weakness is being attributed to economic concerns following disappointing GDP and manufacturing reports over the last two sessions. Today's Food for Thought: The economic rebound after the GDP revisions
01-Aug-11	Wake-Up Call -- 01 August 2011 U.S. equity futures moved higher last night after Senators Reid and McConnell agreed on a budget deal. Futures have held those gains into morning trade, currently pointing to a sharply higher open. Today's Food for Thought: TIPS yields turning negative
29-Jul-11	Wake-Up Call -- 29 July 2011 The House did not vote on the Boehner bill late yesterday. Reports first indicated the bill had gained support (though it is still not expected to pass the Senate), but the delay puts into question if Republicans have enough votes. Futures moved lower on the delay, and have not managed to regain much ground in morning trade, pointing to another lower open. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing gold to platinum prices
28-Jul-11	Wake-Up Call -- 28 July 2011 Global equity markets are playing catch-up Thursday morning, but U.S. markets are attempting to stabilize as futures are trading modestly higher. Participants are of course watching the developments out of Washington, as Congressional leaders on both sides of the aisle fight for votes for their respective budget plans. Republican Speaker Boehner is expected to bring a revised plan before the House today. Today's Food for Thought: Looking at home prices since 1987
27-Jul-11	Wake-Up Call -- 27 July 2011 The pessimism regarding the U.S. budget debate and raising the debt ceiling remains Wednesday morning. That is offsetting strong second quarter results and guidance from the likes of Aetna, Amazon.com, ArcelorMittal, Boeing and Dow Chemical. As a result, futures are pointing to a modestly lower open. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing CDS between Germany and the U.S.
26-Jul-11	Wake-Up Call -- 26 July 2011 The focus Tuesday morning remains on the debt debate in Washington, but participants are also digesting another large batch of second quarter earnings reports while awaiting economic data later this morning. As a result, U.S. equity futures have seen some volatility, but point to a relatively flat open. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing the unemployment rates of OECD countries to their averages from the prior decade
25-Jul-11	Wake-Up Call -- 25 July 2011 The market is focused on the U.S. budget talks Monday morning. More specifically, participants are focused on the fact that another weekend has passed and Congress has not made any progress. That reality sent U.S. equity futures lower overnight and pressured markets worldwide. Today's Food for Thought: The price history behind splits to McDonald's stock
22-Jul-11	Wake-Up Call -- 22 July 2011: The economic calendar is empty today. Corporate earnings results from five Dow components and developments in the U.S. debt negotiations are likely to be the main drivers today. Futures are currently flat. Today's Food For Thought: The historical inflation-adjusted total return, trailing EPS and forward EPS of the S&P 500 sectors
21-Jul-11	Wake-Up Call -- 21 July 2011 Participants continue to digest second quarter earnings Thursday morning, as well as global PMI data and the latest headlines from Europe. As a result, U.S. futures have been volatile this morning, currently pointing to a flat open. Today's Food for Thought: Apple net income likely to surpass that of Microsoft
20-Jul-11	Wake-Up Call -- 20 July 2011 The rush of earnings reports have continued since Tuesday's close, and futures point to a higher open Wednesday morning as the majority continue to exceed expectations. Most notable are Apple's blowout results, which are helping NASDAQ futures outperform this morning. Today's Food for Thought: How well economic estimates predict actual results
19-Jul-11	Wake-Up Call -- 19 July 2011 Second quarter earnings season has shifted into high gear Tuesday morning. Futures indicate a stronger open after companies such as IBM, Coca-Cola, Bank of America, Johnson & Johnson and Novartis exceeded expectations. Banking stocks in Europe are also rebounding, led by Italy and Spain. The latter successfully sold 12- and 18-month Bills at an auction today that experienced strong demand, albeit at high yields. U.S. futures are off their best levels, though, following weaker-than-expected results from Goldman Sachs, who attributed the weakness to global macroeconomic concerns and fluctuations in prices and market liquidity. Today's Food for Thought: The S&P 500's long-term EPS growth rate
18-Jul-11	Wake-Up Call -- 18 July 2011 The usual suspects are pressuring U.S. equity futures Monday morning. Another weekend has passed and the U.S. government appears no closer to a resolution on the budget and raising the debt ceiling. Friday's stress test results for banks in the EU also failed to dispel concerns about the eurozone debt crisis. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing S&P 500 valuations
15-Jul-11	Wake-Up Call -- 15 July 2011 U.S. futures are showing a modest bid Friday morning as participants digest a number of headlines, both positive and negative. They are also awaiting another large batch of economic data, as well as the results of the latest stress tests on banks in the European Union, which are due out at 12:00 p.m. ET. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing the Great Recession to the Great Depression by loans, deposits and the number of banks
14-Jul-11	Wake-Up Call -- 14 July 2011 U.S. equity futures have experienced volatile trade ahead of this morning's important batch of economic data (retail sales, jobless claims, PPI). They sold off after the close Tuesday after Moody's placed the long-term debt rating of the U.S. on review for possible downgrade given the rising possibility that the statutory debt limit will not be raised by August 2. But futures slowly rebounded overnight and into morning trade. After pulling back slightly, they returned to their best levels after JPMorgan Chase issued better-than-expected second quarter results. Today's Food for Thought: The debt maturity schedules of the U.S., Greece and Italy
13-Jul-11	Wake-Up Call -- 13 July 2011 Strength in Asia, led by a rally in China following a positive reaction to the country's second quarter GDP, helped U.S. futures move into positive territory overnight. A modest rally at the open of European trade helped U.S. futures extend higher. Today's Food for Thought: Tracking global indices year-to-date and since the Lehman Bros. collapse
12-Jul-11	Wake-Up Call -- 12 July 2011 The debt fears regarding Italy remain Tuesday morning, and are once again pushing global markets sharply lower. U.S. futures, though, are well off their worst levels. Today's Food for Thought: The ratio of the S&P 500 and the CRB Index
11-Jul-11	Wake-Up Call -- 11 July 2011 Continued concern about Italy being the next economy to become embroiled in the eurozone debt crisis, coupled with hotter-than-expected inflation data out of China, has sent global equity markets sharply lower Monday. Today's Food for Thought: Employment-population ratio back at lows
08-Jul-11	Wake-Up Call -- 08 July 2011 U.S. equity markets surged Thursday following a much better-than-expected June ADP employment report. The question Friday morning is whether the June employment report (8:30 a.m. ET) will confirm yesterday's data. U.S. futures are showing little direction ahead of the release. Typically, activity in Europe is also muted ahead of the release, but weakness in banks on contagion fears for Italy has led the peripheral eurozone markets lower. Today's Food for Thought: Dividends showing low yields, high relative value
07-Jul-11	Wake-Up Call -- 07 July 2011 U.S. equity futures are trading modestly higher Thursday morning ahead of the ADP employment report at 8:15 a.m. ET. Markets in general are showing little activity as participants digest a number of headlines on a busy morning. Today's Food for Thought: Odds, by month, that Congress will approve an increase to the debt ceiling
06-Jul-11	Wake-Up Call -- 06 July 2011 While Moody's downgrade of Portugal failed to make a dent in U.S. trade yesterday, it is a different story today. European markets opened lower this morning and extended those declines into midday. U.S. futures have followed suit, pointing to a lower open Wednesday morning. In addition, the People's Bank of China raised its benchmark interest rates for the third time this year. Today's Food for Thought: Real earnings, book value and market value since the recession
05-Jul-11	Wake-Up Call -- 05 July 2011 U.S. equity markets enjoyed a strong, uninterrupted rebound last week. With U.S. markets closed Monday for Independence Day, global markets did very little, though many managed to close with modest gains. The story is pretty much the same Tuesday morning, with global markets and U.S. futures showing little direction. Today's Food for Thought: A follow-up on gas prices
01-Jul-11	Wake-Up Call -- 01 July 2011 The question Friday morning is can U.S. equity markets extend their four-day rally. Thus far, futures have shown little direction. Today's Food for Thought: Google searches as a contrarian indicator?
30-Jun-11	Wake-Up Call -- 30 June 2011 U.S. equity markets are looking to extend this week's rebound as futures point to a modestly higher open. Today brings a number of factors into play for the market, including a vote in Greek parliament on the implementation of new austerity measures, the end of QE2, and the last (trading) day of the month and quarter. Today's Food for Thought: Reviewing first quarter and previewing second quarter EPS estimates
29-Jun-11	Wake-Up Call -- 29 June 2011 After two days of strong gains, U.S. equity futures point to a higher open Wednesday morning on strength in markets overseas amid reports the Greek parliament is more unified in approving new austerity measures. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing U.S. sector ratings to Europe and the world
28-Jun-11	Wake-Up Call -- 28 June 2011 U.S. equity futures have been trading around unchanged Tuesday morning as participants continue to play the waiting game on Greece. Today's Food for Thought: Median earnings growth by sex and education level
27-Jun-11	Wake-Up Call -- 27 June 2011 U.S. equity futures have a modest bid Monday morning. They had traded slightly lower overnight, as Asian markets played catch-up following Friday's weaker session, but rebounded. Participants are playing a waiting game as the Greek parliament begins the debate on new austerity measures. Today's Food for Thought: Gas prices dipping
24-Jun-11	Wake-Up Call -- 24 June 2011 Futures are largely unchanged in the early going. The tech sector is poised to underperform as Oracle sheds 3.7% following the tech giant's earnings report. The May durable goods orders report and the third estimate for Q1 GDP are both due at 8:30 a.m. ET.
23-Jun-11	Wake-Up Call -- 23 June 2011 U.S. equity futures have extended declines this morning, currently pointing toward a lower open. Weak manufacturing data in Europe helped impact sentiment. The sell-off precedes two important economic releases this morning -- jobless claims and new home sales. Today's Food for Thought: Reviewing the Fed's lowered economic projections
22-Jun-11	Wake-Up Call -- 22 June 2011 Despite Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou winning a confidence vote, U.S. equity futures are trading modestly lower Wednesday morning ahead of the FOMC announcement. Today's Food for Thought: Employers expect to add jobs in the third quarter
21-Jun-11	Wake-Up Call -- 21 June 2011 Global markets are catching up Tuesday following the strength on Wall Street Monday. After Asia traded broadly higher overnight amid light volume, Europe opened higher and has held those gains into midday. U.S. futures have also trended slowly upward throughout the morning. News flow has been light, with no new developments out of Europe other than fresh commentary. Greek Prime Minister Papandreou and his new cabinet are expected to receive a vote of confidence today from the Greek parliament. Today's Food for Thought: Looking at U.S. debt growth now and before the recession
20-Jun-11	Wake-Up Call -- 20 June 2011 European leaders failed to agree on a second bailout package for Greece over the weekend, sending global equity markets lower overnight. Today's Food for Thought: Looking at S&P 500 performance on a 10- and 20-year basis
17-Jun-11	Wake-Up Call -- 17 June 2011 Global markets had been trading modestly lower overnight. They began rebounding around 5:00 a.m. ET, however, with U.S. futures, European markets and the euro all rallying. Futures currently indicate a strong open. The reversal is due to reports that a deal to resolve the Greek debt crisis may be in place. French President Sarkozy hinted as much following a meeting with German Chancellor Merkel. Today's Food for Thought: Looking at the price-to-book ratio for U.S. equities
16-Jun-11	Wake-Up Call -- 16 June 2011 A disappointing batch of U.S. economic data and uncertainty about Greece and the eurozone debt situation took their toll on the market Wednesday. Action thus far Thursday has been as expected. Asian markets sold off sharply overnight as they played catch-up. European markets followed suit as they missed the midday sell-off Wednesday. U.S. futures, however, are showing only modest declines as the focus will return to economic data this morning. Outside of equities, safety assets are extending their rally this morning. Today's Food for Thought: Looking at the correlation between the S&P 500 and Asian markets
15-Jun-11	Wake-Up Call -- 15 June 2011 Overnight, U.S. equity futures traded lower while Treasuries reversed course. Weakness in Europe is to blame. Moody's placed the ratings of French banks BNP Paribas, Societe Generale and Credit Agricole on review due to their exposure to Greece while eurozone ministers continue to disagree on how to share the costs of a new bailout package for the country. Sentiment could change later this morning, though, as a large batch of U.S. economic data is released, which will include CPI and industrial production. Today's Food for Thought: The over/undervaluation of international currencies relative to the U.S. dollar
14-Jun-11	Wake-Up Call -- 14 June 2011 The remainder of the May economic data from China pleased market participants, sending Asian markets and U.S. futures higher overnight. Those gains will be tested by a batch of U.S. economic data this morning that includes retail sales and PPI. Today's Food for Thought: U.S. GDP growth versus the world average
13-Jun-11	Wake-Up Call -- 13 June 2011 Global equity markets are showing little direction Monday morning. U.S. futures have a slight bid after Asia traded mixed overnight and with European markets trading flat-to-slightly higher at midday. Outside of equities, the dollar is giving back some of last week’s gains, as it trades broadly lower against the other major currencies. Today's Food for Thought: The odds, by month, of Congress reaching a deal to raise the debt limit
10-Jun-11	Wake-Up Call -- 10 June 2011 U.S. equity futures are back in the red Friday morning, though they are only indicating a slightly lower open. Many are pointing to a weaker-than-expected trade balance figure out of China, but for the second straight month we believe the market is misinterpreting the data. Today's Food for Thought: Industries that have historically outperformed or underperformed the overall market
09-Jun-11	Wake-Up Call -- 09 June 2011 U.S. equity futures are enjoying a short-covering rally Thursday morning, currently indicating a slightly higher open. There are plenty of items on today's calendar that could impact trade, though, most notably this morning's batch of economic data that includes the jobless claims report. The other theme this morning is central bank rate decisions, most notably from the Bank of England and European Central Bank, though there have been no surprises. Today's Food for Thought: S&P 500 on a notable losing streak
08-Jun-11	Wake-Up Call -- 08 June 2011 Futures point to a lower open Wednesday morning, trading down with European markets. The weakness this morning is being blamed on Chairman Bernanke, even though his speech Tuesday on the U.S. economic outlook was more of the same regarding the overall policy of the Fed. The focus is on his comments that U.S. economic growth is somewhat slower than expected, even though he reiterated that it seems likely to pick up, and on the fact that he did not provide any indication of QE3. Today's Food for Thought: Real returns on global government bonds
07-Jun-11	Wake-Up Call -- 07 June 2011 It has been another quiet morning Tuesday, but short-covering has helped U.S. equity futures rebound modestly. Today's Food for Thought: A breakdown of consumer spending by sector
06-Jun-11	Wake-Up Call -- 06 June 2011 Following another session of sharp declines Friday, U.S. equity futures are trading modestly lower Monday morning. Things have slowed down considerably with many markets overseas closed for holidays, particularly in Asia. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing Apple's valuations to the historical valuations of tech bellwethers
03-Jun-11	Wake-Up Call -- 03 June 2011 U.S. equity futures are trading modestly lower Friday morning ahead of the release of the May employment report at 8:30 a.m. ET. Participants are also awaiting news out of Europe, including a statement from inspectors on Greece following a review by the EU, IMF and ECB, as well as expected details of further austerity measures from Greece. Today's Food for Thought: Color on Moody's debt rating for Greece
02-Jun-11	Wake-Up Call -- 02 June 2011 U.S. equity futures have held their ground thus far Thursday as markets overseas play catch-up. They have a very modest bid this morning ahead of the jobless claims report. Today's Food for Thought: Hedge fund versus equity returns
01-Jun-11	Wake-Up Call -- 01 June 2011 U.S. equity futures are showing little direction Wednesday morning ahead of the ADP employment report. Today's Food for Thought: Where is the fear trade?
31-May-11	Wake-Up Call -- 31 May 2011 A rally in Asia overnight and a strong rebound in Greece this morning are boosting U.S. equity futures. Today's Food for Thought: Updating TARP after a busy week.
27-May-11	Wake-Up Call -- 27 May 2011 U.S. equity futures are pointing to a flat open Friday morning, though markets overseas are showing more direction. Apart from a batch of economic data this morning, today's calendar is empty. Expect activity to slow down considerably as the session progresses ahead of Monday's Memorial Day holiday, with the fixed income market closing early. Today's Food for Thought: Gasoline and food spending as a percentage of disposable income
26-May-11	Wake-Up Call -- 26 May 2011 U.S. equity futures have mimicked trade overseas so far Thursday, rallying overnight on stronger trade in Asia before selling off as European markets gave up their opening gains. U.S. futures currently indicate a flat open. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing equity declines across recessions
25-May-11	Wake-Up Call -- 25 May 2011 U.S. equity futures traded lower overnight, perhaps looking to extend the market's three session losing streak, but have rebounded and are trading unchanged Wednesday morning. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing tech performance to fund ownership
24-May-11	Wake-Up Call -- 24 May 2011 Global equity markets stabilized overnight after falling sharply over the last two sessions on eurozone debt fears. U.S. futures are trading around unchanged. Today's Food for Thought: Measuring S&P 500 performance versus major world indices
23-May-11	Wake-Up Call -- 23 May 2011 The eurozone sovereign debt crisis remains the theme Monday morning as futures point to a sharply lower open after both European and Asian markets traded broadly lower. The safety trade is in full effect. Today's Food for Thought: Real U.S. 1-year interest rate at all-time low.
20-May-11	Wake-Up Call -- 20 May 2011 U.S. equity futures and European markets have traded lower over the last three hours as the euro sold off against the dollar. Today's Food for Thought: LinkedIn's IPO and how IPOs perform in the long run
19-May-11	Wake-Up Call -- 19 May 2011 U.S. equity futures moved higher over the last two hours, backed by stronger trade in Europe and ahead of an important batch of economic data that includes existing home sales and jobless claims. Today's Food for Thought: Real and nominal Treasury yields diverge slightly
18-May-11	Wake-Up Call -- 18 May 2011 U.S. equity futures had a slight bid overnight following better-than-expected earnings results from Dell, a modest rebound in commodities and mostly higher trade overseas, but have come off their best levels and point to a flat open. Today's Food for Thought: Quits versus layoffs in the labor sector
17-May-11	Wake-Up Call -- 17 May 2011 Following mixed, modest trade overseas, U.S. equity futures had been trending higher this morning, but have come off their best levels and point to a flat open. Earnings are in focus this morning, most notably HP. The company moved up its earnings announcement one day, issuing weak guidance due to factors such as the Japanese earthquake and slow PC sales. Today's Food for Thought: Ranking S&P 500 sectors by weighting and earnings
16-May-11	Wake-Up Call -- 16 May 2011 U.S. equity futures point to a modestly lower open Monday morning, selling off with markets overseas. Today's Food for Thought: The relative value of the 10 S&P 500 sectors
13-May-11	Wake-Up Call -- 13 May 2011 Equity markets rebounded on Thursday, along with commodity prices, which got back on track as the dollar reversed course. The early indication this morning points to a higher start for the broader market, as better than expected first quarter GDP reports from Germany and France have been uplifting focal points ahead of the April CPI report. Today's Food for Thought: A Positive Line on Total Real Income Growth
12-May-11	Wake-Up Call -- 12 May 2011 U.S. equity markets fell sharply Wednesday, led lower by another rout in the commodity complex that was exacerbated by a strengthening dollar. The negative disposition has persisted today, as the S&P futures are pointing to a lower open following disappointing guidance from Cisco (CSCO), continued weakness in commodities, and ahead of some key economic data that includes the weekly initial claims, retail sales, and PPI reports. Today's Food for Thought: The Future of Online Poker
11-May-11	Wake-Up Call -- 11 May 2011 U.S. equity markets are trading around unchanged Wednesday morning, with most global markets showing modest gains. Beyond equities, markets are showing mixed, modest moves this morning. Today's Food for Thought: Reviewing commodity margin hikes
10-May-11	Wake-Up Call -- 10 May 2011 U.S. equity futures have trended slowly upward this morning, pointing to a slightly higher open. Asian markets experienced a flat session overnight, but European markets opened with slight gains and have extended higher into midday. Today's Food for Thought: Signs of stabilization in consumer credit market?
09-May-11	Wake-Up Call -- 09 May 2011 U.S. equity futures point to a stronger open Monday morning as commodities rebound following last week‟s correction. Today's Food for Thought: Private payrolls growing at pre-recession levels
06-May-11	Wake-Up Call -- 06 May 2011 U.S. equity futures have a modest bid Friday morning ahead of the release of the April employment report at 8:30 a.m. ET. Commodities, however, are under pressure yet again. Silver futures are down another 7% while WTI and Brent crude futures have lost around 2%. There now seems to be greater concern regarding slowing global economic growth as Asia tightens and Europe gets bailed out/restructured. Today's Food for Thought: Business sector output from the start of the recession
05-May-11	Wake-Up Call -- 05 May 2011 A third straight lower session Wednesday points to a market in need of a rest after a strong run. It may not have its wind back just yet, though, as U.S. equity futures point to a weaker open on a very busy Thursday morning. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing the rebound in the S&P 500 to the S&P 500 Industrials Index
04-May-11	Wake-Up Call -- 04 May 2011 Despite continued weakness overseas on Wednesday, U.S. futures are showing only modest declines ahead of the ADP Employment report at 8:15 a.m. ET. Today's Food for Thought: High-yield debt
03-May-11	Wake-Up Call -- 03 May 2011 U.S. equity futures point to a lower open Tuesday morning following weakness in markets overseas. A rebound in the dollar is also pressuring commodities. Today's Food for Thought: Gold's ascent by currency
02-May-11	Wake-Up Call -- 02 May 2011 Equity futures point to a higher open Monday morning, and for the month of May, as news that the U.S. killed Osama bin Laden bolstered sentiment. China and the U.K. highlight a long list of market holidays today, which also includes Hong Kong, Ireland and Russia. WTI and Brent crude futures pulled back following the news about bin Laden, though it remains to be seen whether it will ease geopolitical tensions in the Middle East. Today's Food for Thought: Revisiting the gold-to-silver ratio as silver falls
29-Apr-11	Wake-Up Call -- 29 April 2011 U.S. equity futures are trading around unchanged on a slow Friday morning, with first quarter earnings reports remaining in focus. NASDAQ futures are underperforming slightly after Microsoft reported disappointing margins and Research In Motion unexpectedly cut its outlook. Two major global markets -- Japan and the U.K. -- are closed today. Today's Food for Thought: Energy and agricultural subsidies
28-Apr-11	Wake-Up Call -- 28 April 2011 U.S. equity futures currently point to a modestly lower open, but that is ahead of the release of the advance estimate for first quarter GDP growth. In the meantime, participants are digesting one of the largest batches of first quarter earnings reports during this cycle. The majority of companies continue to exceed expectations. Today's Food for Thought: The FOMC policy directive and Chairman Bernanke's press conference
27-Apr-11	Wake-Up Call -- 27 April 2011 While participants continue to digest first quarter earnings results, trading has been light as today's calendar contains a number of important items, culminating with the FOMC policy directive at 12:30 a.m. ET and Fed Chairman Bernanke's first press conference on the announcement at 2:15 p.m. ET. U.S. equity futures have moved modestly higher this morning ahead of the release. Today's Food for Thought: Exxon Mobil's foreign and domestic taxes
26-Apr-11	Wake-Up Call -- 26 April 2011 U.S. equity futures traded modestly lower overnight following weak earnings/guidance from companies like Netflix and Express Scripts and a weaker session in Asia. Future began rallying around 2:30 a.m. ET, though, along with Europe, ahead of a large batch of first quarter earnings results. With companies such as 3M, Ford Motor and UPS reporting strong results, futures point to a slightly higher open. Today's Food for Thought: Variation in the S&P 500
25-Apr-11	Wake-Up Call -- 25 April 2011 With European markets remaining closed on Easter Monday, global markets are showing little direction, though there are a few exceptions. U.S. futures point to a slightly higher open. The dollar is continuing its decline this morning, and that is leading to another rally in the commodity complex. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing Apple's revenue and net income to another tech bellwether.
21-Apr-11	Wake-Up Call -- 21 April 2011 First quarter earnings results remain in focus on Thursday, and with seemingly every company exceeding expectations, U.S. futures are pointing to another higher open. Today's Food for Thought: More on the U.S. manufacturing sector
20-Apr-11	Wake-Up Call -- 20 April 2011 Market sentiment has done a 180 Wednesday, as fears of eurozone sovereign debt restructuring, global inflation and a nuclear disaster in Japan have been overshadowed by strong first quarter earnings results, propelling global markets higher. Today's Food for Thought: The size of the U.S. manufacturing industry
19-Apr-11	Wake-Up Call -- 19 April 2011 Earnings have taken center stage Tuesday morning, as they will for the remainder of the week. Futures are trading around unchanged as participants digest results from a number of big names. Today's Food for Thought: Largest components of S&P 500 representing a smaller share
18-Apr-11	Wake-Up Call -- 18 April 2011 U.S. equity futures have been trending downward this morning, pointing to a lower open for the major averages. Participants are just now digesting earnings results from Citigroup, but futures have shown little initial reaction to the release. Today's Food for Thought: Germany's economic recovery
15-Apr-11	Wake-Up Call -- 15 April 2011 U.S. equity futures are trading very modestly lower this morning as participants digest earnings results from Google and Bank of America. The limited movement in futures may be due to the large batch of economic data on tap for this morning, including CPI and Industrial Production. Overseas, China and Ireland are in focus. The developments out of these two countries are being blamed for weaker trade overseas, with the notable exception of their own markets, which both rallied modestly. Today's Food for Thought: Tracking shares of Google after earnings
14-Apr-11	Wake-Up Call -- 14 April 2011 Many are attributing the weakness in U.S. equity futures this morning to developments out of China. While they are notable, U.S. futures actually extended lower at 5:30 a.m. ET after European markets came under pressure when Germany's finance minister said Greece may have to seek debt restructuring. Today's Food for Thought: U.S. gasoline inventories
13-Apr-11	Wake-Up Call -- 13 April 2011 U.S. equity futures point to a higher open this morning after markets overseas rallied. Futures extended those gains following positive first quarter earnings results from JPMorgan Chase. Today's Food for Thought: Upgrade to the Fukushima nuclear accident surprises market predictors
12-Apr-11	Wake-Up Call -- 12 April 2011 Global equity markets are trading lower today after Japan's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency raised the crisis level of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant accident from 5 to 7, the highest level on the international scale. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing household debt-to-GDP ratios across nations
11-Apr-11	Wake-Up Call -- 11 April 2011 Crude oil is pulling back on Monday morning and that, along with optimism ahead of the first quarter earnings reporting season, has pushed U.S. equity futures modestly higher. As expected, U.S. government officials reached a budget deal for fiscal year 2012 late Friday night. Today's Food for Thought: Silver versus gold futures
08-Apr-11	Wake-Up Call -- 08 April 2011 Japan led global equity markets higher overnight after no major damage was reported from yesterday's earthquake, including at the Fukushimi nuclear plant. U.S. futures point to a slightly stronger open this morning, with commodities leading the way. Today's Food for Thought: Commercial paper outstanding in the U.S.
07-Apr-11	Wake-Up Call -- 07 April 2011 U.S. equity futures have shown little direction this morning as they digest three major central bank decisions and March same-store sales data, while also awaiting ECB President Trichet's speech and Q&A that could shed some light on future rate hikes and the situation in Portugal. Today's Food for Thought: Market cap as a percentage of GDP
06-Apr-11	Wake-Up Call -- 06 April 2011 Futures moved higher early Wednesday morning after Chinese markets reopened in positive territory, despite Tuesday's interest rate hike. They extended those gains after Portugal successfully auctioned off 1.05 bln euro in Bills, albeit at high yields. Today's Food for Thought: Illustrating the historical divergence between ECB and Federal Reserve monetary policy
05-Apr-11	Wake-Up Call -- 05 April 2011 U.S. equity futures are trading modestly lower on a very busy morning. Weakness overseas is playing a part, but the tech sector is in focus. Today's Food for Thought: What OECD countries spend on energy and food
04-Apr-11	Wake-Up Call -- 04 April 2011 U.S. equity futures point to a slightly stronger open on a slow Monday morning. They traded lower overnight, but slowly trended higher throughout the morning. Crude oil futures are extending Friday's rebound, with WTI nearing $109 and Brent briefly trading above $119, both fresh multi-year highs. This week's calendar is very thin on economic data and earnings releases, but there are a number of potentially significant central bank events. Today's Food for Thought: Homeowner vacancy rates versus unemployment
01-Apr-11	Wake-Up Call -- 01 April 2011 U.S. equity futures are trading modestly higher this morning ahead of the March employment report. Participants are cognizant that the first trading day of a new month is often accented with a favorable bias. It should not be forgotten that the S&P 500 declined 1.6% on March 1, so nothing can be taken for granted with respect to historical trading activity. Today's Food for Thought: S&P 600 finishes recovering all of its recession losses
31-Mar-11	Wake-Up Call -- 31 March 2011 U.S. equity futures are showing little direction this morning amid slow end of the month trading. Today's Food for Thought: Earnings estimates for the S&P 500 continue to trend higher.
30-Mar-11	Wake-Up Call -- 30 March 2011 U.S. equity futures point to a higher open this morning after major indices in Asia and Europe rallied overnight. That bid will be tested at 8:15 a.m. ET, though, when the March ADP Employment Report is released. Today's Food for Thought: Income statement tax expense versus actual taxes paid
29-Mar-11	Wake-Up Call -- 29 March 2011 U.S. equity futures are trading around unchanged this morning. They are outperforming global markets, which dealt with more reports of radiation out of Japan and another capital raise from a peripheral European bank. Participants have also had to digest guidance from Halliburton, which said disruptions in the MENA region will "severely" affect first quarter results. There were no major developments out of the region overnight, though, and crude oil has fallen back below $103. Today's Food for Thought: Showing homeowner vacancy rates by state
28-Mar-11	Wake-Up Call -- 28 March 2011 U.S. equity futures point to a slightly higher open this morning as participants digest developments on a number of geopolitical fronts. Today's Food for Thought: Updating world equity performance following the 1995 and 2011 earthquakes in Japan
25-Mar-11	Wake-Up Call -- 25 March 2011 U.S. equity futures rallied Thursday after the close following upside guidance from Oracle and have held those modest gains through a slow overnight session. Today's Food for Thought: S&P 500 companies with Japanese ties
24-Mar-11	Wake-Up Call -- 24 March 2011 U.S. equity futures, which traded modestly lower overnight, have moved higher with European markets this morning and point to a slightly stronger open. That precedes earnings reports today from the likes of Best Buy, Oracle and Research In Motion, as well as an important batch of economic data (durable orders, jobless claims). Today's Food for Thought: Demographic shifts in advanced economies versus GDP rates
23-Mar-11	Wake-Up Call -- 23 March 2011 U.S. equity futures currently point to slightly lower open on what has turned out to be a very busy morning. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing U.S. health care to other OECD members
22-Mar-11	Wake-Up Call -- 22 March 2011 After opening with strong gains Monday, U.S. equity markets traded sideways in what turned out to be a slow session. With few new developments overnight, global markets also saw slow, mixed trade. As a result, U.S. futures have been holding around the flat line. Today's Food for Thought: Muni yields back at December levels
21-Mar-11	Wake-Up Call -- 21 March 2011 U.S. equity markets are looking to rebound for a third consecutive session Monday as futures point to a sharply higher open. Today's Food for Thought: Measuring the moves in the yen
18-Mar-11	Wake-Up Call -- 18 March 2011: Equity futures are trading higher, which leaves the cash market poised to extend yesterday's gains. News that the G-7 agreed to a coordinated intervention to stem the yen's strength has been a key support factor. Today's Food for Thought: S&P 500, Nikkei, and world equity performance after the 1995 and 2011 earthquakes in Japan
17-Mar-11	Wake-Up Call -- 17 March 2011 U.S. futures suggest equities will recover a portion of the losses at the open this morning as the G-7 and central bankers are reportedly set to hold talks to discuss the situation in Japan. Today's Food for Thought: MENA leaders tighten grip on power
16-Mar-11	Wake-Up Call -- 16 March 2011 Global equity markets traded higher overnight as the Nikkei rebounded 5.7%. U.S. futures and European markets, however, have trended lower over the last two hours, with futures pointing to a modestly lower open this morning. Today's Food for Thought: A breakdown of Japan's import/export market
15-Mar-11	Wake-Up Call -- 15 March 2011 Global equity markets are seeing very sharp losses this morning after the Nikkei plunged 10.6% as fears mount that a nuclear meltdown in Japan could lead to radiation exposure in Tokyo. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing Japan's nuclear system to other countries
14-Mar-11	Wake-Up Call -- 14 March 2011 U.S. equity futures point to a lower open this morning as Japan remains in focus. In the aftermath of the earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan overnight Friday, the Nikkei plunged 6.2% Monday. The yen has shown a few quick moves up and down, but is trading near unchanged against the dollar. The BOJ increased the size of its asset purchase program, raising the amount of risk assets it will buy by 5 tln yen to 10 tln yen in total, while also injecting trillions more yen into the banking system. However, global equity markets traded mixed overnight. Today's Food for Thought: Debt levels versus economic growth
11-Mar-11	Wake-Up Call -- 11 March 2011 The market's focus has completely changed Friday morning following the massive earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan overnight. Beyond the terrible human toll, the economic impact will be significant and could increase as there are tsunami warnings for Hawaii and the West Coast of the U.S. Today's Food for Thought: Total U.S. debt as a percentage of GDP
10-Mar-11	Wake-Up Call -- 10 March 2011 U.S. equity futures point to a lower open this morning after Moody's downgraded Spain's long-term debt rating. Today's Food for Thought: The struggling pharmaceutical industry
09-Mar-11	Wake-Up Call -- 09 March 2011 U.S. equity futures are trading flat on a slow morning as a number of items from Tuesday's session play out. Today's Food for Thought: Predicting power changes in the MENA region
08-Mar-11	Wake-Up Call -- 08 March 2011 U.S. equity futures point to a modestly higher open this morning as crude oil trades slightly lower. Crude had seen a larger decline overnight, as the WTI future fell to around $103.50 following reports OPEC oil ministers are discussing a hike in production. It has regained most of those declines, however. Today's Food for Thought: Correlation between the S&P 500 and the WTI crude future
07-Mar-11	Wake-Up Call -- 07 March 2011 U.S. equity futures point to a flat open this morning. They sold off modestly overnight as crude oil continued its rally, but managed to rebound. Today's Food for Thought: Taking another look at Facebook's valuation in the private market
04-Mar-11	Wake-Up Call -- 04 March 2011 U.S. equity futures are showing little direction this morning ahead of the February employment report. Crude oil is trading modestly higher, though one could argue the move should be sharper following reports of protests in the oil-producing Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia while fighting continues in Libya. Today's Food for Thought: The effects of policy rate changes in the U.S. and eurozone on GDP growth and CPI
03-Mar-11	Wake-Up Call -- 03 March 2011 U.S. equity futures point to a sharply higher open this morning, with the positive sentiment stemming from hopes of a peace deal in Libya. Today's Food for Thought: Spending by sector in Wisconsin and all states
02-Mar-11	Wake-Up Call -- 02 March 2011 U.S. equity futures are showing little direction this morning as the April WTI future holds around $100 per barrel and participants await the ADP Employment Report at 8:15 a.m. ET. Today's Food for Thought: Tracking equity and commodity markets since the turmoil in the MENA region began
01-Mar-11	Wake-Up Call -- 01 March 2011 U.S. equity futures point to a modestly higher open this morning as participants await Federal Reserve Chairman Bernanke's semiannual monetary policy report. Futures had been trading higher overnight, but came down first as European markets gave up their opening gains and then as crude oil moved into positive territory. Today's Food for Thought: Institutions overweight cyclical and underweight defensive sectors
28-Feb-11	Wake-Up Call -- 28 February 2011 U.S. equity futures failed to rally overnight, even as markets overseas moved higher and the dollar retreated. The reason was crude oil, which pushed back toward $100. It has pulled back over the last few hours, however, and futures have spiked into positive territory over the last 45 minutes. Today's Food for Thought: Borders vs. Barnes & Noble
25-Feb-11	Wake-Up Call -- 25 February 2011 U.S. equity markets look to end a difficult week on a high note, with futures pointing to a stronger open this morning. Crude oil futures have shown little direction, and participants are using it as an opportunity to cover shorts. Today's Food for Thought: Breaking down fourth quarter earnings results by sector
24-Feb-11	Wake-Up Call -- 24 February 2011 U.S. equity futures traded in lockstep with crude oil overnight, and currently point to another lower open as the April WTI future touched $103.41 before pulling back modestly. Brent crude futures hit $118 before settling just above $115. Commodity analysts are making noise this morning, and no one more than Goldman Sachs. The firm said the market cannot accommodate another disruption, though it could accommodate a full outage of just Libya's exports. Today's Food for Thought: Home prices at fresh lows
23-Feb-11	Wake-Up Call -- 23 February 2011 While crude oil is trading modestly higher again this morning, U.S. equity markets look to rebound from Tuesday's sharp declines as futures point to a slightly stronger open, despite poor top-line results and guidance from tech bellwether HP. Today's Food for Thought: Breaking down oil production from the MENA region
22-Feb-11	Wake-Up Call -- 22 February 2011 U.S. equity futures point to a sharply lower open this morning as global markets sell off for a second day following the escalating revolt in Libya. Crude oil has extended yesterday's spike while Treasuries rally. Today's Food for Thought: Employee satisfaction and stock performance
18-Feb-11	Wake-Up Call -- 18 February 2011 U.S. equity futures are trading around unchanged following mixed sessions overseas. After a busy week, today's calendar is very thin with no economic data on the agenda, though it is an expiration Friday. Today's Food for Thought: Equity ETFs versus equity mutual funds
17-Feb-11	Wake-Up Call -- 17 February 2011 U.S. equity futures are trading flat-to-modestly lower this morning ahead of a very busy session. Participants will have a large batch of economic data to digest, including jobless claims and CPI. There is also a number of notable speakers testifying in Congress today, highlighted by Federal Reserve Chairman Bernanke updating the Dodd-Frank Act and Treasury Secretary Geithner discussing President Obama's new budget. Today's Food for Thought: Analyzing performance following acquisitions in the pharma and biotech industries
16-Feb-11	Wake-Up Call -- 16 February 2011 U.S. equity futures point to a modestly higher open this morning following a strong earnings report from Dell and a rally in Asia overnight. There is another large batch of economic data today, though, that could impact trade. Today's Food for Thought: Unemployment rates among industries
15-Feb-11	Wake-Up Call -- 15 February 2011 U.S. equity futures are trading flat-to-slightly lower this morning ahead of a large batch of economic data that includes retail sales. New economic reports are the theme of the morning as a number of countries have released data that has led to mixed trading in global markets. Today's Food for Thought: Research and development spending
14-Feb-11	Wake-Up Call -- 14 February 2011 Despite strong gains in Asia overnight, U.S. equity futures point to a modestly lower open this morning. The talk in the marketplace continues to focus on when the major averages will take profits following their nearly six-month run. Today's Food for Thought: Timing shares repurchases
11-Feb-11	Wake-Up Call -- 11 February 2011 U.S. equity futures point to a lower open this morning, falling overnight as participants kept a wary eye on Egypt, after the dollar extended its gains from yesterday, and after shares of Nokia plunged. Today's Food for Thought: Expanding share repurchase programs
10-Feb-11	Wake-Up Call -- 10 February 2011 U.S. equity futures point to a sharply lower open this morning following a disappointing earnings report from Cisco Systems due to margin pressure, weakness in markets overseas and a stronger dollar. Today's Food for Thought: Taxes as a percentage of state revenue
09-Feb-11	Wake-Up Call -- 09 February 2011 U.S. equity futures trended downward overnight, despite better-than-expected results from Walt Disney, pointing to a lower open this morning. There is not one specific item to explain the weakness, so it may simply be profit-taking ahead of a busy session. Today's Food for Thought: Valuation metrics for large regional banks that owe TARP money
08-Feb-11	Wake-Up Call -- 08 February 2011 While Chinese equity markets will not reopen until tomorrow following their week-long Lunar New Year holiday, the People's Bank of China was active overnight as the central bank announced its long-awaited interest rate hike. Not all markets reacted, but U.S. equity futures fell from slightly higher levels. They currently point to a modestly lower open for the major averages. Today's Food for Thought: Revolving consumer credit expands
07-Feb-11	Wake-Up Call -- 07 February 2011 U.S. equity futures spiked into positive territory earlier this morning, rallying with European markets shortly after they opened. U.S. futures are off their best levels, however, currently pointing to a flat-to-slightly higher open. Today's Food for Thought: Reviewing TARP's bank investments
04-Feb-11	Wake-Up Call -- 04 February 2011 U.S. equity futures are trading around unchanged ahead of the release of the January employment report at 8:30 a.m. ET. Treasuries, the dollar and most commodities are also showing little direction ahead of the always highly-anticipated report. Today's Food for Thought: Government debt levels on a historical basis
03-Feb-11	Wake-Up Call -- 03 February 2011 U.S. equity futures point to a slightly lower open this morning. Participants are digesting January same-store sales results and more fourth quarter earnings reports while awaiting a speech from ECB President Trichet and a batch of economic data this morning. Today's Food for Thought: Freddie and Fannie's "serious" delinquency rates
02-Feb-11	Wake-Up Call -- 02 February 2011 Futures are largely unchanged as participants await the ADP Employment report set to be released at 8:15 a.m. ET. Economists expect that the reading will show that private payrolls rose by 145,000 in January, according to the Briefing.com consensus. Today's Food For Thought: Looking at the billions of dollars in U.S. assistance to Egypt and Jordan
01-Feb-11	Wake-Up Call -- 01 February 2011 U.S. equity markets look to rebound for a second session today as futures point to a higher open. Participants appear to have shifted their focus from the continued unrest in Egypt to a rally in markets overseas while also digesting another large batch of fourth quarter earnings reports. Treasuries and the dollar are trading lower for a second session. Today's Food for Thought: U.S. debt, part II
31-Jan-11	Wake-Up Call -- 31 January 2011 Egypt remains the focus Monday morning, particularly after Moody's downgraded the country's long-term debt rating one notch to Ba2 with a negative outlook. Egypt's equity markets remain closed. U.S. equity futures have rebounded from lower levels overnight, though, and show a slightly bid premarket, despite lower trade overseas. Treasuries, the dollar and precious metals are all trading modestly lower. Crude oil traded above $90 overnight, but is showing only modest gains premarket. Today's Food for Thought: The U.S. debt ceiling
28-Jan-11	Wake-Up Call -- 28 January 2011 U.S. equity futures are showing little direction this morning ahead of the release of the fourth quarter GDP report. Participants continue to digest fourth quarter earnings results. While most continue to be favorable, Amazon.com provided disappointing operating income guidance and Ford Motor missed on the bottom line, pressuring both stocks. Today's Food for Thought: U.S. GDP per worker and per hour worked
27-Jan-11	Wake-Up Call -- 27 January 2011 U.S. equity futures point to a flat open this morning as participants digest a large batch of earnings reports that include a number of big names. They also await a batch of economic data at 8:30 a.m. ET that includes durable orders and jobless claims. Today's Food for Thought: Food inflation
26-Jan-11	Wake-Up Call -- 26 January 2011 U.S. equity futures trended slowly higher overnight and point to a slightly stronger open this morning. Calls last night from President Obama in his State of the Union address for a five-year freeze on domestic discretionary spending and to lower the corporate tax rate have led to the positive sentiment. Focus will shift to the Federal Reserve, though, as the FOMC will release its latest policy directive this afternoon. Today's Food for Thought: Deriving Facebook's value from the secondary market
25-Jan-11	Wake-Up Call -- 25 January 2011 U.S. equity futures sold off with European markets this morning and currently point to a lower open. Participants are also digesting a large batch of earnings announcements. Treasuries rallied modestly ahead of the first of this week's longer-term auctions. President Obama will deliver his State of the Union address tonight, with the topic expected to be the economy. Today's Food for Thought: Stabilization in private nonresidential real estate spending in 2011?
24-Jan-11	Wake-Up Call -- 24 January 2011 After trading slightly higher overnight, U.S. equity futures are back near unchanged this morning ahead of a busy week for the market. Today's Food for Thought: Chinese growth in patent applications
21-Jan-11	Wake-Up Call -- 21 January 2011 U.S. equity futures rallied over the last three hours as European markets trade higher and following positive results from bellwether GE. Participants shrugged off weak earnings from Bank of America. Today's Food for Thought: The muni bond to Treasury ratios
20-Jan-11	Wake-Up Call -- 20 January 2011 U.S. equity futures point to a modestly lower open this morning as participants continue to digest fourth quarter earnings reports. Positive results from eBay, Morgan Stanley and UnitedHealth are helping to limit losses after a sharp decline in China sent Asian and European markets lower. Today's Food for Thought: Real interest rates versus equity returns
19-Jan-11	Wake-Up Call -- 19 January 2011 U.S. equity futures are trading around unchanged this morning as participants digest the first large batch of earnings results in this reporting season. They are also awaiting results from two major banks: Goldman Sachs and Wells Fargo. Today's Food for Thought: Breaking down Apple's EPS beat and guidance
18-Jan-11	Wake-Up Call -- 18 January 2011 U.S. equity futures point to a mixed open this morning following yesterday's holiday. S&P and Dow futures are trading slightly higher ahead of earnings from Citigroup, but NASDAQ futures are sharply lower after Apple announced that CEO Steve Jobs will be taking a leave of absence for an undisclosed medical issue, his second in as many years. Today's Food for Thought: Biofuels subsidies
14-Jan-11	Wake-Up Call -- 14 January 2011 U.S. equity futures point to a modestly lower open this morning. They traded around unchanged overnight even as global markets sold off, buoyed by strong earnings/guidance from Intel. But another reserve requirement hike out of China and hotter-than-expected inflation data in the U.K. helped futures inch lower. Participants are also digesting fourth quarter results from JPMorgan Chase. This activity precedes a large batch of economic data at 8:30 a.m. ET. Today's Food for Thought: Canada's debt load rising
13-Jan-11	Wake-Up Call -- 13 January 2011 U.S. equity futures are showing little direction as participants keep an eye on Europe while awaiting a batch of economic data this morning and Intel's results after the close. Today's Food for Thought: Net income at FDIC-insured banks, before and after the recession
12-Jan-11	Wake-Up Call -- 12 January 2011 For the second straight morning, U.S. equity futures have followed European markets higher. They rallied ahead of a highly-anticipated bond auction from Portugal that contained no surprises, easing concerns regarding a bailout. Today's Food for Thought: Revenue estimates for S&P 500 companies
11-Jan-11	Wake-Up Call -- 11 January 2011 U.S. equity futures point to a modestly higher open this morning, rallying with European markets over the last three hours. Asia traded mixed overnight, but Europe opened slightly higher and extended those gains into midday after the first of this week's highly-anticipated eurozone auctions saw solid demand. Today's Food for Thought: Net income of the Federal Reserve
10-Jan-11	Wake-Up Call -- 10 January 2011 U.S. equity futures point to a lower open this morning following a sell-off in overseas markets. Futures first moved lower as Asian markets fell in afternoon trade on a variety of factors, and have remained in the red as eurozone debt concerns have returned. Today's Food for Thought: Public pension asset allocation
07-Jan-11	Wake-Up Call -- 07 January 2011 U.S. equity futures are trading around unchanged this morning ahead of the eagerly awaited December employment report. It will be followed by Federal Reserve Chairman Bernanke's testimony before the Senate on the U.S. economic outlook. Today's Food for Thought: Changing correlation between ADP and BLS employment figures
06-Jan-11	Wake-Up Call -- 06 January 2011 U.S. equity futures traded flat overnight, but have been trending higher with European markets this morning and currently point to a slightly stronger open. Today's Food for Thought: New high for the Food Price Index
05-Jan-11	Wake-Up Call -- 05 January 2011 U.S. equity futures point to a lower open this morning ahead of the ADP employment figure for December, selling off with European markets. Today's Food for Thought: Looking at the notational value of derivatives
04-Jan-11	Wake-Up Call -- 04 January 2011 U.S. equity markets began 2011 on a high note Monday, and look to extend those gains as futures point to a modestly higher open this morning. Today's Food for Thought: Notable session yesterday for large-cap technology
03-Jan-11	Wake-Up Call -- 03 January 2011 U.S. equity markets look to begin to 2011 on a positive note as futures point to a higher open on strength in overseas markets following better-than-expected economic data. Today's Food for Thought: A look at 2010 international index returns

24-May-12	Wake-Up Call -- 24 May 2012 U.S. equity markets showed some resilience Wednesday. After selling off yet again on eurozone debt fears, the major indices staged a late rally. That momentum has carried over into Thursday, despite weak manufacturing data out of China and the eurozone. U.S. futures point to a modestly higher open. Today's Food for Thought: Previewing summer driving season
23-May-12	Wake-Up Call -- 23 May 2012 U.S. equity futures point to a lower open Wednesday morning. Global markets are reacting to the idea that the exit of Greece from the eurozone is being considered, with participants expecting little from today’s European Union summit. Today's Food for Thought: How Facebook's first three sessions compare to other IPOs
22-May-12	Wake-Up Call -- 22 May 2012 U.S. equity futures have traded in a tight range Tuesday morning. A rally over the last hour has them pointing to a slightly higher open. Today's Food for Thought: Corporate bonds also under pressure in May
21-May-12	Wake-Up Call -- 21 May 2012 U.S. equity futures point to a higher open Monday morning. The higher indication could simply be short covering and/or bargain hunting, but the eurozone debt crisis was the focus at this weekend’s G8 summit. Global leaders pledged to keep the eurozone together, pleasing participants worried about a disorderly exit for Greece. They also discussed measures to stimulate economic growth, which would require a commitment from Germany, but nothing official was announced. Today's Food for Thought: Facebook's IPO versus its peers
18-May-12	Wake-Up Call -- 18 May 2012 For the third consecutive morning, U.S. equity futures are showing stable trade. They point to a modestly higher open Friday. Futures have not been a good indicator lately, however, as evidenced by lower trade Wednesday and Thursday. The intraday action has been very poor as participants react to headlines out of Europe. Today's Food for Thought: Initial jobless claims augur well for the May employment report
17-May-12	Wake-Up Call -- 17 May 2012 U.S. equity futures point to a modestly lower open Thursday morning. They had a bid overnight, but once again European fears have pushed markets lower. Today's Food for Thought: Minimal growth in number of hours worked in U.S.
16-May-12	Wake-Up Call -- 16 May 2012 U.S. equity futures traded lower overnight with Asian markets, but have fought their way back this morning and currently point to a slightly higher open. There have been no new developments regarding Greece and the eurozone debt crisis thus far today. Today's Food for Thought: U.S. commercial bank holding of Treasury securities
15-May-12	Wake-Up Call -- 15 May 2012 U.S. equity futures point to a higher open Tuesday morning, indicating markets may experience a relief rally today following the pullback this month. Eurozone GDP data came in slightly better than expected in the first quarter. There will also be a batch of data released this morning in the U.S., highlighted by retail sales, CPI and empire manufacturing. Today's Food for Thought: U.S. Google search interest in credit cards at a high level Conference Call – Briefing Research Q2 2012 Economic Outlook: Bowed but Not Broken Join us for the Briefing Research quarterly conference call on the economy with our Chief Economist, Jeff Rosen, Director of Research, Kimberly DuBord, and Chief Market Analyst, Pat O’Hare, on Tuesday, May 15, at 2:00 p.m. ET. Space is limited, so register now.
14-May-12	Wake-Up Call -- 14 May 2012 U.S. equity futures indicate a lower open Monday morning, selling off with European markets as Greece once again failed to form a government over the weekend. Today's Food for Thought: Average mortgage rate hits fresh record low Conference Call – Briefing Research Q2 2012 Economic Outlook: Bowed but Not Broken Join us for the Briefing Research quarterly conference call on the economy with our Chief Economist, Jeff Rosen, Director of Research, Kimberly DuBord, and Chief Market Analyst, Pat O’Hare, on Tuesday, May 15, at 2:00 p.m. ET. Space is limited, so register now.
11-May-12	Wake-Up Call -- 11 May 2012 U.S. equity futures point to a lower open Friday morning. They have been trading lower since late Thursday after JPMorgan Chase disclosed a $2 bln trading loss. Economic data out of China are also adding pressure. Today's Food for Thought: Ranking year-to-date returns of major international equity indices
10-May-12	Wake-Up Call -- 10 May 2012 It has been a more stable morning Thursday, with U.S. futures showing modest gains as participants await the jobless claims release and a speech from Federal Reserve Chairman Bernanke on bank lending. Participants have had a number of items to sift through already this morning (earnings, China trade data, BOE), but they have provided little direction. The focus remains squarely on the eurozone debt crisis, and none of these items were directly related. And with little fresh news from Europe, markets in Greece and Spain have rebounded. Today's Food for Thought: Money flows into ETFs in 2012
09-May-12	Wake-Up Call -- 09 May 2012 U.S. equity futures are trading lower Wednesday morning on continuing downside momentum in Europe. Spanish and Italian yields are on the rise while the euro is probing the key 1.30 support level that it has held for so long. Today's Food for Thought: The expected effects of warm weather, holidays and gasoline prices on the retail industry
08-May-12	Wake-Up Call -- 08 May 2012 U.S. equity futures point to a modestly lower open on a slow Tuesday morning. The negative indication this morning amid scant news flow shows how sentiment has shifted from the rally period of Q4 2011 and Q1 2012 to hesitant trade from participants worried about the eurozone debt crisis and slowing global growth. Today's Food for Thought: The chronology of the pink slime controversy
07-May-12	Wake-Up Call -- 07 May 2012 U.S. equity futures point to a lower open Monday morning. The focus has returned to Europe following key elections in France and Greece over the weekend. Today's Food for Thought: Government versus private sector employment growth
04-May-12	Wake-Up Call -- 04 May 2012 As expected, U.S. equity futures are showing little direction Friday morning ahead of the April employment report. Crude oil, though, has extended yesterday’s decline. Afterward, participants will most likely be looking ahead to Sunday’s runoff election in France (and the possibility of challenges to existing austerity agreements). Today's Food for Thought: Finding companies that historically beat EPS expectations, despite weak revenue and income data
03-May-12	Wake-Up Call -- 03 May 2012 U.S. equity futures have a modest bid Thursday morning ahead of a press conference from European Central Bank President Mario Draghi and the weekly jobless claims report. Participants are looking forward to Draghi’s press conference for possible hints at further monetary easing. Today's Food for Thought: The effect of changes in shares outstanding on EPS growth
02-May-12	Wake-Up Call -- 02 May 2012 Ahead of the ADP employment report at 8:15 a.m. ET, futures are showing modest declines Wednesday. It is a difficult morning to gauge, as many global markets reopen following the May Day holiday. Today's Food for Thought: Income inequalities and differing tax policies
01-May-12	Wake-Up Call -- 01 May 2012 U.S. equity futures are showing little direction Tuesday morning as markets throughout the world are closed for the May Day holiday. It has not been a slow morning, however, following a sell-off in Japan, easing by the Reserve Bank of Australia, and the release of manufacturing data in the U.K. and China. Today's Food for Thought: What's left of the non-agency MBS market?
30-Apr-12	Wake-Up Call -- 30 April 2012 U.S. equity futures are pointing to a slightly lower open on a slow Monday morning. Markets in Japan and China were closed overnight for a holiday while participants are looking ahead to this week’s key events, including an ECB meeting on Thursday, the U.S. April employment report on Friday, and the run-off French presidential election on Sunday. Today's Food for Thought: Tracking sector returns since 1995
27-Apr-12	Wake-Up Call -- 27 April 2012 U.S. equity futures are showing some resilience Friday morning, pointing to a flat start despite a Spanish downgrade. Futures sold off after hours when S&P announced a two-notch downgrade to Spain’s debt rating, cutting it to BBB+. But European markets rallied after a lower open and U.S. futures followed suit. Better-than-expected earnings reports continue to support the market while participants may be looking ahead to the release of the U.S. Q1 2012 GDP report. Today's Food for Thought: The rapid growth in Apple's net income
26-Apr-12	Wake-Up Call -- 26 April 2012 The focus has narrowed Thursday to first quarter earnings season. As participants sift through the largest batch to date, U.S. equity futures are showing little direction premarket. Today's Food for Thought: No real surprises from the Fed
25-Apr-12	Wake-Up Call -- 25 April 2012 U.S. equity futures spiked after-hours Tuesday following another blowout quarter from Apple, and have held those gains into morning trade. While participants continue to sift through earnings reports, they are looking ahead to today’s FOMC directive and Chairman Bernanke’s press conference. Today's Food for Thought: How IBM's share repurchases have allowed the company to raise dividends
24-Apr-12	Wake-Up Call -- 24 April 2012 U.S. equity futures point to a modestly higher open Tuesday morning, as participants shift their focus back to earnings. Europe remains in the news, though, after Spain and the Netherlands conducted successful bond auctions. Today's Food for Thought: Tracking unemployment rates by region
23-Apr-12	Wake-Up Call -- 23 April 2012 U.S. equity futures point to a lower open Monday morning. European markets are showing sharper declines following disappointing manufacturing data. The eurozone’s manufacturing PMI unexpectedly fell from 47.7 in March to 46.0 in April. The decline was led by Germany, which fell from 48.4 to 46.3. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing home prices to wages
20-Apr-12	Wake-Up Call -- 20 April 2012 U.S. equity markets have a modest bid on a slow Friday morning. Companies continue to churn out first quarter reports, and the majority continue to exceed earnings expectations. Today’s economic calendar is empty, however, while news flow out of Europe has thinned. It is an options expiration Friday, though, which typically leads to above-average volume. Today's Food for Thought: Brazil's borrowing costs remain elevated, but heading in the right direction
19-Apr-12	Wake-Up Call -- 19 April 2012 U.S. equity futures had a bid earlier Thursday morning, rallying with European markets following another successful Spanish bond auction. They have come off of highs, though, after rumors circulated about the possibility of a French downgrade. All of this is overshadowing the busiest day thus far in the first quarter reporting season. The majority of names continue to exceed earnings expectations. Participants are also looking ahead to today’s economic calendar, including initial jobless claims at 8:30 a.m. ET, as well as existing home sales and the Philly Fed at 10:00 a.m. ET. Today's Food for Thought: Revenue from U.S. Internet advertising continues to grow
18-Apr-12	Wake-Up Call -- 18 April 2012 U.S. equity futures have drifted lower over the last two hours, indicating a modestly lower open Wednesday and perhaps a pause following Tuesday’s strong rally. Participants remain fixated on Europe and corporate earnings, especially with a lighter economic calendar for the remainder of the week. Today's Food for Thought: The scope of the increase in the unemployment rate, both overall and by industry
17-Apr-12	Wake-Up Call -- 17 April 2012 U.S. equity futures point to a higher open Tuesday, having rallied with European markets earlier this morning. Europe rallied at its open after Spain successfully sold over €3 bln in short-term bonds and Germany’s ZEW survey unexpectedly improved in April. Today's Food for Thought: 41% of S&P 500 companies are expected to report record earnings in the first quarter
16-Apr-12	Wake-Up Call -- 16 April 2012 U.S. equity futures have a modest bid Monday morning, despite a continued rise in eurozone yields. There is a heavy calendar today, which includes Citigroup’s first quarter results and economic data in the form of retail sales and empire manufacturing. Today's Food for Thought: The downtrend in the concentration of stocks in the S&P 500
13-Apr-12	Wake-Up Call -- 13 April 2012 U.S. equity futures are trading modestly lower Friday morning as participants have turned their focus to first quarter earnings reports and China’s economy. There is also a busy calendar today, with CPI and Michigan sentiment releases this morning and Federal Reserve Chairman Bernanke speaking this afternoon. Today's Food for Thought: Land value as a percentage of total real estate
12-Apr-12	Wake-Up Call -- 12 April 2012 U.S. equity futures point to a higher open Thursday morning. Futures have held a bid since overnight. That coincides with a rally in Asian markets, which were playing catch-up. Participants are awaiting the jobless claims release at 8:30 a.m. ET while the calendar is once again full of Federal Reserve speakers. Today's Food for Thought: The scope of the rebound in the private sector labor market
11-Apr-12	Wake-Up Call -- 11 April 2012 U.S. equity futures point to a sharply higher open Wednesday morning following a strong earnings report from Alcoa and a morning rally in European markets as yields in Italy and Spain decline. Today's Food for Thought: Best Buy tries to avoid being another casualty of the changing retail landscape.
10-Apr-12	Wake-Up Call -- 10 April 2012 U.S. equity futures are showing little direction Tuesday morning as many global markets reopen following the long holiday weekend. Participants are looking forward to Alcoa’s first quarter results after the close, when the company will kick off earnings reporting season. The calendar picks up at the end of this week. Today's Food for Thought: Tracking the average maturity of U.S. Treasuries
09-Apr-12	Wake-Up Call -- 09 April 2012 U.S. equity futures point to a sharply lower open Monday morning following Friday’s disappointing March employment report. Over the weekend, China also released its March inflation report, where CPI grew by a hotter-than-expected 3.6%. Today's Food for Thought: U.S. household debt and how it compares to emerging Brazil
05-Apr-12	Wake-Up Call -- 05 April 2012 U.S. equity futures are trading lower once again Thursday morning, having given up modest overnight gains. Yields on Spanish and Italian debt have continued to move higher today. Today’s activity precedes tomorrow’s Good Friday holiday in not just the U.S., but a number of other major countries. While financial markets will be closed, the government is open and will be releasing the March employment report. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing U.S. and euro area unemployment rates, part II
04-Apr-12	Wake-Up Call -- 04 April 2012 U.S. equity futures point to a lower open on a busy Wednesday morning, having sold off with global markets. The sell-off is attributed to two catalysts: concerns regarding Spain following a poor bond auction and curbed expectations of further stimulus following Tuesday’s release of the FOMC minutes. There are more catalysts today to consider, though. The ECB kept its benchmark interest rate steady at 1.00%, as expected. ECB President Draghi will begin his press conference at 8:30 a.m. ET. Before that, ADP will release its March employment report at 8:15 a.m. ET. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing U.S. and euro area unemployment rates
03-Apr-12	Wake-Up Call -- 03 April 2012 U.S. equity futures are trading modestly lower on a slow Tuesday morning. The slightly negative bias is not surprising following Monday’s rally and with few catalysts to drive trade today. Participants may also be looking forward to Friday’s employment report and the beginning of first quarter earnings reporting season. Today's Food for Thought: Historical comparison of Treasury yields to dividend and repurchase yields
02-Apr-12	Wake-Up Call -- 02 April 2012 U.S. equity futures have a slightly negative bias Monday morning, the first trading day of the month and the quarter, having given up overnight gains. The theme of the morning is manufacturing, as countries around the world are releasing March PMI data. Today's Food for Thought: The shift from dividends to repurchases
30-Mar-12	Wake-Up Call -- 30 March 2012 U.S. equity futures suggest a higher open on the last session of the quarter. There is not one specific catalyst to explain the strength, meaning bargain hunters may be stepping in following a modest three-day decline. There are further reports this morning, though, that eurozone finance ministers have agreed to increase the size of the debt crisis firewall. Today's Food for Thought: Lotto fever!
29-Mar-12	Wake-Up Call -- 29 March 2012 U.S. equity futures point to a modestly lower open Thursday morning. While the financial media continues to cite economic growth concerns as the reason for the weakness, the reality is global equity markets have experienced a strong run since early October. A multi-day pause, or even pullback, is not surprising, especially ahead of first quarter earnings season. Today's Food for Thought: Brent crude oil futures in severe backwardation
28-Mar-12	Wake-Up Call -- 28 March 2012 U.S. equity markets did not finish Tuesday’s session on a strong note, selling off, albeit modestly, over the last 45 minutes of trade. Despite weakness in China overnight, though, global equity markets are showing mixed, modest moves Wednesday. U.S. futures have a slight bid premarket. Today's Food for Thought: Shifts in the Treasury yield curve
27-Mar-12	Wake-Up Call -- 27 March 2012 U.S. equity futures are showing little direction Tuesday morning, holding steady following yesterday’s strong rally. Today's Food for Thought: The divergence between S&P 500 price returns and earnings estimates
26-Mar-12	Wake-Up Call -- 26 March 2012 U.S. equity futures have a modest bid on a slow Monday morning. Today's Food for Thought: While focus remains on Spain, French spreads narrow
23-Mar-12	Wake-Up Call -- 23 March 2012 U.S. equity futures are unchanged on a slow Friday morning. Today's Food for Thought: A historical look at Apple's market value in the S&P 500
22-Mar-12	Wake-Up Call -- 22 March 2012 U.S. equity futures point to a lower open Thursday morning, selling off with European markets following disappointing economic data. Today's Food for Thought: Yields on Italian and Spanish debt back on the rise?
21-Mar-12	Wake-Up Call -- 21 March 2012 Global equity markets are showing little direction Wednesday. U.S. futures have a slight bid on a quiet morning. Today's Food for Thought: Foreign ownership of U.S. equities versus U.S. ownership of foreign equities
20-Mar-12	Wake-Up Call -- 20 March 2012 Following a strong push higher over the last two weeks, not to mention since the early October lows, U.S. equity markets may finally be poised for a pullback. Futures point to a lower open Tuesday morning. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing Apple's dividend yield and repurchase plan to other S&P 500 stocks
19-Mar-12	Wake-Up Call -- 19 March 2012 U.S. equity futures are trading mixed Monday morning. NASDAQ futures rallied after Apple said it will host a conference call at 9:00 a.m. ET to announce the outcome of the company’s discussion concerning its cash balance. Today's Food for Thought: Despite increased media speculation, Romney remains overwhelming favorite
16-Mar-12	Wake-Up Call -- 16 March 2012 U.S. equity futures are showing little direction Friday morning, as participants once again await the release of a large batch of economic data. The list includes CPI, industrial production and the first March consumer sentiment reading. Today's Food for Thought: Inflation-adjusted crude oil and gasoline prices
15-Mar-12	Wake-Up Call -- 15 March 2012 U.S. equity futures have a modest bid Thursday morning, which precedes the release of a large batch of economic data. The list includes initial jobless claims, as well as the first two readings for March, the New York and Philadelphia regional manufacturing surveys. Today's Food for Thought: The shifts and twists of the inflation expectations yield curve
14-Mar-12	Wake-Up Call -- 14 March 2012 There is little conviction in the early going as the futures market is presaging a relatively flat start for the broader market following yesterday's strong rally. The bank stress test results released after yesterday's close remain a focal point and provided a measure of support for many markets in Europe and Asia. Today's Food for Thought: FOMC Review
13-Mar-12	Wake-Up Call -- 13 March 2012 Global equity markets are trading higher Tuesday. While many reasons have been cited for the rally, it appears participants are simply optimistic ahead of today’s FOMC meeting. Today's Food for Thought: Platinum prices catching up to gold
12-Mar-12	Wake-Up Call -- 12 March 2012 U.S. equity futures have a slightly negative bias Monday morning. They traded lower overnight after China released weak trade figures, providing more evidence of slower growth. Declines have been minimal, however, with European markets and U.S. futures rebounding off of lows. Today's Food for Thought: Consumer credit trends, part II
09-Mar-12	Wake-Up Call -- 09 March 2012 U.S. equity futures have shown little direction Friday morning ahead of the February employment report, though they have had a slightly negative bias. Greece announced the private sector involvement in its voluntary debt rollover late Thursday. China also reported economic data overnight. Inflation continued to cool, but industrial production and retail sales both disappointed. Today's Food for Thought: Nonfinancial corporations are not liquidity constrained
08-Mar-12	Wake-Up Call -- 08 March 2012 Global equity markets are rallying in front of the deadline for the private sector involvement in the Greek debt swap plan, reflecting an expectation that the deal will get done and that a disorderly default will be avoided. Separately, the ECB, the Bank of England, and the Bank of Korea all decided to hold their key lending rates steady. Today's Food for Thought: Consumer Credit Trends
07-Mar-12	Wake-Up Call -- 07 March 2012 U.S. equity markets have a modest bid Wednesday morning, recouping some of Tuesday’s sharp declines ahead of the ADP employment report at 8:15 a.m. ET. Today's Food for Thought: The divergence between Greek and other PIIGS debt
06-Mar-12	Wake-Up Call -- 06 March 2012 Global equity markets are trading lower Tuesday morning, led by Asian markets after they reacted to yesterday’s news that China cut its 2012 GDP growth target. It is actually a quiet morning otherwise, which is allowing participants to take profits. Today's Food for Thought: U.S. holding of foreign securities by country
05-Mar-12	Wake-Up Call -- 05 March 2012 Global equity markets have been knocked back by reports of China setting a 7.5% GDP growth target for 2012 that is its lowest annual target in eight years. Overall losses, however, remain modest in scope relative to the extent of recent gains. Notably, there has not been a lot of movement in currency and bond markets this morning, suggesting the China headline has served as a good excuse for some profit taking in equity markets. Today's Food for Thought: Federal support for renewables
02-Mar-12	Wake-Up Call -- 02 March 2012 U.S. equity futures are trading modestly lower on a quiet Friday morning. The dollar is trading higher against each of the other major currencies, with the largest gains against the euro. Today's Food for Thought: Mortgage negative equity by state
01-Mar-12	Wake-Up Call -- 01 March 2012 Equity futures have a slight bid on a busy Thursday morning that includes a large batch of U.S. economic data. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing the budget plans of Presidential candidates to a "realistic baseline"
29-Feb-12	Wake-Up Call -- 29 February 2012 U.S. equity futures are showing little direction Wednesday morning. Market participants had been waiting on the European Central Bank’s second long-term refinancing operation, and the results came in as expected. Today's Food for Thought: Treasury alternatives getting richer
28-Feb-12	Wake-Up Call -- 28 February 2012 Once again, the U.S. equity market showed tremendous resilience in the face of selling efforts and ended Monday‟s session little changed after incurring sizable losses off the open. That resilience set a good foundation for foreign markets overnight and has the U.S. market positioned for a higher start in front of a batch of economic data today that includes the Durable Goods, S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index, and Consumer Confidence reports.
27-Feb-12	Wake-Up Call -- 27 February 2012 Weekend reports were dominated with talk of rising oil prices and the potential hurdle they pose for global economic growth. In addition, there was a focus on the G20 meeting where the Greek bailout plan held sway along with calls for the need to bolster the eurozone’s financial defenses. The U.S. market is poised for a lower start. The S&P futures are down about six points and are trading 0.5% below fair value. Separately, crude futures have come in about 1.2% and are trading at $108.48/bbl after trading close to $110/bbl previously.
24-Feb-12	Wake-Up Call -- 24 February 2012 Global equity markets have a modest bid on Friday. It is another slow session – at least thus far – meaning today’s strength is more an extension of the recent rally than due to any specific catalyst. Today's Food for Thought: Long institutional S&P 500 holdings by metric
23-Feb-12	Wake-Up Call -- 23 February 2012 U.S. equity futures are trading around unchanged on a slow Thursday morning. Today's Food for Thought: U.S. exports of petroleum products reach historic high
22-Feb-12	Wake-Up Call -- 22 February 2012 U.S. equity futures are trading flat Wednesday morning as participants digest February manufacturing data from key global economies. Today's Food for Thought: Equity purchases by sovereign wealth funds in Q4 2011
21-Feb-12	Wake-Up Call -- 21 February 2012 U.S. equity futures are trading flat Tuesday morning, off of their best levels as participants digest a large batch of news following Monday’s President’s Day holiday, including the official passage of Greece’s second bailout package. Today's Food for Thought: Mutual and hedge fund fourth quarter net purchases by sector
17-Feb-12	Wake-Up Call -- 17 February 2012 Global equity markets are trading higher Friday as they play catch-up following Thursday's rally on Wall Street. U.S. futures, meanwhile, are showing little direction. Today's Food for Thought: Tracking gold demand
16-Feb-12	Wake-Up Call -- 16 February 2012 Weaker trade Wednesday in the U.S. has carried over into Thursday’s session, with global equity markets showing broad-based declines. Participants continue to worry about the future of Greece while Moody's placed more than 100 banks on review for a possible downgrade, including five major U.S. banks. Today's Food for Thought: Light vehicle assemblies trending upward
15-Feb-12	Wake-Up Call -- 15 February 2012 Global equity markets are trading higher Wednesday. Most are attributing the rally to comments out of China that the country will continue to support Europe. Today's Food for Thought: Explaining why headline retail sales growth came in below expectations in January
14-Feb-12	Wake-Up Call -- 14 February 2012 U.S. equity futures point to a flat open Tuesday morning, having rebounded from lower levels overnight after Moody’s downgraded a host of European debt ratings. Today's Food for Thought: The breakdown of mutual fund and ETF assets
13-Feb-12	Wake-Up Call -- 13 February 2012 Greece took one necessary step toward its second bailout over the weekend as the country’s parliament approved new austerity measures. While Greek cities see a wave of civil unrest regarding the unpopular measures, global equity markets are seeing higher trade Monday morning. Today's Food for Thought: Forward P/E ratios of S&P 500 sectors relative to the overall index
10-Feb-12	Wake-Up Call -- 10 February 2012 Global equity markets are trading lower Friday morning. They sold off overnight following a much weaker-than-expected import figure out of China. U.S. futures and European markets have recently extended their declines as the situation in Greece remains in limbo. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing equity and fixed income yields to inflation expectations
09-Feb-12	Wake-Up Call -- 09 February 2012 Global equity markets are trading mixed on a very busy Thursday morning. As participants sift through another large batch of earnings reports, China reported inflation data overnight while central bank activity in Europe is in focus. Today's Food for Thought: S&P 500 and sector valuation metrics
08-Feb-12	Wake-Up Call -- 08 February 2012 U.S. equity futures are showing little direction Wednesday morning. They are actually underperforming global markets, as Asia rallied overnight and most European markets have a bid at midday. Today's Food for Thought: S&P 500 bottom up earnings forecasts Conference Call – Briefing Research Q1 2012 Economic Outlook: Growth Prospects, Full Speed Ahead Join us for the Briefing Research quarterly conference call on the economy with our Economist, Jeff Rosen Ph.D., Director of Research, Kimberly DuBord, and Chief Market Analyst, Patrick J. O’Hare, on Wednesday, February 8, at 11:00 a.m. ET. Space is limited, so register now.
07-Feb-12	Wake-Up Call -- 07 February 2012 U.S. equity futures currently point to a slightly lower open Tuesday morning. After showing little direction in early trade, futures have moved modestly lower over the last two hours. Today's Food for Thought: Predicting the odds for Mitt Romney and President Obama
06-Feb-12	Wake-Up Call -- 06 February 2012 The market will need a reversal of early sentiment Monday to keep the recent rally going. U.S. equity futures currently point to a modestly lower open as participants continue to worry about a disorderly default in Greece. Today's Food for Thought: Historical IPO returns Conference Call – Briefing Research Q1 2012 Economic Outlook: Growth Prospects, Full Speed Ahead Join us for the Briefing Research quarterly conference call on the economy with our Economist, Jeff Rosen Ph.D., Director of Research, Kimberly DuBord, and Chief Market Analyst, Patrick J. O’Hare, on Wednesday, February 8, at 11:00 a.m. ET. Space is limited, so register now.
03-Feb-12	Wake-Up Call -- 03 February 2012 U.S. equity futures are showing little direction Friday morning, which is expected ahead of the January employment report at 8:30 a.m. ET. Today's Food for Thought: JC Penney's radical change to its pricing model
02-Feb-12	Wake-Up Call -- 02 February 2012 U.S. equity futures are trading around unchanged on a very busy Thursday morning as participants sort through a large batch of notable earnings reports. Today's Food for Thought: Investment-grade bonds hitting all-time low yields
01-Feb-12	Wake-Up Call -- 01 February 2012 U.S. equity futures point to a higher open Wednesday morning after rallying with European markets. That indication will be put to the test at 8:15 a.m. ET when the ADP releases its monthly employment report. Today's Food for Thought: U.S. home prices remain under pressure
31-Jan-12	Wake-Up Call -- 31 January 2012 Global equity markets are seeing stronger trade Tuesday, the last day of the month. While there is not one specific news items to explain the rally, optimism has grown that Greece is nearing a debt rollover, despite the recent stalemate. European markets are also receiving a boost following Monday’s fiscal agreement between most countries in the EU. Today's Food for Thought: Personal savings rate rises in December
30-Jan-12	Wake-Up Call -- 30 January 2012 Global equity markets are trading lower Monday morning, with participants disappointed over a lack of action from government leaders. The weekend came and went without a debt restructuring deal between Greece and the country’s private creditors. China’s weeklong new year holiday also came and went, and participants seemed disappointed when markets reopened today and the PBOC had not acted to cut banks’ reserve requirement. Today's Food for Thought: Stories circulate once again of Facebook IPO
27-Jan-12	Wake-Up Call -- 27 January 2012 U.S. equity futures are flat Friday morning amid mixed trade overseas as participants sift through the latest batch of earnings reports and await the advance reading for fourth quarter GDP. Today's Food for Thought: U.S. debt as a percentage of global debt
26-Jan-12	Wake-Up Call -- 26 January 2012 Following a quiet session in Asia overnight, European markets are trading higher at midday following yesterday's FOMC announcement and more optimism regarding a potential Greek restructuring with private debt holders. U.S. futures have rallied with Europe, but are seeing more modest gains. Today's Food for Thought: Fed Opens Line of Communication
25-Jan-12	Wake-Up Call -- 25 January 2012 U.S. equity futures are trading mixed Wednesday morning. NASDAQ futures are outperforming following blowout results from Apple. S&P futures initially traded higher overnight – as did Asian markets – but have trended lower with Europe. Today's Food for Thought: Gross and net amounts of European CDS
24-Jan-12	Wake-Up Call -- 24 January 2012 U.S. equity futures point to a lower open on a very busy Tuesday morning after eurozone finance ministers rejected the current debt restructuring offer for Greece. Today's Food for Thought: Breaking down Apple's cash assets
23-Jan-12	Wake-Up Call -- 23 January 2012 U.S. equity futures are trading around unchanged on Monday morning, having rebounded from modest early losses. With much of Asia closed for the Chinese new year and Europe awaiting a deal on Greece’s private debt restructuring, global equity markets have shown little direction today. Participants are also looking ahead to a busy week. Today's Food for Thought: Quick change in expectations for Q4 2011 earnings growth
20-Jan-12	Wake-Up Call -- 20 January 2012 U.S. equity futures are showing little direction Friday morning following a mixed batch of fourth quarter earnings reports from a number of bellwether names. Today's Food for Thought: Bank metrics part II, deposits
19-Jan-12	Wake-Up Call -- 19 January 2012 U.S. equity futures have a modest bid Thursday morning, rallying over the last hour following strong earnings reports from Bank of America and Morgan Stanley. Today's Food for Thought: Breaking down key fourth quarter metrics for the four largest U.S. banks
18-Jan-12	Wake-Up Call -- 18 January 2012 U.S. equity futures have a slight bid Wednesday morning, but have shown little direction overall. Today's Food for Thought: Chinese goods as a percentage of U.S. consumer spending
17-Jan-12	Wake-Up Call -- 17 January 2012 Following Monday's holiday, U.S. equity futures are pointing to a higher open Tuesday morning. Stronger trade overseas is providing a boost to futures after China soared on a better-than-expected GDP figure and Europe rallied for a second day. Today's Food for Thought: Platinum versus gold
13-Jan-12	Wake-Up Call -- 13 January 2012 U.S. equity futures are showing little direction Friday morning, which follows mixed trade overseas. They are at modest lows, though, as participants digest fourth quarter results from JPMorgan Chase. Today's Food for Thought: ECB efforts lowering short-term yields
12-Jan-12	Wake-Up Call -- 12 January 2012 U.S. equity futures point to a higher open on a busy Thursday morning, rallying with European markets following successful bond auctions in Italy and Spain. Today's Food for Thought: Q4 2011 income expectations for JPMorgan Chase
11-Jan-12	Wake-Up Call -- 11 January 2012 U.S. equity futures point to a slightly lower open Wednesday morning. Today's Food for Thought: Unemployment rates by country
10-Jan-12	Wake-Up Call -- 10 January 2012 U.S. equity futures point to a stronger open Tuesday morning, as participants put a positive spin on Alcoa’s fourth quarter results and as China spurred a rally in Asia. Today's Food for Thought: German 6-month Bills sold at a negative yield
09-Jan-12	Wake-Up Call -- 09 January 2012 Global equity markets are showing little direction on a slow Monday morning. U.S. futures currently have a slight bid. Today's Food for Thought: Breaking down nonfarm payrolls by sector
06-Jan-12	Wake-Up Call -- 06 January 2012 U.S. equity futures are trading around unchanged Friday morning, as is typical ahead of the December employment report. That does not tell the whole story, however, as futures traded lower overnight following weakness in Asia, but trended upward from there following higher trade in Europe. Today's Food for Thought: PIGS' debt repayment schedules, part III
05-Jan-12	Wake-Up Call -- 05 January 2012 U.S. equity futures indicate a lower open Thursday morning, trading down with European markets. That indication could be tested at 8:15 a.m. ET, though, when ADP releases its December employment report. Today's Food for Thought: PIGS' debt repayment schedules, part II
04-Jan-12	Wake-Up Call -- 04 January 2012 Global equity markets are showing little direction Wednesday, with U.S. futures trading very slightly in the red. Today's Food for Thought: PIGS' sovereign debt repayment schedules
03-Jan-12	Wake-Up Call -- 03 January 2012 U.S. equity futures point to a stronger open to begin trading in 2012, benefitting from better-than-expected manufacturing data overseas. Today's Food for Thought: Comparing U.S. and global performance in 2011, including 52-week peaks

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