Datasets:

MAPAi

/

Inflation_News_Sentiment_Analysis

like 0

Good news for funds like TLT: The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc. However, factoring out the vehicle category, “core” inflation still edged up only 0.2%, reflecting an almost total lack of pricing pressure in the economy. In other words, commodityinflation was alive and well in the U.S. economy even before the Fed’s $600 billion quantitative easing program sent commodity prices into overdrive in an apparent attempt to boost inflation across the board.

At first glance, March's consumer spending report only adds to the recent clutch of disappointing economic data coming out of the U.S. economy. The Fed's preferred gauge of inflation also increased by only 1.8% last month, well February's level of 2% when it briefly hit the central bank's target. Central Garden & Pet CompanyCENT is a leading producer and marketer of premium and value-oriented products focused toward the lawn & garden and pet supplies markets in the U.S. Central Garden & Pet has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) and a VGM Score of B.

Feb 21 () - Kraft Heinz Co missed analysts' estimates for quarterly profit on Thursday and the packaged food maker said it had received a subpoena from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission about its accounting practices, sending its shares down 11 percent in extended trading. Nearly every major consumer goods company in the United States struggled with sky-rocketing commodity and transportation costs last year, exacerbated by a shortage of truck drivers. "Profitability fell short of our expectations due to a combination of unanticipated cost inflation and lower-than-planned savings," Chief Executive Officer Bernardo Hees said.

Related: Time to Consider This Emerging Market "The Central Bank of Russia in June cut interest rates by 0.5 percentage points as inflation remained steady despite an anticipated acceleration. SEE MORE: Examining Russia ETFs Gains for Russian stocks have been arriving against the backdrop of a weaker ruble and the currency now looks inexpensive against developed and emerging peers. "The Russian ruble has fallen nearly 23 percent from its highs in late January, first dipping below the dollar in March and continuing a general decline into August," reports CNBC.

Better ranked stocks include B&G Foods, Inc. BGS and McCormick & Company, Incorporated MKC both carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). Click to get this free report B&G Foods, Inc. (BGS): Free Stock Analysis Report McCormick & Company, Incorporated (MKC): Free Stock Analysis Report Kroger Company (The) (KR): Free Stock Analysis Report Whole Foods Market, Inc. (WFM): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Stiff competition, food price deflation, an aggressive promotional environment and waning store traffic are the primary headwinds plaguing the provider of daily need items.

Alteryx (NYSE: AYX), Comstock Resources (NYSE: CRK), and MagnaChip Semiconductor (NYSE: MX) were among the top performers. A weak reading on inflation made some investors more optimistic that lower interest rates are just around the corner, but doubts about whether the U.S. will be able to reach deals with China and other major trading partners in the near future weighed on sentiment. On Monday, Comstock said that it would purchase Covey Park Energy for $2.2 billion, giving it huge exposure to the Haynesville Basin shale play area in the Ark-La-Tex region.

(RTTNews) - With consumers anticipating larger income gains and lower inflation during the year ahead, the University of Michigan released preliminary data on Friday unexpectedly showing a continued improvement in U.S. consumer sentiment in the month of October. Curtin said "stronger finances and lower interest rates helped to modestly bolster buying plans" but noted "these favorable trends did not change consumers' overall prospects for the national economy." "A slower pace of overall economic growth is still anticipated, including some modest increases in the national unemployment rate during the year ahead," he added.

The iShares S&P GSCI Commodity Index Trust (NYSEArca: GSG), which tracks a basket of 24 different commodities, is down 14.55 percent year-to-date. SAN DIEGO (ETFguide.com) - Wall Street's ever rosy forecasts for accelerating economic growth aren't coming true. The Federal Reserve also knows that if inflation doesn't rise adequately enough, it could leave them without a valuable tool should the U.S. economy head into a double-dip scenario; the power to ease interest rates.

Novo Nordisk ( NVO ) is raised to buy from neutral at Swedbank AB, citing a number of phase-three treatment studies that will help it expand its product offering in the next six to 18 months. Deutsche Bank ( DB ) is cut to equal weight from overweight at Barclays. Inflation in the euro zone dropped to 0.7% in January from 0.8% in December, falling short of estimates and hitting the lowest level since October.

BHP Billiton ( BHP ) released a lower than expected profit result yesterday of US$9.9 billion for the 1H12 (July to December 2012). Prior to market open this morning, Telstra, Australia´s largest telecommunications business and the local market´s sixth biggest company posted a slightly lower than expected profit of $1.47 billion. The Australian sharemarket pulled back initially following the release because higher inflation increases the chances that Chinese authorities will try and slow down their economy.

In a major shift in its perspective, the Fed also nowexpects to raise borrowing costs only once more through 2021,and no longer anticipates the need to guard against inflationwith restrictive monetary policy. "The fact that they've announced balance sheet runoff endingI think is certainly quite dovish as well," said GennadiyGoldberg, interest rate strategist at TD Securities in New York. The dollar clung to gains against sterling GBP= asinvestors remained wary over the prospects for the Britishcurrency as Prime Minister Theresa May requested a short delayto Brexit after her failure to get a divorce deal ratified.

(See Graph) Chart Source: McKinsey Global Shanghai Composite Index has been up by 92.1% since 2000 outperforming almost all other major stock indices reflecting investors’ expectations for high future growth and returns. However, A separate McKinsey Global study calculates that based on the average return on equity (ROE), Chinese companies stocks are overvalued by 10-20%, and remain at a 20-30% premium above those in the United States and the European Union. The liberal lending and free capital post-financial-crisis has exacerbated inflationary pressure, created potential bubbles in housing, non-performing loans and assets, and widened the income inequality between regions.

Click to get this free report NASDAQ-100 SHRS (QQQ): ETF Research Reports SPDR-SP 500 TR (SPY): ETF Research Reports SPDR-DJ IND AVG (DIA): ETF Research Reports To read this article on Zacks.com click here. The energy patch continues to weigh on prices and appears that it will persist in making the Fed's 2% inflation target a further distant goal. Not only will these measures give the FOMC guidance about their big decision next month, but most economists and strategists are carefully watching this component of the economy for possible early warning signs of recession.

If the specter of near-term deflation in the U.S. materializes, then TIPS, or Treasury inflation-protected securities, and other inflation-linked bonds from countries grappling with deflationary pressures, could wind up losing value. Although bonds were appealing to investors in August, another BlackRock inflation-linked product, the iShares Barclays TIPS Bond ETF (NYSEArca:TIP), actually had outflows of $332.8 million. Currently, the index consists of 167 issues from 17 developed and emerging economies:Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, France, Germany, Greece, Israel, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Poland, South Africa, Sweden, Turkey, the U.K. and the U.S.

We maintain our Neutral rating on BJ's Restaurants Inc. ( BJRI ). BJ'S RESTAURANT (BJRI): Free Stock Analysis Report MCDONALDS CORP (MCD): Free Stock Analysis Report YUM! While we are optimistic on the company's same-store sales (comps) momentum, unit growth and potential success from the loyalty program, the negative impact of commodity inflation as well as increased cost structures in 2012 compel us to remain on the sidelines.

Latin America has a vibrant food and beverage industry with a retail value of $90 billion , with The Coca-Cola Company ( KO ) having a 48% value share in the beverage market. The high levels of inflation, as well as currency depreciation, was forcing the company to continually raise the prices of its products, which consequently, had a negative impact on its growth. Moreover, the softness in the economy prompted the governments to raise taxes, including for the food and beverage industry, which hampered the purchasing power of consumers.

GLD has been unable to escape the deflationary spiral in commodities, but will give some short-term traders an interesting look next week as additional economic data is released. SPDR Gold Shares ETF (NYSE: GLD ) Gold bullion has re-emerged as a potential hiding spot amid the volatility in stocks. GLD recently re-tested the $110 level, which proved to be a strong line of support that was established last November.

High-volume losers were American Electric Power Co. Inc. ( AEP ), Exelon Corp. ( EXC ), and Southern Co. ( SO ). Investors are very excited about Tuesday's earnings report from the maker of the iPhone. In addition to gains received by the tech rally and China's rate announcement, traders were also enthused by word the European Central Bank is poised to loosen monetary policy and boost its bond-purchasing program in order to prevent ongoing deflationary pressures.

Asset classes from oil (NYSEArca: USO) to small cap stocks (NYSEArca: IWM) and nearly everything in between went south. Deflation Threat - A Simple Concept Government spending and money printing has been identified as key causes for an alleged inflationary environment. The Europe (NYSEArca: FEZ) debt debacle reminds us how vital cash is - that's why the European Central Bank and the IMF made $1 trillion available for entire governments.

In fact, describing the move in gold as a sell-off is an understatement because the 8% decline is the largest single day loss for the commodity in 3 decades. Unfortunately, as time progressed, patience began to wear thin and investors were seeing their investment values dwindle with no hope of rapidly rising inflationary pressures in sight. Between this morning's (Monday) softer U.S. economic reports, last night's weaker Chinese data and this month's disappointing U.S. retail sales and jobs numbers, there are definite signs that the global recovery is losing momentum.

In energy ETFs, the United States Oil Fund ( USO ) is down 3.52% to $30.40. In its statement, the Federal Reserve's Open Market Committee said it sees inflation moderating with the drop in commodity prices. In other energy futures, heating oil was down 0.98% to $2.77 a gallon while natural gas was up 1.58% to $3.99 per million British thermal units.

Refined sugar futures fell $91.50, or 12%, to close at $677.10 a metric ton Commodity stocks to watch: --Aluminum producer Alcoa ( AA ) fell sharply over concern--like many other commodities stocks--that China would pull back spending on raw materials. Fears that the Chinese government will raise interest rates to rein in inflation pushed crude-oil futures sharply into the red to finish the week. In other energy futures, heating oil was down 2.46% to $2.36 a gallon while natural gas fell 3.08%, to $3.80 per million British thermal units.

Some better-ranked investment managers include Fortress Investment Group LLC ( FIG ), Lazard Ltd. ( LAZ ) and Waddell & Reed Financial, Inc. ( WDR ). FORTRESS INVEST (FIG): Free Stock Analysis Report KKR & CO LP (KKR): Free Stock Analysis Report LAZARD LTD (LAZ): Free Stock Analysis Report WADDELL&REED -A (WDR): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Moreover, a high rate of interest set by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to control rising inflation is another factor hindering debt payoffs and fresh investments.

The 2008 global equity (NYSEArca: EFA ), real estate (NYSEArca: RWO ) and commodity (NYSEArca: DBC ) meltdown erased an estimated $50 trillion worth of wealth. The debt burden will become larger and more of a default risk. Deflation Threat - A Simple Concept Government spending and money printing has been identified as key causes for an alleged inflationary environment.

As you can see, momentum "worked" in the second quarter, with my picks to outperform doubling the market with a 4.8% return while my forecast underperformers lost big time, decreasing by 8.4% on average. U.S. Heat Map for the Year Ending June 30, 2013 (click to enlarge) Source: PPCA Inc So I'll go out on a limb again and forecast the following winners and losers for the next quarter. This is one explanation for the precipitous decline in gold prices (as well as TIPS), indicating deflation fears, coupled with increases in bond yields.

Click to get this free report ISHARS-EMU IDX (EZU): ETF Research Reports SPDR-EU STX 50 (FEZ): ETF Research Reports To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Germany, Europe's largest economy, saw weak growth of 0.3%, down from 0.7% recorded in the fourth quarter (read: Will Recent Strong Gains in the Greek ETF Last? Deflationary spiral, a major threat to fragile economic recovery, seems to be coming to an end with Euro zone escaping four straight months of deflation.

The bank forecasted a decline in inflation over the next two and a half years and expected a tepid return to growth for the 17 member states of the monetary union in 2013. The bank's measure of inflation, the HICP, was expected Thursday to rise 2.3 percent in 2012, the same as forecast in last month's bulletin. The significant reduction in 2013 estimates is due to "tensions in some euro area sovereign debt markets and their impact on financing conditions, the process of balance sheet adjustment in the financial and non-financial sectors and high unemployment," according to the ECB.

Below we have highlighted some of them: Vanguard Global ex-U.S. Real Estate ETF ( VNQI ) This fund offers a broad exposure across international REIT equity markets by tracking the S&P Global ex-U.S. Property Index. Click to get this free report VANGD-GL XUS RE (VNQI): ETF Research Reports WISDMTR-JP HREF (DXJR): ETF Research Reports ISHARS-EU DV RE (IFEU): ETF Research Reports WISDMTR-G-US UT (DBU): ETF Research Reports To read this article on Zacks.com click here. The world is heading toward negative interest rates policies (NIRP) to stimulate sagging growth and prevent deflationary pressure.

Add in the low-to-lower U.S. inflation as measured by the core Personal Consumption Expenditure Index (PCE) sitting at a mere 1.77%, and U.S. bonds look even more attractive. Looking Deeper Into the Numbers for SAfe Stocks But taking a step further back, manufacturing is a very small sector of the US economy and is dwarfed by services and non-manufacturing. The indexed play is the Vanguard Real Estate ETF (NYSEARCA:) while for an individual REIT — look at my multi-decade proven performer in WP Carey (NYSE:).

Opportunity 2 : Zero Coupon Bonds Love Deflationary Bears ( ZROZ ) For the past decade or so, not many asset classes have garnered less respect than government bonds, as most investors have looked for an end to the downtrend in interest rates that has been occurring for the better part of 35 years. One ETF that owns 25+ year zeros is the ZROZ. ZROZ is highly volatile and not for everyone, but in a bear market, a little dab might do you!

The bank forecasted a decline in inflation over the next two and a half years and expected a tepid return to growth for the 17 member states of the monetary union in 2013. The bank's measure of inflation, the HICP, was expected Thursday to rise 2.3 percent in 2012, the same as forecast in last month's bulletin. The significant reduction in 2013 estimates is due to "tensions in some euro area sovereign debt markets and their impact on financing conditions, the process of balance sheet adjustment in the financial and non-financial sectors and high unemployment," according to the ECB.

iShares Currency Hedged MSCI EAFE ETF ( HEFA ) For a broad foreign market play without currency risks, investors could also consider HEFA which focuses on the EAFE region - Europe, Australasia, Far East - for exposure. Click to get this free report DEUTS-XT MS AW (DBAW): ETF Research Reports ISHA-CH MS EAFE (HEFA): ETF Research Reports DEUTS-XT MS EM (DBEM): ETF Research Reports To read this article on Zacks.com click here. The world is heading towards a currency war as a number of countries are choosing loose monetary policies to stimulate the sagging growth and prevent deflationary pressures.

The quarter's results indicate slow recovery in the small and medium business ( SMB ) sector due to deceleration in high unemployment and inflation rates. Though new business wins in the SMB sector, and stiff competition from Automated Data Processing and Administaff Inc. will remain a constant worry, we believe that Paychex can benefit from the improvement in the U.S. employment situation. For more details of second quarter earnings, please visit: Paychex Beats Despite SMB Slowdown .

The major market averages were all trading higher on Friday after inflation and retail sales data dimmed the likelihood for the Federal Reserve to pursue a more restrictive monetary policy. Led by gains in healthcare and technology stocks, the Nasdaq Composite was outperforming, trading higher for the sixth consecutive day. (+) FSC (+15.85%) Agreed to be acquired by Oaktree Capital Group ( OAK ) (+) CLIR (+9.72%) Received order to qualify duplex combustion technology (+) CTIC (+5.31%) Gets EMA marketing authorization for pacritinib for myelofibrosis

Amgen ( AMGN ) shares finished nearly unchanged after the biotech giant updated the investment community with news of a hefty dividend hike (bringing it above 2%). This morning's CPI numbers, which showed that the cost of living fell 0.3% last month, gave skeptics some fresh ammunition to question the validity of governmental statistics. Best Buy ( BBY ) gave back much of yesterday's rally, as the company extended the date for its former founder to make a bid.

Coming just prior to the CPI report was a consumer climate estimate performed by the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs ( SECO ). The USD/CHF , shortly after this morning's SECO report, jumped in value by 73 pips from 0.8731 to 0.8804 before settling near the latter. The consumer price index ( CPI ) data out of Switzerland this morning revealed slower inflationary growth than was originally expected.

Euro zone inflation unexpectedly slowed in March, adding tothe European Central Bank's headaches as it battles an economicslump that threatens to undo years of stimulus. The quest for a way out of the Brexit stalemate continues onMonday evening when British lawmakers will vote for a secondtime on alternatives to Prime Minister Theresa May'sthrice-rejected EU withdrawal agreement. The Turkish lira eased more than 1 percent to 5.6158 perdollar TRY= after President Tayyip Erdogan's AK Party lostcontrol of the capital Ankara for the first time in a localelection.

The United States Natural Gas ETF ( UNG ) is up 1.2% at $10.10. Energy shares are mixed and trending lower as the market makes massive swings in highly volatile trading. In its statement, the Federal Reserve's Open Market Committee said it sees inflation moderating with the drop in commodity prices.

ARGT in Focus The impact of the monetary crisis was clearly reflected in declining interest in Global X FTSE Argentina 20 ETF ( ARGT ), the only ETF focused on this Latin American nation (see all the Latin American Equity ETFs here ). Also, we currently have a Zacks ETF Rank of 5 or 'Strong Sell' rating on ARGT, so we are looking for weakness over the long term too. The government needs to take some serious fiscal and monetary tightening steps to reduce inflation, and until then ARGT is a definite avoid.

Finally, ConocoPhillips was able to pull additional money out of its CapEx budget without impacting production due in part to its ability to capture cost deflation. COP data by YCharts . What went wrong Collapsing crude oil prices to start the year weighed heavily on ConocoPhillips.

Let's look at Campbell Soup (NYSE: CPB) , Kellogg (NYSE: K) , and J.M. Net sales are down 1% companywide across the first three fiscal quarters , as it's facing a heavily promotional environment and grocery store food price deflation affects profitability. Smucker struggle to get a handle on changing consumer preferences, their stocks offer investors tasty dividends that will pay them while they wait for the turnarounds to gain traction.

In the EU the DAX was the only major market to advance, posting a gain of 0.65%, while both the CAC and FTSE declined. The Australian economy is sensitive to commodity prices so oil trading at a five-month high and rising is a good thing. Regarding the RBA, labor and inflation trends suggest the central bank will be forced to cut rates to stimulate activity.

The BOJ did increase the size of its asset purchase program in February and April, but it has been generally reticent about committing itself like the Fed and ECB "to whatever it takes" within their mandates. Not only is Japan still experiencing deflation by the BOJ's preferred core measure (-0.3% year-over-year in July), but the economy appears to be stalling, if not worse. It will also have a better handle on what ECB and especially the Federal Reserve's policy impact on the yen, which traded at 7-month highs against the dollar following the Fed's announcement last week.

Newly Launched ETFs in Focus The funds take into account large- and mid-cap stocks and look to replicate the performance of value, low volatility, and quality factor strategies. These ETFs could be interesting picks for investors looking to diversify their exposure across the globe, but are still seeking to shift holdings to stocks that have high quality and are rich on value characteristics. Deceleration in China and deflationary fears in Europe left investors dithering and looking for some absolute quality picks.

Some of the earnings reports from the likes of Pepsi ( PEP ), Intel ( INTC ), CSX Corp . Click to get this free report PEPSICO INC (PEP): Free Stock Analysis Report INTEL CORP (INTC): Free Stock Analysis Report CSX CORP (CSX): Free Stock Analysis Report BANK OF AMER CP (BAC): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Europe centered growth and deflation fears, the market's major source of anxiety lately, is for real and will eventually have a bearing on the earnings picture as well.

PowerShares DB U.S. Dollar Index Bullish ( UUP ) slipped 0.23% to 21.90. Shutterstock photo Gold prices were flat Wednesday as the buying hype surrounding the Federal Reserve's third round of quantitative easing faded and the metal lost appeal as a safe haven amid an outlook for weak corporate earnings and inflation. The program's $40 billion a month in mortgage-backed securities purchases is too little to make a difference in a market worth $8.5 trillion.

Sure, it helps the US by driving up appetite for the USD and treasuries, forcing the world to pretend even longer that the US is the only safe harbor during a storm, and delaying inflation pressure. But it'll just as surely put the viability of the global financial system into question again, kill the fragile if real recovery and threatens the prolonged, worldwide deflationary spiral. Regardless, certainty includes countless lawsuits for BP and a higher cost for all deep-sea oil drillers, as well as huge economic and environmental damage to the gulf coast region.

Its 0.14% expense ratio is bettered only by Schwab Emerging Markets Equity ( SCHE ). "We see further upside given improvement in macroeconomic fundamentals, subdued inflation, reform momentum and stronger earnings," Heidi Richardson, head of investment strategy for U.S. iShares, wrote recently. "Emerging market (EM) equities present a potential opportunity given higher rates of economic growth than many developed countries and more attractive valuations," the firm wrote in its 2017 investment outlook.

This gave the gold bullion ETF GLD a gain of over 2.2% on December 4, the day a steady job report published, defying the traditional investing theme. Winners SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) Gold bullions plunged to a six-year low level on a rising greenback and muted inflation globally. GLD is down over 8.4% so far this year (as of December 4, 2015).

Two micro-cap health care companies, Pulse Biosciences ( PLSE ) and PhaseRx ( PZRX ) also priced IPOs this week. Since the new administration was sworn in, they have removed restrictions on both FX and lending, settled with holdout creditors and laid out a plan to bring annual inflation down to 5% from 30% currently. CF Corporation (CFCOU), a blank check company run by veterans from Blackstone and FNF, raised $600 million in its public listing.

While the market may have perceived the Fed as being overly aggressive, the minutes revealed policymakers took a more cautious approach to further rate increases than their statement indicated. "Many participants expressed the view that, especially in an environment of muted inflation pressures, the committee could afford to be patient about further policy firming," the central bank said in the minutes. "Participants expressed that recent developments, including the volatility in financial markets and the increased concerns about global growth, made the appropriate extent and timing of future policy firming less clear than earlier," the minutes said.

Owned and managed by Mexican Sora Group, the property in Colonia Roma features 90 rooms, more than 9,300 square feet of flexible meeting space along with various tech-savvy amenities. Strong economic growth is driving the hotel's expansion in Latin America, overruling the high rate of inflation. The current trend shows that the economic balance of power has been shifting from the developed world to the rapidly growing economies and this transition has not escaped Starwood's notice.

Elsewhere, the commodity sector outperformed other sectors today, with Freeport McMoran ( FCX ) and BHP Billiton ( BHP ) bucking the early selling. The markets saw a bit of a pullback today on the overhang of yesterday's Federal Reserve commentary that featured the dreaded "D-Word" - Deflation. We also had news out this morning that White House economic adviser Lawrence Summers will leave the Obama administration at the end of the year.

Trading remains light in the U.S. markets early Friday with many major players deciding to extend their Thanksgiving holiday. The minutes indicated FOMC members were concerned about weak inflation which may lead to a reduction in the number of interest rate hikes in 2018. The minutes of the European Central Bank for its October meeting didn't reveal anything new, with policymakers broadly agreeing last month on extending its asset purchase program.

Interestingly, the iShares Barclays TIPS Bond ETF (NYSEArca:TIP), a fund that tracks an index of inflation-protected U.S. Treasurys, had $332.8 million in redemptions, a measure of how much investor sentiment shifted away from concerns about inflation last month. TIP was tenth on the IndexUniverse.com losers list. Both funds had more assets at the end of August than the previous month, meaning that market declines weren't enough to offset flows.

Contrary to 2010, this year might feature a slowing Chinese economy and re-rating stock markets, thanks to improved policy visibility, peaking out inflation and still relatively strong earnings growth . Anything the Chinese government does to fight local inflation will have the side effect of boosting the global buying power of the yuan. Wen Jiabao is going after lending but can now claim he is letting market forces shape the moves in the currency without hurting the consumer.

In addition, raw material inflation, higher R&D expense and increasing competition are some of the other concerns. The downward earnings estimates are largely a function of uncertainties in the current macroeconomic environment, which can adversely affect the company's earnings growth as well as margins. Other Stocks to Consider Stocks that look promising and are worth looking into now include CLARCOR Inc. ( CLC ), Crane Co. ( CR ) and Bunzl plc ( BZLFY ), each carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Sheraz Mian Director of Research AUTOMATIC DATA (ADP): Free Stock Analysis Report SPDR-DJ IND AVG (DIA): ETF Research Reports NASDAQ-100 SHRS (QQQ): ETF Research Reports SPDR-SP 500 TR (SPY): ETF Research Reports PRO-ULS L20+YRT (TBT): ETF Research Reports To read this article on Zacks.com click here. The Fed appeared to be downgrading their economic growth outlook a bit and pointed towards low inflation readings and the rise in mortgage rates. But labor market data has broadly been positive, as this morning's weekly Jobless Claims numbers and Wednesday's ADP report showed.

The rank, along with the Expected Surprise Prediction (ESP) (Read: Zacks Earnings ESP: A Better Way to Find Earnings Surprises ) helps in predicting the probability of earnings surprises. In Brazil, high inflation, overvalued currency, soaring labor costs and infrastructure bottlenecks are curtailing investment activities, which in turn will negatively impact steel demand. These adverse economic factors will affect companies like ArcelorMittal ( MT ), which generates almost half of its revenues from the region and United States Steel Corp. ( X ) that has significant operations in Europe.

Pre-Market Movers Stocks moving in the pre-market included: Cliffs Natural Resources (NYSE: CLF ) shares rose 1.21 percent pre-market after analysts at J.P. Morgan released a note on the company indicating that shares could double in the next year. The cooling inflation does give the European Central Bank room to ease tomorrow should it want to do so. General Mills (NYSE: GIS ) shares fell 0.84 percent pre-market in the wake of its downgrade at Morgan Stanley on Monday.

While Cheesecake is susceptible to higher input costs like all other restaurant companies, management commented that commodity inflation has moderated on an annualized basis. We remain Neutral on restaurant company The Cheesecake Factory Inc. ( CAKE) . On Jul 24, 2013, Cheesecake Factory reported second-quarter 2013 earnings of $0.54 per share, up 5.9% year over year.

For added diversification and growth benefits, Kapyrin layers on SPDR S&P Emerging Markets Small Cap ( EWX ). "We see further upside given improvement in macroeconomic fundamentals, subdued inflation, reform momentum and stronger earnings," Heidi Richardson, head of investment strategy for U.S. iShares, wrote recently. "Emerging market (EM) equities present a potential opportunity given higher rates of economic growth than many developed countries and more attractive valuations," the firm wrote in its 2017 investment outlook.

A more favorable assessment of Indonesia's economic strength is underpinned by gains in investment spending, improved prospects for infrastructure development following key policy reforms, and a well-managed financial system." "In addition, robust growth has been accompanied by the continued health of its external payments position, supported by increasingly large flows of foreign direct investment, while inflationary expectations are becoming better anchored at a more stable and historically lower level. Prudent fiscal management has contained budget deficits at very low levels and has reduced the government's debt burden as a share of GDP," the ratings agency added .

The outer maturities for oil prices remain seriously depressed without any visible means to correct that, no matter what Janet Yellen declares about 2% inflation anchors. As last week, the Asian "dollar" is noticeably absent from the fireworks as SHIBOR continues to be pegged but offshore yuan rates (CNH HIBOR) aren't too disturbed, either. The combination of declining acceptance of the "transitory" central bank fantasy and the reality of the "dollar", especially broadly in so many negative moves, is a potential avalanche.

Will the recent positive trend continue leading up to its next earnings release, or is Xylem due for a pullback? Outlook Xylem stated that its pricing actions and stronger productivity will help mute the impact of prevailing headwinds owing to higher tariffs and material cost inflation. It has been about a month since the last earnings report for Xylem (XYL).

The euro has lost around 1.3 percent over the last week asinvestors bet the European Central Bank will keep monetarypolicy accommodative on weaker-than-expected growth and lowinflation in the single currency area. The United Kingdom is on course to leave the European Unionon March 29 without a deal unless British Prime Minister TheresaMay can convince the bloc to reopen the divorce agreement shereached in November. "BoE Governor Mark Carney will reiterate his warning aboutthe risks of a disorderly Brexit and reassure investors thatthey are ready to increase stimulus if it causes a majordisruption in the markets," Lien added.

Similarly, their Japan Hedged Equity Fund ( DXJ ) trades at 6.5x cashflow today, while providing investors with an embedded currency hedge. A 20-year economic landscape branded by zombie banks, frightened management, bridges to nowhere, repeated bouts of deflation and broad-based despair has wreaked havoc on investor confidence. Experience has taught us that calling major secular turning points in any market is difficult at best, so we prefer to leg into investments over time as long as we have an appropriate margin of safety.

(RTTNews) - Growth in Chicago-area business activity saw a significant slowdown in the month of March, MNI Indicators revealed in a report released on Friday. She added, "The Fed's break from monetary tightening amid global uncertainty and softer inflation is seen underpinning optimism in the business environment." The steep drop by the business barometer came as the production and new orders indexes pulled back from last month, although they remained appreciably above their January levels.

The BOJ did increase the size of its asset purchase program in February and April, but it has been generally reticent about committing itself like the Fed and ECB "to whatever it takes" within their mandates. Not only is Japan still experiencing deflation by the BOJ's preferred core measure (-0.3% year-over-year in July), but the economy appears to be stalling, if not worse. It will also have a better handle on what ECB and especially the Federal Reserve's policy impact on the yen, which traded at 7-month highs against the dollar following the Fed's announcement last week.

On Frankfurt's DAX, logistics company Deutsche Post was 1.9% lower, followed by Deutsche Bank, down by 1.6% and Linde, an industrial gases and engineering company, 1.3% lower. At the time of writing, the FTSE 100 Index is down 0.40%, the DAX is 0.47% lower and the CAC-40 is down by 0.90%. European equity benchmarks were trading in the red in the early afternoon, Continental Europe time, as the latest estimates for Euro area annual inflation have been projected to post a negative figure and financial services providers were in retreat.

Stryker Corporation ( SYK ): This Michigan-based medical technology firm offers products used in the reconstructive, medical and surgical, and neurotechnology and spine arenas. The Federal Reserve's second -- and perhaps final -- round of quantitative easing has ended, and some Congressional leaders continue to talk tough on deficit reduction. David Dreman, one of the investing greats upon whom I base my "Guru Strategies", has noted that unlike bonds or bills or gold, stocks can produce increasing earnings streams during inflationary climates, as companies raise prices.

The Dow and S&P 500 eased downward by small fractions of a percentage point, responding to government releases of economic data that showed unexpected weakness in certain areas of the U.S. economy. A drop in the Producer Price Index pointed toward a lack of inflationary pressure domestically, and flat retail sales dispelled any concerns that the economy might be on pace to overheat in the near future. The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

As reflected by EEM ( quote ), the emerging world has lagged the S&P 500 by a substantial margin, down 1% year to date compared to a climb of 6.5% in the SPX ( quote ). First, what we know is that the year to date has really been two separate periods when the institutional funds were underweight emerging markets: January 15 through the end of February, and then April 15 to now. Now there are signs of a similar cycle emerging as global growth expectations get weaker, inflation fears recede and risk appetites rise.

In corporate news, Novartis AG (NYSE: NVS ) rose 5.7% after increasing its offer for eye-care specialist Alcon, Inc. (NYSE: ACL ). In economic news, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for November rose 0.1% versus 1.1% a year ago, and confirmed the Fed's view that inflation is not currently a problem. The Dow started off higher yesterday and held its gains until lunchtime when the European markets closed lower with the euro taking a real beating and the dollar again soaring.

As you can see, momentum "worked" in the second quarter, with my picks to outperform doubling the market with a 4.8% return while my forecast underperformers lost big time, decreasing by 8.4% on average. U.S. Heat Map for the Year Ending June 30, 2013 (click to enlarge) Source: PPCA Inc So I'll go out on a limb again and forecast the following winners and losers for the next quarter. This is one explanation for the precipitous decline in gold prices (as well as TIPS), indicating deflation fears, coupled with increases in bond yields.

Getting into some specific dividend names, General Mills ( GIS ) traded higher following the company's Q1 results, while shares of Darden Restaurants ( DRI ) pushed lower on their earnings' report. The markets saw a bit of a pullback today on the overhang of yesterday's Federal Reserve commentary that featured the dreaded "D-Word" - Deflation. We also had news out this morning that White House economic adviser Lawrence Summers will leave the Obama administration at the end of the year.

The real estate market has been healthy for years, and Walker & Dunlop (NYSE: WD) hasn't hesitated to make hay while the sun is shining. Coming into Wednesday's second-quarter financial report, Walker & Dunlop investors believed that the company would be able to see reasonable gains in both revenue and earnings. "The current macroeconomic environment, with low interest rates and limited inflationary pressures," Walker said, "is an extremely positive backdrop for our business that should continue to benefit asset owners and attract large amounts of capital into commercial real estate."

One can visualize the asset classes by looking at proxies such as iShares 10-20 Year Treasury Bond ( TLH ) and the S&P 500 SPDR Trust ( SPY ). According to analysts like Joachim Fels at Pacific Investment Management Co. (PIMCO), the trend demonstrates waning confidence in the Fed's inflation-targeting through its monetary policies. If that loss of faith infiltrates the belief that the Fed can levitate stock prices with endless rate manipulation, excessive exposure to risk assets would prove painful for the aggressively allocated crowd.

No effect Stocks will tank Stocks will rise Stocks will range-trade SPDR-SP5 VL (SPYV): ETF Research Reports SPDR-FINL SELS (XLF): ETF Research Reports SPDR-CONS DISCR (XLY): ETF Research Reports To read this article on Zacks.com click here. The Big Ben Statement In today's Bernanke briefing on the Hill, his big statement was- "A premature tightening of monetary policy could lead interest rates to rise temporarily but would also carry a substantial risk of slowing or ending the economic recovery and causing inflation to fall further." Tapering the Fed's quantitative easing (QE) each month would send long-term bond yields higher.

Even energy infrastructure master limited partnerships (MLPs) that focus more on "midstream" pipeline and storage companies are hurting.Alerian MLP ( AMLP ) has fallen 20% in the past month and 37% YTD. S harp drops last week in the major market indexes and many ETFs may have more to do with plunging oil prices than the keenly watched Fed move expected Wednesday. "Paying less at the pump might seem like a good thing, but the drop in crude has reinforced fears over slow economic growth and deflation," Koesterich wrote Monday.

Key reports include Retail Sales, Industrial Production, two regional "mini ISM's," Housing Starts and inflation -- both on the Producer and the Consumer levels. The biggest part of the decline though was at gas stations, and reflected lower gasoline prices, which is a good thing. of the longer-term decline is due to people simply exhausting their regular state benefits, which run out after 26 weeks.

In Frankfurt, electricity and natural gas supplier E.ON led the DAX lower, falling 2.4%, followed by pharmaceutical company Bayer, and Deutsche Bank, each of which closed 1.9% lower. The FTSE lost 0.69%, the DAX fell 0.44%, and the CAC-40 dropped 0.44%. In economic news, Euro area annual inflation is expected to be 1.2% in February, down from 1.3% in January, according to a flash estimate from Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union.

For a lender, the ideal loan is one where [a] there is greater certainty in cash flows, [b] there is a "creditworthy" borrower with a long-term track record, and [c] there is an asset to seize in case of default. QE's fiercest detractors have often argued that the size and scope of QE would result in massive and uncontrollable inflation. This is especially true given the zero-bound rate environment, where QE results in lower interest rate spreads.

Novo Nordisk ( NVO ) is raised to buy from neutral at Swedbank AB, citing a number of phase-three treatment studies that will help it expand its product offering in the next six to 18 months. Inflation in the euro zone dropped to 0.7% in January from 0.8% in December, falling short of estimates and hitting the lowest level since October. In ADR news, Diageo Plc ( DEO ) is downgraded to neutral from buy at Goldman Sachs, citing continued challenges to growth in emerging markets.

Source: Ken Wolter / Shutterstock.com The volatility in the XOM stock price is understandable. Such a deflationary environment would negatively impact XOM stock. Based on simple economic principles, that would depress XOM stock.

Further, with inflation remaining stubbornly low, Kroger loses pricing power, which stifles revenue growth. The company joins CVS Health (NYSE:) as retailers begin to embrace CBD and cannabis products. While there are still regulatory concerns about CBD products as cannabis is not legal at the federal level it’s clear that we’re moving toward a more welcoming environment.

For the general REIT market — the easy-peasy way to gain crisis protection can by found in the Vanguard Real Estate ETF (NYSEARCA:). Core PCE Source Bloomberg U.S. bonds continue to perform well with the lower inflation and improving supply-and-demand conditions noted above. In addition, if you find yourself in San Francisco on Aug. 15-17, please join me at the MoneyShow, where I’ll be presenting my economic and market analysis and my latest investment themes and recommendations.

There are far easier and less intricate ways to accomplish that today, such as using exchange-traded funds (ETFs), particularly inverse ETFs like ProShares Short Dow30 (DOG) or the ProShares Short S&P500 (SH). Several weeks ago, you were probably watching the stock market correct amid a confluence of concerns including slowing economic growth in China and the euro zone. Given the overall lack of inflation and low-quality job market, as well as the aforementioned slower Chinese and euro-zone economies, I continue to see a longer runway than most until the Fed has to boost rates.

Yesterday, we stalled out at those levels, and now the chart on EEM ( quote ) is worth a fresh look: See the repeated failures at $50.25? The most recent move out of emerging markets back into the developed economies of the world is only two days old, but it already feels like it will become a running theme. Expect one last bout of inflation hysteria from Asia despite better numbers coming in from Korea, Indonesia and even China.

SPDR-SP 500 TR (SPY): ETF Research Reports ISHARS-20+YTB (TLT): ETF Research Reports To read this article on Zacks.com click here. 3) The Fed said: The Committee recognizes that inflation persistently below its 2 percent objective could pose risks to economic performance…". The Fed does see inflation moving toward its goal over the medium term like June, but added the risk to the July statement.

Results were dragged down by lower natural gas output, which declined 11.4% from the prior-year period due to CNQ's decision to shut production volumes and to allocate capital for oil projects that will provide higher return. CNQ shares have also been held back by operational challenges, continued weakness in natural gas prices and a fresh round of cost inflation in the oil sands regions. On Mar 19, Zacks Investment Research downgraded independent oil and gas explorer Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. ( CNQ ) to a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell).

Rising interest rates tend to drive up U.S. Treasury yields which in turn boost the U.S. Dollar while pressuring foreign demand for dollar-denominated commodities like gold. Yellen's comments combined with a rise in U.S. Treasury yields and reduced fears over North Korea helped make the U.S. Dollar a more attractive investment. She essentially said that the Fed may have overstated the labor market's strength and rate of inflation, indicating future monetary policy will be more accommodative than previously thought.

On Mar 5, we issued an updated research report on Crown Holdings, Inc. CCK . Click to get this free report Crown Holdings, Inc. (CCK): Free Stock Analysis Report Terex Corporation (TEX): Free Stock Analysis Report Mueller Industries, Inc. (MLI): Free Stock Analysis Report Albany International Corporation (AIN): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. The company's performance will be affected by impact of foreign currency translation, higher debt and raw-material cost inflation.

For the Japanese Yen The annual rate of inflation eased from 0.6% to 0.3% August according to figures released by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communication. A lack of stats will leave the Greenback in the hands of geopolitical risk through the day and FOMC member chatter. This article was originally posted on FX Empire More From FXEMPIRE: AUD/USD, NZD/USD, USD/CNY – Asian Session Daily Forecast Is Reserve Bank of Australia a New Friend of Gold?

Though the stock market has bounced back recently thanks mainly to some strong earnings reports, volatility is expected to remain high due to rising concerns about global growth outlook, deflationary risks and geopolitical worries. In such a scenario, investors should consider investing some of their assets in so called low volatility ETFs. So basically by investing in these ETFs, investors sacrifice some upside but protect themselves from a lot of downside.

Packaged foods giant General Mills, Inc. ( GIS ) on Tuesday caught a big upgrade from analysts at Goldman Sachs. Buy GIS as a high-quality company well positioned to experience accelerating fundamental strength as its comparison issues fade and it proves an early and sizeable benefactor of abating inflation pressure. The Bottom Line Shares of General Mills ( GIS ) have a 3.10% dividend yield, based on last night's closing stock price of $39.31.

Those parties included apparel chains Express (NYSE: EXPR) and American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE: AEO) , according to The Wall Street Journal (subscription required). What happened Shares of Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE: ANF) popped 10% last month, according to data provided by S&P Global Market Intelligence , on hopes that the struggling teen clothing retailer will be acquired. The retailer will likely be forced to close more of its stores in the years ahead -- which will further reduce sales -- while wage inflation and intense competition continue to pressure margins.

The beverage and convenience store company - best known for its distribution of Coca Cola ( KO ) branded products - became the most weighted stock in the Mexican markets last November. Thanks to government endorsed measures, the peso has been among the top performing currencies over the past month, helping to scale back previously rising inflation rates. Should the peso maintain its current footing - and the trend suggests that this is more than possible - Mexico's central bank will simply match any policy decisions made by the U.S. Federal Reserve.

The space is presently topped by FTSE Europe ETF (VGK) which has amassed about $15.4 billion in assets. Click to get this free report VANGD-FTSE EUR (VGK): ETF Research Reports ISHARS-EMU IDX (EZU): ETF Research Reports SPDR-EU STX 50 (FEZ): ETF Research Reports To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Europe is again troubled by a slowdown and deflation, with Ukrainian worries and the Russian food import ban raising questions over the sustainability of the European Union's growth momentum.

Take a look below at the price ratio of the i SharesTreasury Bond 20+ Year ETF (NYSEARCA:TLT) relative to the iShares Treasury 7-10 Year ETF (NYSEARCA:IEF). As a reminder, a rising price ratio means the numerator/TLT is outperforming (up more/down less) the denominator/IEF. First, inflation expectations have undeniably fallen all year, while the honey badger SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSEARCA:SPY) has rallied in an abnormal way, given that equity is not supposed to be a deflation hedge.