Russell Shor

This year the stock market has generally enjoyed a period of stability often described as a "Goldilocks" economy, which has avoided the extremes of overheating or stagnation. However, recent economic data has sparked concerns of a downturn. The July jobs report revealed a modest addition of 114,000 jobs, with the unemployment rate rising to 4.3%, the highest in nearly three years. This, combined with earlier signs of slowing consumer spending…

Amazon's latest financial report revealed a mixed performance, leading to an 8% decline in after-hours trading. The company's revenue for the quarter ending in June reached $148 billion, a 10% increase from the previous year, but slightly under analysts' expectations of $148.7 billion. Despite this, Amazon achieved a significant 94% rise in earnings per share, reaching $1.26, well above the forecasted $1.03. The Amazon Web Services (AWS) division continued to…

AMD exceeded expectations with strong Q2 results and a bullish forecast for AI GPU revenue, boosting its shares. Microsoft reported better-than-expected earnings and revenue but saw a slight shortfall in Azure growth. Both companies are investing heavily in AI to capture emerging market opportunities.

On Tuesday, Nvidia's stock dropped significantly, ending the day 7% lower at $103.73, marking its lowest point since late May. The company's stock has struggled in July, declining 16% and potentially marking its worst monthly performance since September 2022. This decline is partly attributed to a shift in market sentiment, with investors moving away from high-performing tech stocks and reallocating capital into smaller-cap stocks, which might benefit from potential interest…

Former President Donald Trump promised cryptocurrency enthusiasts that he would establish a strategic Bitcoin reserve and dismiss SEC Chairman Gary Gensler if re-elected in November. Speaking at the Bitcoin 2024 conference in Nashville, Trump outlined plans to boost the crypto industry, including forming a presidential advisory council for Bitcoin and halting a central bank digital currency

FXCM’s USDOLLAR basket has dropped over 1.13% this month, hitting its lowest levels since March. This decline is primarily due to continued dollar selling following recent disinflationary US price data and coinciding with a decline in the US 10-year real rate to below 2%. Federal Reserve member Christopher Waller indicated that softer US price data has paved the way for potential rate cuts, suggesting a bumpy path ahead. A significant…

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell stated that recent inflation data has increased confidence that price growth is moving towards the 2% target, noting progress and a focus on labour market cooling. On 11 July, government data showed a decline in the consumer price index and a year-over-year pace slowing to 3%, a positive sign for potential interest-rate cuts in 2024.

China's economy grew at a slower-than-expected annual rate of 4.7% in the last quarter, falling short of the 5.3% growth seen in the first quarter. The National Bureau of Statistics noted that progress this year has been challenging due to weak global economic momentum, persistent inflation, geopolitical conflicts, and insufficient domestic demand. Despite these challenges, the economy achieved a 5% growth rate in the first half of the year, matching…

A significant shift in market sentiment occurred on Thursday, as investors moved away from large-cap tech stocks and into other sectors. This change was triggered by a lower-than-expected inflation reading, which sparked a rally in small-cap stocks and a decline in tech shares. The Russell 2000 index saw a notable 3.6% increase, while the Nasdaq Composite fell 2%. Investors are now wondering if this shift marks a temporary correction or…

The US Consumer Price Index (CPI) came in lower than expected, which is likely to bolster the Federal Reserve's confidence that inflation is on a sustainable path to the 2% target. This has increased the likelihood of a rate cut in September to 81.3%. June's CPI report was notably soft, with headline inflation falling 0.1% month-on-month, contrary to the predicted rise of 0.1%. Core CPI increased by only 0.1% MoM,…

Microsoft stated it will relinquish its observer seat on the OpenAI board amidst regulatory concerns over generative AI in Europe and the U.S. Keith Dolliver, Microsoft's Deputy General Counsel, conveyed in a letter to OpenAI that the seat had been beneficial for insights without affecting board independence but was no longer needed due to the board's progress.