Seven Macro Catalysts

What’s in Today’s Report:

  • Seven “If’s” That Will Move This Market

Money flows are decidedly risk-on this morning thanks to renewed optimism about U.S.–China trade negotiations after an otherwise very quiet weekend.

Late yesterday, President Trump officially delayed the March 1st tariff deadline sending US stock futures up 10-15 points at the electronic open and shares in mainland China up over 5%.

There were no notable economic reports or other market moving catalysts overnight.

Looking into today’s Wall Street session, there are two economic reports due out this morning: Chicago Fed National Activity Index (E: 0.13) and Dallas Fed Manufacturing Survey (E: 3.0). These two releases are not usually watched closely by investors but they were especially bad in late 2019 and contributed to the heavy selling in December, so if they “whiff” again, we could see stocks come for sale.

There are no Fed officials scheduled to speak today which will leave the market primarily focused on any new developments or details regarding trade negotiations with China. Note that the March 1st deadline was delayed indefinitely and there were no other material developments regarding trade over the weekend so investors will be looking for any further indication on the next steps towards a deal.