Posts

Jobs Report Preview

/in , /by

What’s in Today’s Report:

  • Jobs Report Preview
  • ADP Employment and ISM Services PMI Takeaways
  • Oil Update – Prices Resilient Despite Three Bearish Catalysts

Futures are little changed as global traders digest yesterday’s soft U.S. economic data after a mostly quiet night of news.

Economically, China’s Services PMI rose from 50.7 to 51.1, meeting estimates while Eurozone PPI favorably cooled to 0.7% from 1.9%.

Looking into today’s session, there are several economic reports to watch including International Trade in Goods (E: $-118.1B), Jobless Claims (E: 235K), and Productivity & Costs (E: -0.8%, 5.7%). However, with the May Jobs Report looming large tomorrow, it will take a significant surprise in one of these reports to materially move markets.

There are also multiple Fed speakers again today including Kugler (12:00 p.m. ET), Harker (1:30 p.m. ET), and Schmid (1:30 p.m. ET). Any dovish commentary regarding yesterday’s soft economic data is likely to be well received, supporting both stocks and bonds.

Finally, there are a handful of late-season earnings releases this afternoon: AVGO ($1.35), LULU ($2.59), DOCU ($0.25), BF.B ($0.36), and WOOF ($-0.05). AVGO is particularly in focus as an increasingly important semiconductor manufacturer and its quarterly results could move the broader tech space on a material beat/miss.

New ETFs for Your Watchlist

/in , /by

What’s in Today’s Report:

  • New ETFs for Your Watchlist
  • JOLTS Data Takeaways – A Rise in Job Openings Signals Resilient Labor Market

Stock futures have reversed from overnight losses to trade with moderate gains in the pre-market largely thanks to upbeat composite PMI data in Europe.

Economically, the Eurozone’s Final Composite PMI came in at 50.2 vs. (E) 49.5 mostly due to a better than expected Services Index component which firmed to 49.7 vs. the Flash print of 48.9.

Today, there are two more noteworthy domestic economic releases due to be released; the May ADP Employment Report (E: 110K) ahead of the open, and the ISM Services PMI (E: 52.0) shortly after the bell. Investors will be looking for more evidence of labor market resilience in the ADP release and evidence of strong consumer spending and preferably cooling inflation pressures in the ISM data.

There are two more Fed officials speaking today: Bostic & Cook (8:30 a.m. ET) but the narrative has not materially changed since the May Fed meeting and isn’t expected to as the Fed is set to remain data-dependent for the foreseeable future.

Finally, there are a few more noteworthy earnings releases today that could impact markets including DLTR ($1.19), FIVE ($0.83), and PVH ($2.23). As retail and consumer focused brands, any mention of weakness in consumer spending trends could pour cold water on the early June rally.

Hard Landing/Soft Landing Scoreboard: May Update

/in , /by

What’s in Today’s Report:

  • Hard Landing/Soft Landing Scoreboard: Hard Data Still (Mostly) Hanging in There
  • ISM Manufacturing Index Takeaways

Futures sold off overnight as a notably weak Chinese factory report offset a favorably cooler-than-anticipated EU CPI print.

China’s May Manufacturing PMI fell to 48.3 vs. (E) 50.7 while EU Core CPI encouragingly fell from 2.7% to 2.3% vs. (E) 2.5% last month.

Looking ahead to today’s session, there are a few noteworthy economic reports including Motor Vehicle Sales (E: 16.4M), Factory Orders (E: -3.0%),  and JOLTS (E: 7.1 million). The market could be particularly sensitive to a soft Job Openings print as a drop below 7 million could stoke worries about the health of the labor market ahead of Friday’s May jobs report.

Additionally, there are a handful of Fed speakers but unless any of them deviate from the “wait-and-see” narrative of late, their market impact should be limited. Speakers today include Goolsbee (12:45 p.m. ET), Cook (1:00 p.m. ET), and Logan (3:30 p.m. ET).

Finally, some late season earnings continue to trickle in with DG ($1.47), NIO ($-0.22), CRWD ($-0.28), and HPE ($0.28) all reporting Q1 results today.

With the ISM Services (tomorrow) and BLS jobs report (Friday) still looming large, today should be a relatively quiet day for markets as traders digest the big May rally however risks of profit taking exist if a negative headline crosses the wires.

Volatility Update

/in , /by

What’s in Today’s Report:

  • Volatility Update

Futures are slightly lower following a mostly quiet night of news ahead of the holiday weekend.

Politically, the Supreme Court issued a ruling overnight that implies the President does not have the authority to fire the Fed Chair and this is a general positive for markets (it mostly removes Trump firing Powell as a threat).

Economically, data was better than expected as UK retail sales and German GDP both beat estimates.

Today focus will be on New Home Sales (E: 700K) and there is one Fed speaker, Cook (12:00 p.m. ET).  But, given the looming holiday weekend, expect trading to be quiet barring any surprises.

What Is the “Big, Beautiful Bill” and Why Is It Impacting Markets?

/in , /by

What’s in Today’s Report:

  • What Is the “Big, Beautiful Bill” and Why Is It Impacting Markets?

Futures are slightly higher as markets digest Wednesday’s yield driven selloff.

Economically, EU and UK flash PMIs disappointed.  The EU flash PMI badly missed expectations (49.5 vs. (E) 50.9) while the UK reading was a slight miss (49.4 vs. (E) 49.5).

Today focus will be on economic data as well as political progress.  Economically, the key reports today are the May Flash Manufacturing PMI (E: 49.8) and Flash Services PMI (E: 50.6) as well as Jobless Claims (E: 230K).  As has been the case, the stronger those numbers, the better as they will continue to push back on stagflation fears.  There is also one Fed speaker, Williams at 2:00 p.m. ET, but he’s unlikely to move markets.

Finally, on the political front, the deficit implications of the “Big Beautiful Bill” are pushing Treasury yields higher and if the bill advances out of the House and is viewed as deficit negative, it will send yields higher again and pressure stocks.

The valuation is flawed by earnings per share

/in , /by

The valuation is flawed by earnings per share: Sevens Report Co-Editor, Tyler Richey Quoted in S&P Global

S&P 500 valuations stumble on tariff uncertainty

While the forward P/E ratio is widely viewed as the best measure of a stock or index’s fair value, the valuation is flawed by earnings per share and assumptions of fair market multiples from Wall Street analysts, portfolio managers and strategists, said Tyler Richey, a co-editor with Sevens Report Research.

“So effectively, both sets of proverbial goal posts are constantly being moved amid earnings estimate revisions and shifting geopolitical and macroeconomic landscapes impacting multiples,” Richey said. “Specifically, when volatility picks up meaningfully, it is very challenging to recalculate multiples based on fluid fundamental changes impacting the markets.”

Also, click here to view the full article featured in S&P Global, published on May 20th, 2025. However, to see the Sevens Report’s full comments on the current market environment sign up here.

If you want research that comes with no long term commitment, yet provides independent, value added, plain English analysis of complex macro topics, then begin your Sevens Report subscription today by clicking here.

To strengthen your market knowledge take a free trial of The Sevens Report.

Join hundreds of advisors from huge brokerage firms like Morgan Stanley, Merrill Lynch, Wells Fargo Advisors, Raymond James, and more! To start your quarterly subscription and see how The Sevens Report can help you grow your business, click here.

What the Moody’s Downgrade Means for Markets (Two Important Charts)

/in , /by

What’s in Today’s Report:

  • What the Moody’s Downgrade Means for Markets
  • Two Important Charts: Interest Expense and Deficits

Futures are modestly lower this morning as the S&P 500’s six-day rally is being digested amid a steadying Treasury market after the Moody’s downgrade of the U.S. last week.

There were positive trade war headlines out of Japan, Vietnam, and India overnight helping global stocks rally while economically, German PPI favorably fell -0.9% vs. (E) -0.5%.

Looking into today’s session, there are no notable economic reports in the U.S., however the Treasury will hold a 6-week Bill auction at 11:30 a.m. ET which could shed light on the market’s near-term Fed policy expectations, but barring any big surprise, the auction is not likely to move markets.

There are a handful of Fed speakers today including: Barkin & Bostic just ahead of the bell (9:00 a.m. ET), and Musalem in the early afternoon (1:00 p.m. ET). A “higher-for-longer” shift in Fed policy outlook has been priced in recently, so any dovish commentary out of the Fed officials would be well received.

Finally, some late season earnings will continue to be released today including: HD ($3.59), PANW ($0.41), TOL ($2.86).

Are Markets Giving An “All Clear” Signal?

/in , /by

What’s in Today’s Report:

  • Are Markets Giving An “All Clear” Signal?
  • Weekly Market Preview:  Can This Rebound Hold?
  • Weekly Economic Cheat Sheet:  The First National Numbers for May (This Thursday)

Futures are lower (down more than 1%) following the Moody’s downgrade of U.S. debt Friday afternoon.

The Moody’s downgrade wasn’t dramatic news (S&P and Fitch downgraded U.S. debt years ago) but it is pushing the 10 year yield higher and that’s weighing on futures.

Economically, Chinese economic data underwhelmed (Retail Sales and Industrial Production missed estimates).

Today focus will be on economic data and Fed speak.  Economically, Leading Indicators (E: -0.7%) is the most notable report while we have several Feds speakers including: Williams & Bostic (8:30 a.m. ET), Jefferson (9:45 a.m. ET) and Logan (1:15 p.m. ET).  If they echo Powell from last week and are somewhat dismissive of near-term rate cuts, that could add to the headwinds on stocks today.

Understanding the New Bullish Argument

/in , /by

What’s in Today’s Report:

  • Understanding the New Bullish Argument

Futures are moderately weaker on digestion of the recent rally following a mostly quiet night of news.

There were no notable trade headlines overnight but President Trump did say they were “close” to a nuclear deal with Iran and that is pressuring oil (down 3%). Today there is a lot of potentially important economic data including, in order of importance:   Retail Sales (E: 0.1%), Jobless Claims (E: 229K), PPI (E: 0.2% m/m, 2.4% y/y), Philly Fed (E: -10.0) and Empire Manufacturing (-7.5).  Put simply, the stronger the growth data the better for stocks (pushes back against recession fears) and the lower the PPI reading, the better for stocks (pushes back against inflation fears).

There are two Fed speakers today including Powell (8:40 a.m. ET) and Barr (2:05 p.m. ET) but they commentary is expected to focus on regulation so it shouldn’t move markets.

Finally, there are some notable retail earnings to watch today: WMT ($0.57), BABA ($1.48), DE ($5.68).

Tom Essaye, editor of the Sevens Report, Interviewed on Yahoo Finance.

/in , /by

Tom Essaye, editor of the Sevens Report, Interviewed on Yahoo Finance.

Rate cut hopes are rising but the data says otherwise

On this week’s Trader Talk, host Kenny Polcari is joined by macro analyst Tom Essaye of Sevens Report Research to break down what’s happening with the Federal Reserve, Trump’s economic reset, and how investors should think about hard versus soft data. With markets clinging to rate cut hopes, Essaye warns that traders may be misreading the Fed’s signals—and underestimating the disruption Trump’s trade overhaul could cause. Together, they explore why investors must separate emotion from strategy and resist the urge to bet on a narrative rather than the numbers.

Trader Talk Interview 5.8.25

Also, click here to view the full interview featured on Yahoo Finance published on May 8th, 2025. However, to see the Sevens Report’s full comments on the current market environment sign up here.

If you want research that comes with no long term commitment, yet provides independent, value added, plain English analysis of complex macro topics, then begin your Sevens Report subscription today by clicking here.

To strengthen your market knowledge take a free trial of The Sevens Report.

Join hundreds of advisors from huge brokerage firms like Morgan Stanley, Merrill Lynch, Wells Fargo Advisors, Raymond James, and more! To start your quarterly subscription and see how The Sevens Report can help you grow your business, click here.