Yellen and Stimulus Expectations

What’s in Today’s Report:

  • Is Yellen as Treasury Secretary Another Bullish Tailwind?
  • Great (Stimulus) Expectations
  • Gold Breakdown

 

U.S. equity futures are trading higher this morning after President Trump instructed his administration to begin working with Biden’s transition team, easing concerns of a drawn-out, contested election.

Economically, German data was mixed with GDP beating estimates but the Ifo Survey came in light causing some mild underperformance in the DAX today.

On the calendar today, there are few economic releases to watch: Case-Shiller House Price Index (E: 0.6%), FHFA House Price Index (E: 0.7%), and Consumer Confidence (E: 98.0) with the latter having the greatest potential impact on stocks.

There are also several Fed speakers today: Bullard (11:00 a.m. ET), Williams (12:00 p.m. ET) and Clarida (12:45 p.m. ET) but the very dovish tone has been very consistent recently and none of the speakers should materially move markets.

Given the calendar and the expected drop of in attendance/volumes ahead of Thanksgiving, today is expected to be fairly quiet with focus remaining on vaccine developments, stimulus outlook, and COVID-19/lockdown news.