Written Commentary
STOCK INDEX FUTURES
Stock index futures are lower as debt ceiling worries remain.
Retail sales in April increased 0.4% when up 0.7% was expected.
The 8:15 central time April industrial production report is anticipated to be unchanged and capacity utilization in April is predicted to be 79.8%.
The 9:00 central time March business inventories report is expected to show no change.
The 9:00 May housing market index is anticipated to be 45.
Debt ceiling worries are likely to limit gains in futures.
CURRENCY FUTURES
The euro zone economy grew marginally in the first quarter, matching preliminary estimates. Gross domestic product grew 0.1% from January to March. On a year-to-year basis, the region’s economy expanded 1.3%.
The ZEW Indicator of Economic Sentiment for the euro area fell into negative territory to -9.4 in May 2023, from 6.4 in the prior month and compared with market predictions of -1.0. This was the lowest reading since December 2022.
The U.K. unemployment rate edged higher to 3.9% in the three months to March, which is above the median forecast of 3.8%.
A private survey showed Australian consumer sentiment marked its sharpest decline in almost three years in early May. The Westpac-Melbourne Institute Consumer Sentiment index fell 7.9% in the first two weeks of May, falling much more than expectations for a decline of 1.7%. This was the index’s biggest drop since August 2020.
INTEREST RATE MARKET FUTURES
Futures are mostly lower due to hawkish comments from Federal Reserve officials.
Federal Reserve speakers today are Raphael Bostic at 7:55, John Williams at 11:15, Lorrie Logan at 2:15 and Raphael Bostic at 6:00.
The Federal Open Market Committee will probably keep its fed funds rate unchanged at its June 14 policy meeting.
The technicals and fundamentals remain supportive to futures.
Interested in more futures markets? Explore our Market Dashboards here.
Futures and options trading involve significant risk of loss and may not be suitable for everyone. Therefore, carefully consider whether such trading is suitable for you in light of your financial condition. The information and comments contained herein is provided by ADMIS and in no way should be construed to be information provided by ADM. The author of this report did not have a financial interest in any of the contracts discussed in this report at the time the report was prepared. The information provided is designed to assist in your analysis and evaluation of the futures and options markets. However, any decisions you may make to buy, sell or hold a futures or options position on such research are entirely your own and not in any way deemed to be endorsed by or attributed to ADMIS. Copyright ADM Investor Services, Inc.
