S&P500
The US stocks closed higher on Wednesday, extending recent uptrend. The S&P 500 and the NASDAQ climbed to fresh record highs. The US indices closed on Wednesday as follows: Dow +0.1%, S&P 500 +0.2%, NASDAQ +0.15%.
China's stock market indices fall by 1.3% this morning. Japanese stock market indices changed little.
Commodity market. Oil prices weighed down by 0.5% on Thursday. However, Brent crude ended at $71.90 per barrel. Oil futures for November settled at $70.90 a barrel.
COVID in the world. Delta Air Lines plans to charge workers who refuse to get a COVID-19 vaccination an extra $200 per month for their health care insurance. U.S. regulators plan to approve booster shots for fully vaccinated people six months after a second dose. The country's top health officials announced last week that they recommend getting a booster shot eight months after the second dose. Yesterday, the number of average daily COVID-19 cases of in the world increased by 718 K. A sharp increase was also registered in the US (+171 K), France (+24 K), and Britain (+36 K). However, the number of deaths in the US yesterday was less than 1% of new cases (+1200).
S&P 500: 4,496. Trading range: 4,450-4,510. Orders for durable goods post strong gain in July. Excluding transportation, they gained 0.7%, which is two times higher than expected. The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, increased 1.6%. Crude inventories fell by 3 million barrels in the week, amid increasing demand. Gasoline stockpiles declined by 2.2 million barrels.
According to Reuters, global corporate profits in the third quarter are likely to fall 8%. Massive fiscal stimulus to support economic recovery and loosened pandemic curbs helped boost the combined net profits of 2,542 global companies with market capitalisation of at least $1 billion to a record $734 billion in the second quarter. Profits are estimated to fall on average to $678.2 billion in the third quarter. According to the forecast, the decline will primarily affect the US and China. The dynamics of corporate profits mean a lot, as large investors revise their portfolios based on it. A sharp decline in corporate profits leads to sales in the stock market.
Wall Street Journal: The Taliban's seizure of power in Afghanistan is a big profit for Iran. Iran will restart fuel exports to Afghanistan and the Taliban will pay off Iran with the dollars received for drug exports.
USDX: 92.80. Trading range: 92.50–93.10. The dollar is in a range. It is quite possible that this will last until the Fed meeting at the end of September. The US inflation report could change the overall picture. It will be published on Friday.
USDCAD: 1.2620. Trading range: 1.2580–1.2680. USD/CAD left unchanged amid rising oil prices. Perhaps the situation will change if oil futures continue to rally.
Conclusion. The market is calm. Traders are waiting for the report on employment and inflation in the US.
