• US stock market, economy and companies update (June 19, 2015)

    The final act in the Greece bailout drama is about to get under way, as all signs point toward default as soon as Monday. There was a momentary lapse of optimism that sent European stocks to their highs, however most of the gains evaporated as more realistic assessments hit the tape. The 10-year UST yield has fallen six basis points to a week low of 2.272%, while the 10-year bund yield is down 5.5 basis points to 0.750%. As of writing, the DJIA is down 0.24%, the S&P500 is off 0.12% and the Nasdaq is down 0.15%.

    The San Francisco Fed's John Williams was the first Fed official to speak publically after Wednesday's decision. The dovish Williams said a rate increase by the end of 2015 is still likely, as rates need to rise before there is evidence of an inflation flare up. He reiterated that US inflation would reach the 2% target by the end of 2016.

    Shares of Hershey are down 3% this morning after the firm trimmed its FY guidance due to its slowing China business. The firm warned growth in China was below expectations in April and May, due to slowing demand and increased competitive activity, even as accelerated momentum of e-commerce and online purchases are impacting results and prolonging trade inventory destocking.

    In earnings, KB Homes saw very good growth as both earnings and revenue beat expectations. KBH's backlog grew by nearly 60% y/y, while orders were up 38% y/y. Shares of NVR gained 6% in sympathy, HOV gained 4%, while LEN and DRI both gained around 3%. Carmax dropped a few points after the firm's revenue missed expectations.

    Activist hedge fund Jana Partners took a 7.2% stake in ConAgra Foods and said it was prepared to nominate directors to the company's board to help address "persistent underperformance" since the acquisition of RalCorp. Jana's stake makes it the second-largest shareholder, and it claims ConAgra's shares are undervalued.

    ***Looking Ahead***
    - 12:00 (US) Fed's Mester Speaks at Fed Policy Summit in Pittsburgh
    - 13:00 (US) Baker Hughes Rig Count


    ***Economic data***
    - (BR) Brazil Apr Economic Activity Index (Monthly GDP): M/M: -0.8% v -0.4%e; Y/Y: -3.1% v -2.5%e
    - (IN) India Weekly Forex Reserves w/e Jun 12th: $354.3B v $352.7B prior
    - (BR) Brazil Jun IBGE Inflation IPCA-15 M/M: 1.0% v 0.9%e; Y/Y: 8.8% v 8.6%e
    - (CA) Canada May CPI M/M: 0.6% v 0.5%e; Y/Y: 0.9% v 0.8%e; Consumer Price Index: 126.9 v 126.8e
    - (CA) Canada May CPI Core M/M: 0.4% v 0.3%e; Y/Y: 2.2% v 2.1%e
    - (CA) Canada May CPI (Seasonally Adj) M/M: % v 0.3%e; CPI Core (Seasonally Adj) M/M: % v 0.2%e
    - (BE) Belgium Jun Consumer Confidence Index: -2 v -3 prior
    - (MX) Mexico Q1 Aggregate Supply and Demand: +3.5% v 2.9%e
    - (RU) Russia May PPI M/M: -1.2% v 1.5%e; Y/Y: 13.4% v 16.2%e

    [I]Contributed by Trade The News[/I]
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