OPENING CALL
Stock futures fell on Friday but remained on track to finish the Christmas week higher, with investors expecting markets will remain relatively composed through to the end of 2024.
Markets have now entered the 'Santa Claus rally' period in which the S&P 500 index has, on average, posted gains of 1.3% in the period running from Dec. 24 to Jan. 3 in the years since 1950.
Watch For:
Advance Economic Indicators Report; Weekly Export Sales; EIA Weekly Petroleum Status Report
Today's Headlines/Must Reads:
-The Fed Is Trying-Again-to Size Up Trump
-What the Record Wave of New 65-Year-Olds Means for Wall Street
-A Razor-Thin House Majority Creates Headaches for Republicans
MARKET WRAPS
Forex:
The dollar was steady in a low liquidity environment, with many traders still on a break for the festive period .
The euro edged lower on rising concerns about the challenges the newly formed French government faces in tackling the ballooning budget deficit, Swissquote Bank said. The government will probably remain divided and is unlikely to approve a reasonable budget proposal to lower the budget deficit.
"Deficits that spiral higher are generally not great news for the euro as the French-German 10-year spread is preparing to close the year near 80 basis points-the highest since the European sovereign debt crisis a decade ago."
Bitcoin continued its retracement from recent record highs on profit taking and ahead of the expiry Friday of a substantial quantity of cryptocurrency options contracts, one of the biggest such events in the history of digital assets, FalconX said.
Energy:
Oil gained on market optimism around a recovery in demand for crude from China, with government support measures expected to crystallize over 2025, XS.com said.
The latest measure was the approval of a $3 trillion treasury bond offering next year, following monetary-support packages and social-system restructuring discussions, XS.com said. Conversely, the potential re-ignition of U.S.-China trade wars could drag crude demand and prices down.
A geopolitical risk premium from simmering Middle East tensions currently benefiting oil prices will likely dissipate over time, and market focus should remain on the Chinese economic recovery and the pickup in global crude demand, XS.com said.
Metals:
Gold futures were weaker but remained broadly flat over the week, with safe-haven demand on simmering geopolitical tensions countered by a more hawkish Federal Reserve.
TODAY'S TOP HEADLINES
The Epic Mess at TGI Fridays
This fall, the TGI Fridays chief financial officer, operations chief, general counsel and head of procurement quit.
"We can no longer, in good faith, continue to be employed by the company and risk our own personal liability for the company's further operations and obligations," the four executives wrote in a letter to the board, a copy of which was viewed by The Wall Street Journal.
Railroad Labor Deals Are Messy. One CEO Is Throwing Out the Playbook.
It took three years for freight railroads and unions to agree on their last labor deal, which was reached in late 2022 only after Congress and the White House stepped in to block a national strike. That contract lapses in a few days.
CSX Chief Executive Joe Hinrichs broke from his peers in 2024 to avert another dragged out negotiation-during which workers went years without raises and bosses were reprimanded by regulators about poor service.
Suntory Prepares for Tariff Wars Ahead of Trump's Return
TOKYO-The Japanese maker of Jim Beam bourbon whiskey is preparing for rising risk of global trade wars by stockpiling in Europe, considering importing more U.K. scotch into the region and changing its sales focus in the U.S.
That, Suntory says, could shield it from the worst effects of higher tariffs in Europe in coming months and potential retaliatory reactions in some of the company's key markets around the world.
Netflix Christmas Games Set New NFL Streaming Record
Netflix's NFL debut set a new streaming record for the league, with an average audience of more than 24 million people in the U.S. watching each of the two Christmas Day games, according to preliminary Nielsen data.
The Kansas City Chiefs' victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers averaged 24.1 million viewers, while an average of 24.3 million people watched the Baltimore Ravens defeat the Houston Texans, a game that featured a Beyoncé performance at halftime.
Bank of Japan Inching Toward Rate Hike, Summary of Opinions Suggests
TOKYO-A summary of opinions from the Bank of Japan's December meeting suggests that the next interest-rate hike is approaching, with policymakers assessing that the economy and inflation are moving in line with its projections.
"The bank will likely decide to raise the policy interest rate in the near future, but at this point it is necessary for the bank to be patient and monitor the uncertainties over the U.S. economy until those uncertainties subside," one of the nine policy board members said at the meeting held on Dec. 18 and 19.
XRP Price Falls Along With Other Altcoins. Why It Will Still Be a Great Year for Cryptos.
XRP price fell early Friday joined by most of the other altcoins that were also trading lower.
The cryptocurrency is down 0.8% to $2.18 over the last 24 hours, according to CoinDesk data. It's down about 5% since the start of the week.
Mexico Worries Trump Will Order Strikes Against Drug Cartels
MEXICO CITY-The once-unthinkable prospect of U.S. military action on Mexican soil is dominating the political conversation in Mexico as the country braces for President-elect Donald Trump's second term.
With Trump and his allies this year floating the use of American military force against Mexico's drug cartels, Mexican officials have tried to learn whether he is serious or merely blustering to gain leverage in talks about shutting down the pipeline of migrants and drugs heading into the U.S. Mexico's new president, Claudia Sheinbaum, has rushed to blunt criticism from Trump's orbit and put to rest worries at home that there is any danger from the country's neighbor to the north.
Write to paul.larkins@dowjones.com TODAY IN CANADA
Earnings:
None scheduled
Economic Calendar [ET]:
Nothing major scheduled
Expected Major Events for Friday
01:00/JPN: Nov Steel Imports & Exports Statistics
04:30/JPN: Nov Preliminary Report on Petroleum Statistics
06:00/RUS: Dec Russian Manufacturing PMI
13:30/US: Nov Advance Economic Indicators Report
13:30/US: 3Q U.S. International Investment Position
13:30/US: U.S. Weekly Export Sales
15:30/US: 12/20 EIA Weekly Natural Gas Storage Report
18:00/US: 12/20 EIA Weekly Petroleum Status Report
All times in GMT. Powered by Kantar Media and Dow Jones.
Expected Earnings for Friday
Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment Inc $(CSSEQ)$ is expected to report $0.02 for 2Q.
EBET Inc $(EBET)$ is expected to report for 3Q.
Molecular Templates Inc (MTEM) is expected to report $-0.27 for 3Q.
NexImmune Inc (NEXI) is expected to report for 3Q.
North European Oil Royalty Trust $(NRT)$ is expected to report for 4Q.
Outlook Therapeutics Inc $(OTLK)$ is expected to report for 4Q.
Scully Royalty Ltd $(SRL.AU)$ is expected to report for Interim.
SigmaTron International Inc $(SGMA)$ is expected to report for 2Q.
Powered by Kantar Media and Dow Jones.
ANALYST RATINGS ACTIONS
Brookline Bancorp Cut to Market Perform From Outperform by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods
EverQuote Raised to Strong Buy From Outperform by Raymond James
Hagerty Cut to Underperform From Market Perform by Raymond James
Progressive Raised to Outperform From Market Perform by Raymond James
Rapt Therapeutics Raised to Buy From Neutral by HC Wainwright & Co.
This article is a text version of a Wall Street Journal newsletter published earlier today.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
December 27, 2024 06:05 ET (11:05 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2024 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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