The Day at a Glance | July 4 2024

The Top

• The Federal Reserve published the meeting minutes corresponding to its June monetary policy decision, which highlighted that Fed officials acknowledged that the economy appears to be slowing down, although price pressures are easing.

• Most ECB officials are confident that inflation will continue to fall, although some felt uncomfortable with last month’s interest rate cut amidst a series of negative surprises, according to their meeting minutes. 

• This Thursday, parliamentary elections are being held in the United Kingdom; Keir Starmer’s Labour Party is expected to come to power.

• On Thursday, Hurricane Beryl moved towards the Cayman Islands and Mexico, after hitting Jamaica.

• Oil prices fell on Thursday, decreasing from several-month highs in the previous session.

• US markets are closed for Independence Day. 

Economic Environment

The Federal Reserve published the meeting minutes corresponding to its June monetary policy decision, which highlighted that Fed officials acknowledged that the economy appears to be slowing down, although price pressures are easing. The Federal Open Market Committee doesn´t believe it´s wise to cut the rate range until there is greater confidence that inflation will continue to move steadily toward the 2% target. It´s worth noting that Committee members discussed the economic environment´s uncertainty and the risks surrounding it, highlighting: 1) The vast majority of participants assessed that economic growth seemed to be gradually cooling, and most participants saidthat they considered the current policy stance to be restrictive; 2) officials noted that progress in reducing inflation had been slower this year than they expected last December, although they acknowledged that price pressures are easing; and 3) some participants emphasized the need to be patient before cutting rates, and several cited the potential need to raise rates further if inflation resurges. The US central bank will hold its next monetary policy meeting on July 31^st, and it´s expected to keep the federal funds rate range unchanged.

Markets and Companies

Global markets carry positive sentiment. Major US indices closed mixed yesterday. The Dow Jones fell -0.06% due to a nearly 1.7% drop in UnitedHealth. The S&P was up +0.51% and the Nasdaq +0.88% as Tesla and Nvidia recovered. Both indices hit new all-time highs during yesterday’s trading session and closed at record levels.

Today, US markets are closed due to Independence Day in the United States.

In Europe, the Euro Stoxx index is up +0.42%, with most sectors in the green. Banks rose +1.0%, while utilities fell -0.38%.

In Asia, the Nikkei 225 rose +0.82% to close at 40,913.65, surpassing the previous record high of 40,888.43 set in March this year. China closed slightly lower at 2,957 (-0.83%).

In Mexico, the IPC opened higher and stands at 52,806 points (+0.02%).

Oil prices fell after weaker-than-expected US employment and business activity data. Today, the price stands at $83.61 per barrel.

Meanwhile, gold is up +0.1% and stands at $2,358 per ounce. Silver is trading at $30.42 per ounce (-0.3%) and copper at $4.58 per pound (+1.1%). Lastly, cryptocurrenciesare up.

After yesterday´s trading session, the exchange rate fluctuated between a low of 18.09 and a high of 18.19.

Corporate News

• SoftBank Group shares hit another record, extending their winning streak to seven days, with a +4.53% increase.

• Japanese financial institutions, including major insurers Tokio Marine and Sompo, will sell cross-holdings of Honda worth 535 billion yen ($3.3 billion), according to a regulatory filing.