Written by Marc Ostwald, ADMISI’s Global Strategist & Chief Economist
A new month begins with holidays in UK Monday, and China and Japan Monday through Wednesday set to dampen trading volumes. The statistical schedule has a very familiar start of month look to it with PMIs and US Auto Sales dominating the start of the week, while the latter half of the week has US labour and Chinese Trade data as its highlights, with German Orders, Trade and Industrial Production, Japanese wages, Turkish CPI and the UN FAO World Food Price Index also due. The RBA and BoE meetings top the run of central bank meetings, though a further aggressive rate hike is seen in Brazil, while Turkey’s TCMB is expected to hold; Fed, ECB and BoE speakers are again very numerous. In the commodity space, weather reports will continue to be closely monitored in what is proving to be an acute La Nina disrupted year for grains, while Friday’s Chinese Imports data will be scoured for clues for the gamut of commodity and energy markets, along with the CNGOIC monthly report on Chinese Grains & Oilseeds. Another bumper week for corporate earnings in the US and around the world, with pharmaceuticals, oil and steel producers, and three major auto makers (BMW, GM and VW) perhaps attracting most attention along with another raft of financials. As Covid-19 vaccination rates pick up in Europe, the focus will increasingly turn to the timetables for easing activity restrictions, above all in Europe, but with India’s infection rate likely to remain tragically high, and the vaccination roll-out in many parts of the world still slow, the risk of more infectious mutation remain very high. Supply chain disruption reports continue to escalate, and are clearly putting pressure on prices, but also likely to blight output in a number of sectors in Q2 and more than likely Q3, that has been a clear message from producers and end users in corporate earnings.
In bullet points in data and central bank terms:
- PMI reporting will be a little haphazard due to holiday schedules, forecasts assume continued strength in Manufacturing, with divergent Services performance very much a function of looser or tighter activity restrictions. Input Prices and Supplier deliveries along with Employment are perhaps of greater importance than orders and output, and going forward supply bottlenecks may result in reduced output, even if this should ultimately prove to be transitory.
- Echoing the trend seen in weekly jobless claims and aided by easing leisure and entertainment restrictions, US Payrolls are expected to post another strong increase of up to 1.0 Mln, but an improvement in the U-6 Underemployment and Labour Force Participation rates would carry much greater weight with the Fed. As lower paid services jobs increase, this will bear down on average hourly earnings, with base effects adding to the downward pressure
- The Bank of England will hold rates at 0.1%, as will the RBA, but the BoE is expected to taper the pace of its Gilt purchases, the question is what it offers as guidance on further reductions. But the RBA will doubtless point to the record low Q1 core CPI rate as underlining the need for it to continue its QE at the current pace. It should be remembered that the Australian govt has already withdrawn a considerable volume of fiscal support, in contrast to the UK. That said, the RBA is also much more concerned about the level of the AUD.
- Chinese Trade data will continue to be noisy in headline terms, but the commodity imports data – above all grains, soybeans, oil and copper – will be highly sensitive. German trade data will be closely watched for the strength of demand from China and the US. Korea’s Trade data (1st May) is also expected to be robust, above all thanks to semiconductor, auto and pharmaceutical demand.
- Commodity prices, above all oil and copper which both faded at the end of the week, will likely be a key factor in terms of any re-emergent pressure on long-term yields.
- As a broader point, dismissing such pressures as being ‘just’ supply chain issues that will be resolved and throwing around glib statements about technology reasserting its downward pressure may prove to be a major error. When supply disruption meets spikes in demand in a world where many businesses (and people) are desperate to ‘get up and running at full capacity’ above all to make a dent in the debt mountain that has been accumulated in the past year could prompt a step shift in prices, even if this is overcome in 1-2 years.
Another busy week for corporate earnings Blo0mberg News suggests the following will be among the highlights;
- Cars/car services: BMW, Uber, Volkswagen, Lyft, Ferrari, GM and Avis Budget.
- Energy/commodity: Barrick Gold, Williams Cos., Marathon Petroleum, Enel, Nippon Steel, Aramco, ConocoPhillips and Cheniere Energy.
- Entertainment/travel: Liberty Media, Air France-KLM, Hilton, Peloton, Hyatt Hotels, Activision Blizzard, Japan Airlines, Air Canada, DraftKings, Warner Music Group, Adidas and Fox.
- Financial: Berkshire Hathaway, AIG, Banco do Brasil, Sun Life, Allstate, KKR, MetLife, Itau Unibanco, Societe Generale, UniCredit, National Australia Bank, ING Groep, Credit Agricole, Vornado Realty Trust and Apollo Global Management.
- Food/drink: Bunge, Anheuser-Busch InBev, Ambev, Beyond Meat, Budweiser, Kellogg and Shake Shack.
- Technology/pharmaceuticals: Siemens, Nintendo, GoDaddy, Infineon, Wayfair, Square, PayPal, Moderna, Regeneron, Pfizer, Novo Nordisk, T-Mobile US and CVS Health.
To view the full report and to sign up for daily market commentary please email admisi@admisi.com
The information within this publication has been compiled for general purposes only. Although every attempt has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information, ADM Investor Services International Limited (ADMISI) assumes no responsibility for any errors or omissions and will not update it. The views in this publication reflect solely those of the authors and not necessarily those of ADMISI or its affiliated institutions. This publication and information herein should not be considered investment advice nor an offer to sell or an invitation to invest in any products mentioned by ADMISI.
Risk Warning: Investments in Equities, Contracts for Difference (CFDs) in any instrument, Futures, Options, Derivatives and Foreign Exchange can fluctuate in value. Investors should therefore be aware that they may not realise the initial amount invested and may incur additional liabilities. These investments may be subject to above average financial risk of loss. Investors should consider their financial circumstances, investment experience and if it is appropriate to invest. If necessary, seek independent financial advice.
ADM Investor Services International Limited, registered in England No. 2547805, is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority [FRN 148474] and is a member of the London Stock Exchange. Registered office: 3rd Floor, The Minster Building, 21 Mincing Lane, London EC3R 7AG.
A subsidiary of Archer Daniels Midland Company.
© 2021 ADM Investor Services International Limited.
Risk Warning: Investments in Equities, Contracts for Difference (CFDs) in any instrument, Futures, Options, Derivatives and Foreign Exchange can fluctuate in value. Investors should therefore be aware that they may not realise the initial amount invested and may incur additional liabilities. These investments may be subject to above average financial risk of loss. Investors should consider their financial circumstances, investment experience and if it is appropriate to invest. If necessary, seek independent financial advice.
ADM Investor Services International Limited, registered in England No. 2547805, is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority [FRN 148474] and is a member of the London Stock Exchange. Registered office: 3rd Floor, The Minster Building, 21 Mincing Lane, London EC3R 7AG.
A subsidiary of Archer Daniels Midland Company.
© 2021 ADM Investor Services International Limited.
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.