U.S. stocks moved higher Thursday, extending gains from the prior session, as Wall Street looked to round out the end of the year’s first quarter on a high note.
The S&P 500 (^GSPC) added 0.57% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) increased 0.43%. The technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) gained 0.73%.
“Right now, we are definitely benefiting from quarter-end window addressing,” Louis Navellier, chief investment officer at Navellier, wrote in a note to clients. “This is the time of year when professional managers make their portfolios extra pretty because of their client reviews in April. So they are basically selling their losers and adding to the ones that have strong sales and earnings.”
Bond yields were mixed. The yield on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury note ticked down to 3.54%. On the front end of the yield curve, two-year yields jumped to 4.1%. The dollar index was down to $102.
Meanwhile, in a key signal that volatility has stabilized, the VIX moved below 20, as traders bet the banking fallout is mostly in the rear view.
The S&P 500 closed up 1.4% on Wednesday, above the levels last seen before the Silicon Valley Bank fiasco. Real estate and tech were the top-performing sectors, while gold and oil moved lower. Treasury yields were mixed, while the Nasdaq 100 (^NDX), which tracks the 100 largest companies by market cap — excluding financial sector firms — officially entered a bull market.
Intel (INTC) surged Wednesday after the company announced that its new server chips will come sooner than anticipated. Shares rose another 2% Thursday.
Also on Wednesday, the Federal Reserve’s top banking regulator, Michael Barr, signaled that the central bank intends to maintain its stance in its “meeting-by-meeting judgment on rates” and that “incoming data” will continue to be analyzed. These comments were consistent with Chairman Jerome Powell’s recent remarks, which has driven market participants’ expectations for a May rate hike to be little changed.
WASHINGTON, DC – MARCH 28: Federal Reserve Board Vice Chair for Supervision Michael S. Barr (R) testifies before the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee March 28, 2023 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)
Bank sentiment hasn’t hit rebound mode yet, with the KBW Nasdaq Bank Index (^BKX), down over 19% this year.
Meanwhile, Fed officials defended the bank’s latest rate hike delivered last week. Boston Federal Reserve President Susan Collins said in a speech in Washington at the NABE Economic Policy Conference on Thursday that she is in support of another 0.25% interest rate hike amid persistent inflation in the wake of the recent banking turmoil.
Richmond Fed President Thomas Barkin echoed that sentiment, saying it was appropriate for interest rates to increase by 0.25%. However, Collins and Barkin are not currently voting members for the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), the group that decides on policy changes.
Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari said at a town-hall event Thursday in St. Paul, Minnesota, that there’s more work to do to bring inflation down to the bank’s its 2% goal, citing that the services economy is still an area of concern.
“Wage growth is still growing faster than what is consistent with our 2% inflation target; that tells me we still have more work to do to bring the services side of the economy back into balance … we know we have to get inflation down, and we will,” Kashkari said.
On the economic front, the number of people filing unemployment claims rose to 198,000, up 7,000 from the prior week ending March 25 and slightly above expectations of 196,000. Separately, the American economy expanded to an annualized rate of 2.6% in the fourth quarter of 2022, slightly down from earlier estimates of a 2.7% gain.
“The slight downward revision to Q4 GDP shows the economy ended 2022 with marginally less momentum,” Oren Klachkin, lead U.S. Economist at Oxford Economics, wrote following the release.
“Looking ahead, the economy will face the full brunt of tighter credit conditions and Fed policy this year, and inflation is set to stay above its historical trend. The recent banking sector turmoil will affect the economy mainly through tighter lending standards and a reduction in the availability of credit,” the economist added.
Charles Schwab Corporation (SCHW): Morgan Stanley analyst Michael Cyprys downgraded his buy-equivalent rating on Schwab for the first time since he started covering the brokerage firm over seven years ago. Shares slumped around 5%.
Alibaba Group Holding Limited (BABA): Executives at the company gave the latest update about the restructuring plans to split the business into six units. CEO Daniel Zhang told investors on Thursday “Alibaba will be more of the nature of an asset and capital operator than a business operator, in relation to the business group companies.”
Roku, Inc. (ROKU): The company announced a restructuring plan to lower operating expenses and prioritize projects that it believes will have a higher return on investment. The move led to eliminating 6% of its workforce. Shares fell 3.6%.
Bed Bath & Beyond (BBBY): The struggling retailer announced it would sell up to $300 million in shares as a rescue financing deal after reporting fourth quarter sales results, missing analysts expectations.
EVgo (EVGO): The electric-vehicle charging company posted better-than-expected fourth-quarter sales, notching up to $27.3 million, while Wall Street was expecting $20 million.
Mullen Automotive (MULN): The California-based EV startup filed a lawsuit against the news outlet dot.LA, accusing the author of article of printing “false and defamatory statements regarding Mullen, including false and defamatory statements regarding the terms of a settlement agreement of a civil action.”
Rivian Automotive, Inc. (RIVN): The stock gained as much as 9% during Wednesday’s trading session after Needham, an investment firm said it’s positive on the risk and reward going into the EV’s first quarter delivery data, which is potentially announced next week.
RH (RH): The luxury home furniture company missed its top and bottom line for its last quarter. RH CEO Gary Friedman blamed the Fed, inflation, the underperforming stock market, and banking crisis for poor quarterly results.
In the crypto market, Bitcoin (BTC-USD) has soared over 17% in the last two weeks, crossing $29,000 briefly on Thursday before retreating back to near $28,000 amid regulatory headwinds.
Dani Romero is a reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter @daniromerotv
TORONTO – Canada Goose Holdings Inc. says it has signed a deal that will result in the creation of its first eyewear collection.
The deal announced on Thursday by the Toronto-based luxury apparel company comes in the form of an exclusive, long-term global licensing agreement with Marchon Eyewear Inc.
The terms and value of the agreement were not disclosed, but Marchon produces eyewear for brands including Lacoste, Nike, Calvin Klein, Ferragamo, Longchamp and Zeiss.
Marchon plans to roll out both sunglasses and optical wear under the Canada Goose name next spring, starting in North America.
Canada Goose says the eyewear will be sold through optical retailers, department stores, Canada Goose shops and its website.
Canada Goose CEO Dani Reiss told The Canadian Press in August that he envisioned his company eventually expanding into eyewear and luggage.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
Almost seven years since news broke of an alleged conspiracy to fix the price of packaged bread across Canada, the saga isn’t over: the Competition Bureau continues to investigate the companies that may have been involved, and two class-action lawsuits continue to work their way through the courts.
Here’s a timeline of key events in the bread price-fixing case.
Oct. 31, 2017: The Competition Bureau says it’s investigating allegations of bread price-fixing and that it was granted search warrants in the case. Several grocers confirm they are co-operating in the probe.
Dec. 19, 2017: Loblaw and George Weston say they participated in an “industry-wide price-fixing arrangement” to raise the price of packaged bread. The companies say they have been co-operating in the Competition Bureau’s investigation since March 2015, when they self-reported to the bureau upon discovering anti-competitive behaviour, and are receiving immunity from prosecution. They announce they are offering $25 gift cards to customers amid the ongoing investigation into alleged bread price-fixing.
Jan. 31, 2018: In court documents, the Competition Bureau says at least $1.50 was added to the price of a loaf of bread between about 2001 and 2016.
Dec. 20, 2019: A class-action lawsuit in a Quebec court against multiple grocers and food companies is certified against a number of companies allegedly involved in bread price-fixing, including Loblaw, George Weston, Metro, Sobeys, Walmart Canada, Canada Bread and Giant Tiger (which have all denied involvement, except for Loblaw and George Weston, which later settled with the plaintiffs).
Dec. 31, 2021: A class-action lawsuit in an Ontario court covering all Canadian residents except those in Quebec who bought packaged bread from a company named in the suit is certified against roughly the same group of companies.
June 21, 2023: Bakery giant Canada Bread Co. is fined $50 million after pleading guilty to four counts of price-fixing under the Competition Act as part of the Competition Bureau’s ongoing investigation.
Oct. 25 2023: Canada Bread files a statement of defence in the Ontario class action denying participating in the alleged conspiracy and saying any anti-competitive behaviour it participated in was at the direction and to the benefit of its then-majority owner Maple Leaf Foods, which is not a defendant in the case (neither is its current owner Grupo Bimbo). Maple Leaf calls Canada Bread’s accusations “baseless.”
Dec. 20, 2023: Metro files new documents in the Ontario class action accusing Loblaw and its parent company George Weston of conspiring to implicate it in the alleged scheme, denying involvement. Sobeys has made a similar claim. The two companies deny the allegations.
July 25, 2024: Loblaw and George Weston say they agreed to pay a combined $500 million to settle both the Ontario and Quebec class-action lawsuits. Loblaw’s share of the settlement includes a $96-million credit for the gift cards it gave out years earlier.
Sept. 12, 2024: Canada Bread files new documents in Ontario court as part of the class action, claiming Maple Leaf used it as a “shield” to avoid liability in the alleged scheme. Maple Leaf was a majority shareholder of Canada Bread until 2014, and the company claims it’s liable for any price-fixing activity. Maple Leaf refutes the claims.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
Companies in this story: (TSX:L, TSX:MFI, TSX:MRU, TSX:EMP.A, TSX:WN)
TORONTO – TD Bank Group, which is mired in a money laundering scandal in the U.S., says chief executive Bharat Masrani will retire next year.
Masrani, who will retire officially on April 10, 2025, says the bank’s, “anti-money laundering challenges,” took place on his watch and he takes full responsibility.
The bank named Raymond Chun, TD’s group head, Canadian personal banking, as his successor.
As part of a transition plan, Chun will become chief operating officer on Nov. 1 before taking over the top job when Masrani steps down at the bank’s annual meeting next year.
TD also announced that Riaz Ahmed, group head, wholesale banking and president and CEO of TD Securities, will retire at the end of January 2025.
TD has taken billions in charges related to ongoing U.S. investigations into the failure of its anti-money laundering program.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
