Saturday, 10 September 2016

Friday, 9 September 2016

Global Markets & News-The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

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9 September 2016

OVERNIGHT MARKETS AND NEWS

Sep E-mini S&Ps (ESU16 -0.30%) are down -0.25% and European stocks are down -0.33% on concern that global central banks may have lost their desire for further stimulus measures after the ECB on Thursday refrained from expanding QE. European stocks were also under pressure on growth concerns in Germany, Europe's largest economy, after German Jul exports unexpectedly fell by the most in 11 months and Jul imports unexpectedly declined. Asian stocks settled mostly lower: Japan +0.04%, Hong Kong +0.75%, China -0.55%, Taiwan -1.06%, Australia -0.86%, Singapore -0.73%, South Korea -1.36%, India -0.85%. South Korea's Kospi Index fell closed down over 1% after North Korea conducted a nuclear test that South Korean President Park Geun Hye called an act of "maniacal recklessness."
The dollar index (DXY00 -0.04%) is up +0.02%. EUR/USD (^EURUSD) is up +0.03%. USD/JPY (^USDJPY) is up +0.19%.

Dec T-note prices (ZNZ16 -0.10%) are down -3 ticks.

The German Jul trade balance shrank to a surplus of +19.5 billion euros, narrower than expectations of +23.7 billion euros and the smallest surplus in 6 months. Jul exports unexpectedly fell -2.6% m/m, weaker than of +0.4% m/m and the biggest decline in 11 months. Jul imports unexpectedly fell -0.7%m/m, weaker than expectations of +0.5% m/m.

China Aug CPI rose +1.3% y/y, weaker than expectations of +1.7% y/y and the smallest pace of increase 10 months. Aug PPI fell -0.8% y/y, stronger than expectations of -0.9% y/y and the smallest pace of decline in 4-1/3 years. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

U.S. STOCK PREVIEW

Key U.S. news today includes: (1) Boston Fed President Eric Rosengren (voter) speaks at the South Shore Chamber Breakfast, (2) Dallas Fed President Robert Kaplan (non-voter) takes part in a moderated Q&A session at a Mission Capital conference in Austin, TX, (3) revised Jul wholesale inventories (expected +0.1% m/m, prelim Jul unch m/m) and Jul wholesale trade sales (expected +0.2%, Jun +1.9% m/m), and (4) USDA weekly Export Sales.

Russell 1000 companies that report earnings today: Kroger (consensus $0.45).
U.S. IPO's scheduled to price today: none.

Equity conferences today include: none. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

OVERNIGHT U.S. STOCK MOVERS

JPMorgan Chase (JPM +0.13%) was downgraded to 'Neutral' from 'Outperform' at Macquarie.

Advanced Micro Devices (AMD -9.06%) lost almost 2% in pre-market trading after pricing a public offering of $600 million worth of common stock.
Harley-Davidson (HOG -0.63%) was rated a new 'Outperform' at Bernstein with a 12-month target price of $64.

Chesapeake Energy (CHK +13.66%) was upgraded to 'Buy' from 'Hold' at Wunderlich Securities.

El Pollo Loco Holdings (LOCO -1.74%) climbed 6% in after-hours trading after it was announced that it will replace American Science & Engineering in the SmallCap 600 Index after the close of trading Monday, September 12.

Finisar (FNSR -1.78%) jumped over 12% in after-hours trading after it reported Q1 adjusted EPS of 38 cents, higher than consensus of 30 cents, and then said it sees Q2 adjusted EPS of 44 cents-50 cents, above consensus of 32 cents.
Oclaro (OCLR -1.30%) rose nearly 5% in after-hours trading after Finisar's Q2 EPS view was well above expectations.

Restoration Hardware Holdings (RH +1.18%) gained 13% in pre-market trading after it reported Q2 adjusted EPS of 44 cents, well above consensus of 29 cents.
Zumiez (ZUMZ unch) rallied 5% in after-hours trading after it reported a Q2 loss of -3 cents a share, better than consensus for an -8 cent loss, and said it sees Q3 sales of $209 million-$213 million, above consensus of $206.6 million.

Swift Transportation (SWFT +0.61%) jumped over 6% in after-hours trading after CEO Jerry Moyes said he will retire effective Dec 31 and current COO and President Richard Stocking will replace him as CEO.

Williams Cos. (WMB +2.67%) slid 3% in after-hours trading after Enterprise Products said it is withdrawing interest in a takeover of Williams. Enterprise Products (EPD +0.52%) rose nearly 2% in after-hours trading after the statement.
MGM Holdings (MGMB +2.94%) rose nearly 3% in after-hours trading after it said it still sees adjusted Ebitda margin of 30% this year, above the 25% from 2015.
Vince Holding (VNCE -3.28%) dropped over 7% in after-hours trading after it reported Q2 revenue of $60.7 million, below consensus of $64.1 million.

Xactly (XTLY +0.95%) fell over 3% in after-hours trading after it said it sees Q3 revenue of $23.3 million-$24.1 billion, at the low end of expectations of $24.0 million.
Lantheus Holdings (LNTH -0.94%) tumbled over 11% in after-hours trading after it announced a public offering of 5.2 million shares of common stock. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

MARKET COMMENTS

Sep E-mini S&Ps (ESU16 -0.30%) this morning are down -5.50 points (-0.25%). Thursday's closes: S&P 500 -0.22%, Dow Jones -0.25%, Nasdaq-0.58%. The S&P 500 on Thursday closed lower on disappointment that the ECB did not expand stimulus measures at its policy meeting. Stocks recovered from their worst levels as energy producer stocks rallied after crude oil surged +4.66% to a 1-week high.
Dec 10-year T-notes (ZNZ16 -0.10%) this morning are down -3 ticks. Thursday's closes: TYZ6 -20.50, FVZ6 -11.50. Dec T-notes on Thursday closed lower on the unexpected drop in U.S. weekly jobless claims to a 7-week low and on disappointment that the ECB did not expand QE. There were also increased inflation expectations after the 10-year T-note breakeven inflation rate rose to a 2-1/2 month high.

The dollar index (DXY00 -0.04%) this morning is up +0.020 (+0.02%). EUR/USD (^EURUSD) is up +0.0003 (+0.03%). USD/JPY (^USDJPY) is up +0.19 (+0.19%). Thursday's closes: Dollar index +0.071 (+0.07%), EUR/USD +0.0021 (+0.19%), USD/JPY +0.75 (+0.74%). The dollar index on Thursday recovered from a 2-week low and closed higher on signs of U.S. labor market strength that may prompt the Fed to raise interest rates after U.S. weekly jobless claims unexpectedly fell to a 7-week low. Another hawkish factor for Fed policy was the increase in the 10-year inflation breakeven rate to a 2-1/2 month high due to the sharp +4.66% rally in oil prices. The dollar was undercut by the rally in EUR/USD to a 2-week high after the ECB refrained from addtional stimulus measures at its policy meeting.


Oct crude oil (CLV16 -1.24%) this morning is down -66 cents (-1.39%) and Oct gasoline (RBV16 -1.98%) is down -0.0324 (-2.29%). Thursday's closes: CLV6 +2.12 (+4.66%), RBV6 +0.0701 (+5.21%). Oct crude oil and gasoline on Thursday rallied to 1-week highs and closed sharply higher. Crude oil prices were boosted by the -14.51 million bbl plunge in EIA crude inventories to a 6-1/2 month low (the biggest decline since Jan 1999) and the -4.21million bbl decline in EIA gasoline stockpiles to an 8-1/4 month low, more than expectations of -750,000 bbl.The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

US aviation body warns against charging Samsung Note 7 on planes -The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

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9 September 2016

Concerned over the growing battery explosion fears in Samsung's premium device Galaxy Note 7, the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has issued a warning not to charge or switch on Note 7 on board aircraft. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

"In light of recent incidents and concerns raised by Samsung about its Galaxy Note 7 devices, the Federal Aviation Administration strongly advises passengers not to turn on or charge these devices on board aircraft and not to stow them in any checked baggage," the FAA said in a statement on Friday.

The strong warning came at a time when the south Korean giant is dealing with the global recall of nearly 2.5 million Galaxy Note 7 shipped so far across the world.

Three Australian airlines have already barred passengers from using or charging the smartphones during flights. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

"Qantas and Virgin Australia have told passengers not to turn on Note 7 or charge them on flights," NBC News reported. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

"On board announcements are being made prior to departure to inform all guests," Virgin Australia said in a statement. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

An Australian man was left with burns when his Samsung smartphone "exploded" as he slept in his hotel room. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

Tham Hua, from Victoria state who was visiting Western Australia, said his Samsung Galaxy Note 7 exploded in his hotel room, bursting into flames, Xinhua news agency reported on Wednesday.

"My brand new Note 7 exploded this morning while I was still asleep, it was plugged in and charging," Hua posted on a technology forum. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

"Phone completely fried... (Samsung) told me this is the first case in Australia.

"(It) charred the hotel room bed sheet and the carpet when I whacked it down to the floor, burnt one of my fingers while doing that too." The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

Hua said the accident caused $1,300 worth of damage to his hotel room which Samsung offered to cover.

"Samsung Electronics Australia advises all customers who use a Galaxy Note 7 smartphone to power down their device, return it to its place of purchase and use an alternative device until a remedy can be provided," Samsung said in a statement. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

As part of its global recall of Galaxy Note 7 after reports of battery explosion surfaced, Samsung Australia has formally recalled 51,060 such devices. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions


More than 35 cases of the exploding battery defect have been reported since the phone, which retails for $1,035, was launched on August 19.The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

Karnataka protests Cauvery water order with day-long shut-down -The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

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9 September 2016

Karnataka is protesting the state government's release of Cauvery river water to Tamil Nadu, based on a Supreme Court directive, with a shut down on Friday. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

The day-long protest is being spearheaded by as many as 500 pro-Kannada organisations, which represent sections including farmers, traders and businesses. Security has been stepped up and more forces have been deployed across the state. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

Government offices will remain open, but public transport, including metro services, will not ply. Banks, shops, markets, malls, hotels, bars, pubs, eateries, restaurant, theatres and petrol bunks will also remain closed during the day, officials said. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

Essential supplies, including milk and medicines, thought, have been exempted from the shutdown. Ambulances will be allowed to ferry patients to hospitals.


Bowing to the apex court's Monday order, the state began releasing 15,000 cusecs of water daily from early Wednesday from its reservoirs across the river basin for 10 days amid protests and demonstrations by farmers, traders and the youth in the Mysuru region.The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

Flexi fare pricing on 'experimental basis', say Railway officials -The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

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9 September 2016

The flexi fare pricing of railway tickets in three premium trains is on an "experimental basis", senior officials of the Railway Ministry said on Thursday, as political parties criticised the hike and demanded its roll back. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

"Flexi fare pricing is on experimental basis," a senior official of the Ministry told IANS requesting anonymity. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

"We will check what is the impact of the flexi fare pricing in the Rajdhani, Shatabdi and Duranto express and then a decision would be taken after study of the impact on passengers," the official added.

The officer said that the three trains together ferry only about .6 per cent of the total 2.3 crore passengers that the Railways carries every day. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

"We run about 12,000 passenger trains everyday, but this flexi fare pricing is implemented only on 152 trains," the officer added. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

The officer also said the flexi pricing move was based on the travel experience of passengers on select trains that are highly patronised. "We couldn't have experimented it on any other trains as it would have affected a number of people," the official added.

"We could not have implemented it on the executive class too as the fares would have become comparable to air fares," the officer said.

The officer said that the surge pricing would also help stabilise the tatkal quota ticket prices, which earlier would be higher under the premium tatkal quota. 

The Railways on Wednesday announced to implement the flexi fare pricing on the Rajdhani, Shatabdi and Duranto express trains from September 9. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

According to the new fare system, the base fares of these trains will increase by 10 per cent with every 10 per cent of berths sold, subject to a prescribed ceiling limit.The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

Nifty, Sensex highly overbought – Weekly closing report-The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

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9 September 2016

I had mentioned in last week’s closing report that Nifty, Sensex have bucked the weakness, and headed higher. The major indices of the Indian stock markets have been on an upswing since Tuesday, but have not sustained all the gains. On Friday, the market was bearish with losses of around 0.85%-0.96% over Thursday’s close. Over the week, the major indices have closed with small gains. The trends of the major indices in the course of the week’s trading are given in the table below: The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions
 
Weekly Closing Report (The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions)

Positive global cues and healthy inflow of foreign funds pushed the Indian equity markets to a striking distance of all-time highs by the end of the session on Tuesday as healthy buying was witnessed in all the 19 sub-indices of the BSE, led by stocks of banking, automobile and consumer durables. The BSE market breadth was tilted in favour of the bulls -- with 1,624 advances and 1,126 declines. On the NSE, on Tuesday, there were 938 advances, 524 declines and 60 unchanged. The Indian stock markets were closed on Monday on account of Ganesh Chaturthi. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

Reliance Capital, a part of the Anil-Ambani-led group, on Tuesday said it has raised $300 million through private placement of debentures with tenures of 5 and 10 years. "The issue size offered was $ 150 million with an option to retain oversubscription by way of a greenshoe option of up to $150 million). The issue was fully subscribed, including the greenshoe option, and will be listed," the company said in a regulatory filing. The company’s shares closed at Rs558.00, up 2.46% on the BSE. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

Profit booking subdued the Indian equity markets on Wednesday, as the key indices closed the day's trade on a flat note. Selling pressure was witnessed in consumer durables, oil and gas, and finance stocks. The BSE market breadth was tilted in favour of the bulls -- with 1,404 advances and 1,356 declines. On the NSE, there were 801 advances, 807 declines and 68 unchanged.

State-run power equipment manufacturer Bharat Heavy Electricals (BHEL) on Wednesday reported a rise of 54.21% in its standalone net profit for the first quarter of 2016-17. The company's Q1 net profit stood at Rs77.77 crore from Rs50.43 crore reported in the corresponding quarter of 2015-16. The company posted a net profit after three consecutive quarters of losses. BHEL’s total income from operations for the quarter under review increased by 28.72% to Rs5,622.46 crore from Rs4,367.70 crore for the corresponding period of last fiscal. Its net sales edged up by 29.03% to Rs5,522.76 crore from Rs4,280.02 crore during the first quarter of 2015-16. According to the company, it has an outstanding order book position of Rs108,000 crore at the end of Q1 2016-17. The company’s shares closed at Rs159.80, up 15.50% on the BSE. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

Healthy quarterly results, consistent buying by foreign funds and a rise in global crude oil prices buoyed the Indian equity markets on Thursday. The key indices closed the day's trade in the green as healthy buying was witnessed in stocks of healthcare, automobile and consumer durables. However, gains were capped due to profit booking at higher levels and caution ahead of a key global financial event. The BSE market breadth was tilted in favour of the bulls -- with 1,608 advances and 1,151 declines. On the NSE, on Thursday, there were 905 advances, 552 declines and 68 unchanged. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

ICICI Bank on Thursday became the first bank in India to deploy ‘software robots that emulate human action, in its over 200 business processes thereby reducing the response time to customers by up to 60%. "We have re-engineered over 200 business processes which are powered by software robots across various functions of the bank. We plan to more than double the software robots to over 500 by end of this fiscal," Chanda Kochhar, MD and CEO, ICICI Bank, said. 

According to the Federal Reserve’s Beige Book released in the afternoon, reports from the twelve Federal Reserve Districts suggest that national economic activity continued to expand at a modest pace on balance during the reporting period of July through late August. "Labour market conditions remained tight in most districts, with moderate payroll growth noted in general. Price increases remained slight overall," said the Beige Book. The Fed has been in focus recently, with investors pondering over when the US central bank will decide to raise interest rates. The Federal Open Market Committee, the Fed's monetary policy arm, is set to meet on September 20-21. On the economic front, the number of job openings increased to 5.9 million on the last business day of July, the US Labour Department reported on Wednesday.


Profit booking, coupled with negative global markets and lower crude oil prices, dragged down the Indian equity markets during the mid-afternoon trade session on Friday. The BSE market breadth was tilted in favour of the bears -- with 1,470 declines and 1,113 advances. Initially on Friday, the benchmark indices opened in the red due to negative Asian markets. Besides, caution ahead of the release of key macro-economic data such as the factory output -- Index of Industrial Production (IIP) -- for July and inflation figures for August weighed heavy on the indices. In addition, depreciation in the rupee's value dampened investors' sentiments. Negative global markets due to ECB's (European Central Bank) decision not to inject more liquidity and profit booking led the equity markets to trade lower, pointed out market analysts.The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

Thursday, 8 September 2016

Global Markets & News-The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

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8 September 2016

OVERNIGHT MARKETS AND NEWS

Sep E-mini S&Ps (ESU16 +0.06%) are up +0.07% at a 2-week high and European stocks are down -0.06% ahead of today's ECB meeting and press conference from ECB President Draghi. The markets will look to see if Draghi extends QE past this year or whether the ECB may include bank bonds in their asset purchase program. A +1.63% rally in crude prices (CLV16 +1.69%) is giving energy producing stocks a lift after API data late yesterday showed U.S. crude inventories plunged -12.1 million bbl last week. Asian stocks settled mixed: Japan -0.32%, Hong Kong +0.75%, China +0.13%, Taiwan +0.04%, Australia -0.71%, Singapore +0.03%, South Korea +0.21%, India +0.41%. Chinese stocks received a boost after trade data from last month showed export declines moderated and imports unexpectedly grew at the fastest pace in 1-3/4 years.
The dollar index (DXY00 -0.32%) is down -0.32% at a 1-1/2 week low. EUR/USD (^EURUSD) is up +0.48% at a 1-1/2 week high. USD/JPY (^USDJPY) is down -0.11%.
Dec T-note prices (ZNZ16 -0.04%) are down -1 tick.
Japan Q2 GDP was revised higher to +0.7% (q/q annualized) from the previously reported +0.2% (q/q annualized).

The China Aug trade balance unexpectedly shrunk to a surplus of +$52.05 billion, a smaller surplus than expectations of +$58.85 billion. Aug exports fell -2.8% y/y, a smaller decline than expectations of -4.0% y/y. Aug imports unexpectedly rose +1.5% y/y, stronger than expectations of -5.4% y/y and the biggest increase in 1-3/4 years. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

U.S. STOCK PREVIEW

Key U.S. news today includes: (1) weekly initial unemployment claims (expected +2,000 to 265,000, previous +2,000 to 263,000) and continuing claims (expected -8,000 to 2.151 million, previous +14,000 to 2.159 million), (2) Jul consumer credit (expected +$16.00 billion, Jun +$12.32 billion), and (3) EIA Weekly Petroleum Status Report.

Russell 1000 companies that report earnings today: Donaldson (consensus $0.49), Santander Consumer USA Holdings (0.68).
U.S. IPO's scheduled to price today: none.

Equity conferences during the remainder of this week include: Citi Global Technology Conference on Tue-Thu, Barclays CEO Energy Power Conference on Tue-Thu, Barclays Global Consumer Staples Conference on Tue-Thu, Barclays Back-to-School Conference on Tue-Thu, Goldman Sachs Global Retailing Conference on Wed-Thu, Drexel Hamilton Technology, Media and Telecom Conference on Wed-Thu, Keefe, Bruyette, & Woods Insurance Conference on Wed-Thu, Goldman Sachs Financial Technology Conference on Thu, Evercore ISI Real Estate Conference on Thu, Gabelli & Company Aircraft Supplier & Connectivity Conference on Thu. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

OVERNIGHT U.S. STOCK MOVERS

Nike (NKE +0.54%) was downgraded to 'Neutral' from 'Overweight' at Piper Jaffray.
Pier 1 (PIR +3.23%) tumbled 12% in pre-market trading after it reported a preliminary Q2 loss of -5 cents to -6 cents a share, weaker than consensus of-3 cents, and the CEO Alex Smith said he will step down effetive Dec 31.
AutoNation (AN +2.10%) was rated a new 'Buy' at CL King with a 12-month target price of $57.

Wingstop (WING -0.80%) was rated a new 'Overweight' at Keybanc Capital Markets with a 12-month price target of $36.
Apple (AAPL +0.61%) was downgraded to 'Market Perform' from 'Outperform' at Wells Fargo Securities.

Tailored Brands (TLRD +3.04%) jumped over 10% in after-hours trading after it reported Q2 adjusted EPS of 99 cents, higher than consensus of 93 cents.
Guidewire Software (GWRE +0.60%) fell nearly 6% in after-hours trading after it lowered guidance on full-year EPS to 69 cents-79 cents, weaker than consensus of 84 cents.

Tractor Supply (TSCO -0.02%) slumped over 9% in after-hours trading after it cut its full-year EPS outlook to $3.22-$3.26 from a prior view of $3.35-$3.40.
Sage Therapeutics (SAGE +1.03%) dropped nearly 6% in after-hours trading after it announced a $150 million public offering of common stock.
Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE +1.05%) lost nearly 2% in after-hours trading after it said it will spin off some of its software assets and merge them with Micro Focus.
Abeona Therapeutics (ABEO +2.13%) climbed over 4% in after-hours trading after Cantor Fitzgerald rated the stock a new 'Buy.'

Bazaarvoice (BV +4.60%) gained 3% in after-hours trading after it reported Q1 adjusted EPS at breakeven, better than consensus for a -4 cent loss.
Repros Therapeutics (RPRX -2.56%) surged 40% in after-hours trading after the company said its Proellex drug cut menstrual pain in a Phase 2 trial versus a placebo.

Netlist (NLST -2.84%) tumbled 14% in after-hours trading after it said it will offer $15 million in common stock. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

MARKET COMMENTS

Sep E-mini S&Ps (ESU16 +0.06%) this morning are up +1.50 points (+0.07%) at a 2-week high. Wednesday's closes: S&P 500 -0.01%, Dow Jones-0.06%, Nasdaq +0.05%. The S&P 500 on Wednesday closed slightly lower on weakness in consumer-staple companies, led by a -13% drop in Sprouts Farmers Markets after the company cut its profit outlook. Stocks were also undercut by the sharp +228,000 increase in U.S. Jul JOLTS job openings to a record 5.871 million, which bolstered the case for the Fed to raise interest rates. Stocks recovered in the early afternoon when the Fed's Beige Book said the U.S. economy grew at a modest pace and price increases "remained slight overall."

Dec 10-year T-notes (ZNZ16 -0.04%) this morning are down -1 tick. Wednesday's closes: TYZ6 unch, FVZ6 -0.25. Dec T-notes on Wednesday closed little changed. T-notes were supported by weaker stocks and by carryover support from a rally in German bunds to a 1-3/4 month high ahead of Thursday's ECB meeting. T-notes were undercut by news that U.S. Jul JOLTS job openings rose to a record 5.871 million, which bolstered the case for a Fed rate hike.

The dollar index (DXY00 -0.32%) this morning is down -0.308 (-0.32%) at a 1-1/2 week low. EUR/USD (^EURUSD) is up +0.0054 (+0.48%) at 1-1/2 week high. USD/JPY (^USDJPY) is down -0.11 (-0.11%). Wednesday's closes: Dollar index +0.133 (+0.14%), EUR/USD -0.0016 (-0.14%), USD/JPY-0.28 (-0.27%). The dollar index on Wednesday closed higher on signs of U.S. labor market strength that may prompt the Fed to raise interest rates after U.S. Jul JOLTS job openings rose to a record high. In addition, there was weakness in EUR/USD after German Jul industrial production unexpectedly fell -1.5% m/m, the largest decline in 23 months.


Oct crude oil (CLV16 +1.69%) this morning is up +74 cents (+1.63%) and Oct gasoline (RBV16 +1.84%) is up +0.0267 (+1.98%). Wednesday's closes: CLV6 +1.31 (+2.92%), RBV6 +0.0456 (+3.46%). Oct crude oil and gasoline on Wednesday closed higher on the increase in Jul JOLTS job openings to a record high, which signals strength in the labor market that may fuel economic expansion and energy demand. Oil prices were undercut by the EIA's hike in its U.S. 2016 oil production estimate to 8.77 million bpd from 8.73 million bpd and by expectations for Thursday's EIA crude inventories report to show an increase of +1.0 million bbl.The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions