The Jobless report showed that June
Saw Payroll growth really balloon
But stubbornly, Claims
Are fanning the flames
Of bears, who keep singing off-tune

Markets are quiet this morning as not only is it a summer Friday, but US equity and commodity markets are closed to celebrate the July 4th holiday. In fact, it is curious that it is not a Fed holiday. But with a limited and illiquid session on the horizon, let’s take a quick peak at yesterday’s data and some thoughts about its impact.

The Jobless report was clearly better than expected on virtually every statistic. Payrolls rose more than expected (4.8M vs. exp 3.06M) while the Unemployment Rate fell substantially (11.1% from 13.3%). Happily, the Participation Rate also rose which means that the country is getting back to work. It should be no surprise that this was touted as a great outcome by one and all.

Of course, there was some less positive news, at least for those who were seeking it out. The Initial and Continuing Claims data, both of which are much more current, declined far less than expected. The problem here is that while tremendous progress was made in June from where things were before, it seems that progress may be leveling off at much worse than desired numbers.

It seems there are two things at work here. First, the second wave of Covid is forcing a change in the timeline of the reopening of the economy. Several states, notably Texas and California, are reimposing lockdowns and closing businesses, like bars and restaurants, that had reopened. This is also slowing the reopening of other states’ economies. Second is the pending end of some of the CARES act programs, notably PPP, which has seen the money run out and layoffs occur now, rather than in April. It is entirely realistic that the Initial and Continuing Claims data run at these much higher levels going forward for a while as different businesses wrestle with the right size for their workforce in the new economy.

Odds are we will see a second stimulus bill at some point this summer, but it is not yet a certainty, nor is it clear how large it will be or what it will target. But it would be a mistake to assume that the road ahead will be smooth.

The other potential market impacting news was this morning’s European Services PMI data, which was generally slightly better than expected, but still pointing to slowing growth. For instance, Germany’s Services number was at 47.3, obviously well above the April print of 16.2, but still pointing to a slowing economy. And that was largely the case everywhere.

The point is that nothing we have seen either yesterday or today indicates that the global economy is actually growing relative to 2019. It is simply not shrinking as quickly as before. The implication here is that central banks will continue to add liquidity to their respective economies through additional asset purchases and, for those with positive interest rates still, further rate cuts. Governments will be loath to stop their fiscal stimulus as well, especially those who face elections in the near-term. But in the end, 2020 is going to be a decidedly lost year when it comes to the world’s economy!

On the market side, risk generally remained in demand overnight as Asian equity markets continued to rally (Nikkei +0.7%, Hang Seng +1.0%, Shanghai +2.0%). Will someone please explain to me how Hong Kong’s stock market continues to rally in the face of the draconian new laws imposed by Beijing on the freedom’s formerly available to its citizens? While I certainly don’t have proof, this must be coordinated buying by Chinese government institutions trying to demonstrate that everything there is great.

However, despite the positive cast of APAC markets, Europe has turned red this morning with the DAX (-0.2%), CAC (-0.7%) and FTSE 100 (-0.9%) all under pressure. Each nation has a story today starting with Germany’s Angela Merkel trying to expand fiscal stimulus, not only in Germany, but fighting for the EU program as well. Meanwhile, in France, President Macron has shaken up his entire government and replace most of the top positions including PM and FinMin. Finally, the UK is getting set to reopen tomorrow, and citizens are expected to be ready to head back to a more normal life.

In the bond markets, while US markets are closed, we are seeing a very modest bid for European government bonds, but yields are only about 1 basis point lower on the day. Commodity markets show that oil is once again under pressure, down a bit more than 1% but still hanging onto the $40/bbl level.

Turning to currencies, in the G10, only NOK (+0.4%) is showing any real life today as its Unemployment Rate printed at a lower than expected 4.8% encouraging some to believe it is leading the way back in Europe. Otherwise, this bloc is doing nothing, with some gainers and some losers and no direction.

In emerging markets, the story is of two weak links, IDR (-1.0%) and RUB (-0.9%). The former, which has been falling for more than a week, is suffering from concerns over debt monetization by the central bank there, something that I’m sure will afflict many currencies going forward. As to the ruble, the only explanation can be the oil price decline as their PMI data was better than expected, although still below 50.0. But there are issues there regarding the spread of the infection as well, and concerns over the potential imposition of new sanctions by the US.

And that is really it for the day. With no data or speakers here, look for markets to close by lunchtime, so if you have something to do, get it done sooner rather than later.

Have a wonderful holiday weekend and stay safe
Adf