Condemned to Damnation

The Chinese returned from vacation
But hopes for more subsidization
Were rapidly dashed
With early gains trashed
And Hong Kong condemned to damnation
 
Meanwhile, what we heard from the Fed
Was further rate cuts are ahead
They all still believe
That they will achieve
Their goal and inflation is dead

 

Talk about buzzkill.  The Chinese Golden Week holiday is over and all the hopes that the National Development and Reform Commission Briefing would highlight new stimulus as well as further details of the programs announced prior to the holiday week were dashed.  Instead, this group simply confirmed that they were going to implement the previously announced plans and insisted that it would be enough to get the economy back to its target growth rate of 5.0%.  You may recall that the government had promised funds to support the stock market and some efforts to support the housing market, but there was little in the way of direct support for consumers.  While the initial market response to the stimulus measures was quite positive, there is a rapidly growing concern that those measures will now fall short.  In the end, much of the joy attached to the stimulus story has evaporated.  

The market response was telling as while onshore stocks rallied (CSI 300 +5.9%) they closed far below their early session highs and the Hang Seng (-9.4%) in Hong Kong, which had been open all during the Golden Week holiday and rallied steadily through that time, retraced sharply, giving back all those gains and then some (see below). 

Source: Bloomberg.com

In the end, it is difficult to look at the Chinese story and feel confident that the currently announced stimulus packages are going to be sufficient to make a major dent in the problems there.  It appears that the limits of a command economy may have been reached, a situation that will not benefit anyone.

Turning to the first batch of Fed speakers, yesterday we heard from Governor Adriana Kugler, St Louis Fed president Alberto Musalem and Chicago Fed president Austan Goolsbee.  While Mr Goolsbee explained, “I am not seeing signs of resurgent inflation,” it does not appear he is really looking.  As to Ms Kugler, she “strongly supported” the 50bp cut and when asked about the strong NFP report explained that looking through the data, “several metrics point toward labor-market cooling”, despite the strong report.  Finally, Mr Musalem, although he supported the 50bp cut, remarked, “Given where the economy is today, I view the costs of easing too much too soon as greater than the costs of easing too little too late.”

Net, it appears that recent data upticks have not had any impact on their views that they must cut rates further and are prepared to do so every meeting going forward.  The Fed funds futures market has now priced 25bp rate cuts into both the November and December meetings, although that is reduced significantly from the nearly 100bps that was priced prior to the NFP report.

Away from those stories, though, there was not much other news of note overnight.  Russia/Ukraine has moved to page 32 of the newspapers and is not even discussed anymore.  Israel/Hamas/Hezbollah/Iran has more tongues wagging but at this point, it has become a waiting game for Israel to respond to the missile barrage from Iran last week.  Given we are between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, it seems unlikely to me that we will see anything prior to the weekend.  China fizzled after vacation.  The US election remains a tight race at this point with no clear outcome.  Hurricane Helene and the aftermath is being superseded by Hurricane Milton, due to hit the Tampa area shortly, but again, the latter two, while horrific tragedies, or potential tragedies, are not really market stories.

So, what’s driving things?  Arguably, interest rate policies and bond markets are having the biggest impact on financial markets right now.  With that in mind, the fact that 10-year Treasury yields are now back above 4.0% for the first time since August seems to be the main event.  Why, you may ask, would bond yields have backed up so far so fast?  Ultimately, it appears that bond investors are losing confidence in the central bank inflation story, the idea that they have it under control.  First off, oil prices, though lower today by -1.9%, have still gained more than 8.3% in the past week with gasoline prices higher by nearly 7% in the same period.  This does not bode well for lower inflation prints going forward.  Second, the combination of the much stronger than expected NFP report and the Fed’s willful ignorance of the implications is also tipping the marginal investor toward seeing more inflation going forward.

Ok, so how have these things impacted markets?  Well, aside from China/HK and following yesterday’s US declines, there were far more laggards (Japan, Singapore, Korea, Australia) than leaders (India) across Asia with Tokyo (-1.0%) the next worst performer.  In Europe, all the screens are red this morning led by the UK (-1.1%) but with losses between -0.2% in Germany after a much better than expected IP reading, to -0.6% in France.  Oftentimes, it seems like Europe is trading on yesterday’s US news, and that is the case today as US futures are pointing higher by about 0.4% at this hour (7:40).

Bond yields, which have been climbing for the past week, are little changed this morning, with neither Treasuries nor European sovereigns showing any movement of note.  However, one need only look at the chart below to see the trend over the past month.

Source: tradingeconomics.com

Aside from the oil retreat mentioned above, which seems to be a response to the absence of that Israeli action so widely expected, copper (-2.6%) is the laggard as disappointment over the Chinese stimulus dud pushed down demand expectations.  Gold (+0.3%) though, remains in demand and is hovering just below its recent all-time highs.

Finally, the dollar is backing off a bit this morning, although as evidenced by the chart below of the DXY, it has been on a bit of a tear for the past week, so consolidation should not be a surprise.

Source: tradingeconomics.com

However, overall, today’s price activity has been relatively muted with all G10 currencies within 0.2% of yesterday’s closing levels and the biggest movers in the EMG bloc (PLN +0.4%, ZAR -0.4%) hardly showing much more motion.  One exception is IDR, where the central bank intervened overnight after six consecutive days of rupiah weakness which saw the currency decline -4.5%.

On the data front this morning, the NFIB Small Business Optimism Index was released at a slightly softer than expected 91.5 although the Uncertainty sub index it a record high of 103 indicating small businesses are in a tough spot.  Otherwise, the only number is the Trade Balance (exp -$70.6B) and then a bunch more Fed speakers, all different ones than yesterday.  We also see the 3-year Note auction, so that may give us some clues as to the demand story for Treasuries ahead of the CPI data on Thursday.

The ongoing conflicting data has many, if not most, investors confused.  I believe that people will be seeking more clarity on Thursday and so until then, absent another geopolitical shock, we are likely to see modest market movements overall.  However, with the Fed hell-bent on cutting, I continue to fear inflation starting to reaccelerate and the dollar starting a more substantive decline.

Good luck

Adf

Flags at Half-Mast

Twas just seven days in the past
When fears of recession forecast
Were rapidly rising
And folks analyzing
The data had flags at half-mast
 
But in a remarkable twist
Turns out that recession was missed
Instead, all is great
With not long to wait
Til worries no longer exist!

 

Until this week, I had always understood the Covid-linked recession to be the shortest on record, lasting just a few months.  But apparently, that is no longer the case.  You may recall that after last Friday’s weaker than expected NFP data and the increase in the Unemployment Rate to 4.3%, the commentariat was certain that the Fed had maintained their monetary policy too tight for too long.  The result was that the US had entered a recession, or at least was on the cusp of one.  Certainly, this appeared to be the market narrative as equity markets sold off aggressively on Friday and then again on Monday.  While there was much discussion of the impact of the BOJ’s policy adjustments and that as an additional catalyst, the key is panic was rampant.

However, it appears it was nothing more than a bad dream.  As of this morning, the S&P 500 is essentially unchanged from where it was at last Friday’s close as can be seen in the chart below.  

A graph on a white background

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Source: tradingeconomics.com

All of the angst that had been felt because of that NFP print (which was still positive at 114K) and all of the clutching of pearls and gnashing of teeth that analysts suffered was unnecessary as the Fed sensibly made no policy changes and the equity market absorbed some volatility and is back to flat on the week.  

Does this imply everything is fine with the world?  Absolutely not.  There are still numerous concerns for both the economy and the financial markets, notably the bond market, but the world has not ended, and equity markets are reflecting that fact.  

All joking aside, the economy continues to show a mixed picture and arguably the biggest medium-term concern should be the willingness of investors to continue to finance the US deficit.  This is a fundamental that cannot be ignored forever and one that revealed itself again this week as both the 10-year and 30-year auctions had tails* of more than 3 basis points.  The implication of those outcomes is that demand for US Treasury debt at current levels could be waning, and that is a genuine problem.  

Consider that, already, interest payments by the Treasury on its debt exceed $1 trillion annually.  If buyers in the market demand higher interest rates and there are no expenditure reductions (which seems likely regardless of the election outcome), either yields will rise, or other buyers will need to be found.  Who might those other buyers be?  Well, obviously, the Fed is the number one suspect, although if they were to restart QE with inflation running above target, I suspect it would be very difficult to hide and the impact on inflation would likely be to push it higher, clearly not their goal.  Therefore, as I have written before, be ready for regulatory changes that require banks and insurance companies to hold larger portfolios of Treasury securities as part of their capital buffers.  This process would be far more opaque politically but would create the price insensitive bid that the Treasury needs.

To recap, the recession has not yet arrived, investors are climbing out of their foxholes and there are potential concerns regarding the bond market and natural demand for the ongoing increases in issuance.  While next week’s CPI data will be closely scrutinized, my sense is the equity narrative is going to be far more focused on production and consumption than on prices. 

In the meantime, let’s review last night’s session and see how things are behaving as we head into the weekend.  After yesterday’s impressive rally in the US, where all Monday’s fears were erased because the Initial Claims number seemed to indicate the job market wasn’t collapsing, Asian markets had a pretty good session as well.  The Nikkei (+0.6%) and Hang Seng (+1.2%) both followed the US higher as did virtually every other market in Asia except mainland Chinese shares (CSI 300 -0.35%) after Chinese inflation figures printed a touch higher than forecast.  It does seem to feel like the Chinese market is decoupling from the rest of the world.  Meanwhile, European bourses are all firmer this morning led by Spain’s IBEX (+0.9%) and the CAC (+0.5%) in Paris.  Clearly, fears over Monday’s meltdown have abated everywhere.  Lastly, at this hour (7:30), US futures are pointing slightly higher as well.  As I said above, Monday was just a bad dream.

In the bond markets, yields are declining almost everywhere with 10-year Treasuries falling 4bps and all European sovereigns seeing yields decline by between -3bps and -5bps.  Whatever fears existed during the auctions seem to have abated somewhat, at least for now.  But the bigger picture concerns over Treasury supply remain in place, if in the background today.

In the commodity markets, oil (+0.4%) continues to creep higher and has now retraced all its losses from the week.  However, the big picture here remains that oil is rangebound between $70/bbl and $90/bbl.  While the Middle East situation continues to cause some concerns, the absence of a widely anticipated strike by Iran on Israel has left traders on edge, but not actively hedging the prospects.  As to the metals markets, both gold and silver, which had very strong rebounds yesterday, are little changed on the morning, consolidating those gains.  Interestingly, copper (+1.6%) is showing a bit of life, perhaps on the view that the recession has not yet arrived, or more likely because traders who had shorted the red metal are closing positions ahead of the weekend.

Finally, the dollar is mixed this morning with a variety of gainers and laggards across both the G10 and EMG blocs.  In the former, AUD (-0.3%) is lagging as it adjusts after yesterday’s strong gains based on a more hawkish RBA view.  At the same time, JPY (+0.5%) is higher this morning although it has been trading either side of 147.00 for the past three sessions with no obvious directional bias.  Given the importance of monetary policy decisions to this currency pair, the fact that the BOJ walked back their hawkishness and the Fed speakers we have heard this week have continued the mantra of the time is not yet right for a cut, although September may be good, it shouldn’t be that surprising that it has found a new short-term equilibrium.

In the emerging markets, the chart below showing the relative moves of ZAR, MXN and BRL, the three key risk proxies, shows that all have strengthened from their worst levels on Monday, an indication that traders are returning to the carry trade.

A graph of stock market

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Source: tradingeconomics.com

It is also worth noting that CNY (+0.2%) continues to track the yen at a slower pace.  The idea that the PBOC is willing to let the renminbi trade in a more volatile manner as long as it does not strengthen aggressively vs. the yen remains intact.

There is no data on the docket today and once again there are no Fed speakers scheduled either.  To my eyes, the market is exhausted after the wild moves at the beginning of the week.  I expect that there is limited appetite for aggressive price action in any market today and absent either an Iranian attack on Israel or a true black swan event, my best guess is it will be a quiet session heading into the weekend. 

Good luck and good weekend

Adf

*A tail in a bond auction simply describes how much higher the actual results were than the market’s anticipation of those results prior to the auction’s completion as priced in the when-issued market.  Typically, for 10-year bonds, that tail is close to zero, and even 30-year bonds average about 1bp.  A 3bp tail is considered quite wide and concerning as it indicates a lack of buying interest by investors of all stripes.

Thoroughly Schooled

Has CPI actually cooled?
Or did April have us all fooled?
Both Tiff and Lagarde
Have played their first card
Has Jay now been thoroughly schooled?
 
First, if CPI comes in hot
The Chairman will certainly not
Decide to cut rates
And leave the debates
Til things show the damage he’s wrought
 
But if the inflation report
Is nothing at all of that sort
Then many have said
This summer, the Fed
‘Round rate cuts will gather support

 

A quick look at yesterday’s 10-year Treasury auction shows it was far better than the 3-year on Monday with a strong bid/cover ratio of 2.67, its highest since February 2022, and a result where the auction cleared 2bps lower than the pricing ahead of the announcement, a sort of negative tail.  Indirect bidders represented nearly 75% of the bids, so there was real demand for this paper.  Certainly, Janet and Jay are feeling better, and yields fell 6bps on the day.  

As I explained yesterday, the auctions are just one tiny signal in a large body of information, and just like almost everything else, it seems there is no consistency there either.  However, one auction does not a trend make.  One last thing, the strength of the auction ahead of today’s CPI report and FOMC meeting seems somewhat odd given the potential risks attached to both those events.  Generally, investors would prefer to reduce exposure ahead of a big event, not increase it.  This has awakened some conspiracy theorists as to who actually bought the paper.  There is no evidence that there was any behind the scenes Fed activity, but many are trying to figure out the incentive to aggressively bid for bonds ahead of key data.  We need to stay vigilant.  

Ok, on to the CPI this morning.  The current consensus forecasts are for the headline (0.1% M/M and 3.4% Y/Y) and the core (0.3% M/m and 3.5% Y/Y).  During the month of May, wholesale gasoline prices fell nearly 6% which is clearly weighing on the headline monthly outcome.  Of course, that is not a seasonally adjusted number, that is the raw result.  Last month, despite gasoline prices rising a similar amount, in the CPI data, the seasonally adjusted number showed a decline, and that is what is in the report.  That is just one of the many unusual features of the way CPI is calculated, and why it must be carefully considered.  

However, beyond gasoline prices, the indications of rising prices continue to come from things like the ISM Prices paid index for both Manufacturing and Services, as well as the robust wage growth from the NFP report last week.  And certainly, I am hard-pressed to have seen prices do anything but rise in the past month and year based on my personal consumption basket.  But I do not have an econometric model that I use to estimate these things like my good friend the @inflation_guy, who you all should be following on X(Twitter) or at his inflationguy blog.  However, based on the other pricing data we have seen, I expect that the risks to the consensus are on the high side, not the low side.  We shall find out at 8:30.

In this case, I think it is clear that a hot number will result in a sharp decline in bond prices (jump in yields), a rise in the dollar and, at least initially, a decline in equity markets.  Of course, the latter clearly have a life of their own.  A lower-than-expected print should see the opposite, with stocks ripping higher.

And lastly, we turn to this afternoon’s FOMC meeting.  At this point, the only thing that anyone is discussing is the dot plot.  Below is the March edition where the median indicated 3 rate cuts in 2024, but it was very close, a 10-9 outcome with 9 members seeing 2 cuts or less.

Source: federalreserve.gov

As I recall, I was far more interested in the idea that the Longer run rate, which is often defined as R* or the neutral rate, started to creep higher than its recent estimates of 2.5%.  Since the March meeting, there has been an uptick in discussion as to what the longer run rate should be, with every estimate rising some amount.  

As to the immediate situation, given there is a vanishingly small chance they adjust rates today, there are only four meetings left in 2024 so it would seem likely that the maximum number of cuts the updated version of the dot plot will indicate is two.  Personally, I think it will come in at one unless this morning’s CPI is much lower than expectations, although given the ECB managed to cut rates while raising their inflation forecasts, anything is possible in the convoluted world of central banking.  Funnily, the strength of yesterday’s 10-year auction may give them enough confidence that their current policy is not a problem resulting in an estimate of fewer cuts rather than more.

However, the real interest will be Powell’s press conference.  Based on everything we heard from Powell and all his acolytes prior to the quiet period, there certainly seemed to be no rush to cut rates as they still lacked confidence that inflation was going to head back to target.  And, of course, the biggest piece of data we have seen in the interim, last Friday’s NFP number, was much hotter than expected as was the wage data, so it doesn’t seem that he would change that tune.  Thus, much relies on this morning’s CPI and how that may change any opinions on the committee.  While I believe that his underlying desire is to cut rates, there does not yet seem to be an opening to do so.  In the end, my take is that the risk to the market is he is more hawkish than dovish with the corresponding risk-off results.  That’s what makes markets.

Ok, I’ve rambled on a lot already so suffice to say that the overnight price action was generally pretty benign as everyone around the world has been awaiting today’s CPI and FOMC.  Yesterday’s mixed US session was followed by a mixed Asian session with some gainers and some laggards although European bourses are feeling chipper this morning, with all higher by about 0.5%.  As to US futures, they are ever so slightly firmer at this hour (7:00), just 0.1%.

Bond yields around the world have followed Treasuries lower, with the US 10-yr falling one more basis point while all of Europe is down 2bps, except for Italy (-5bps) where the spread to bunds is narrowing on hopes of broader interest rate declines.  Even JGB yields (-4bps) softened last night.  As I have repeatedly explained, as goes the Treasury market, so goes the rest of the global bond market.

Oil prices (+1.1%) are climbing again after inventory data yesterday showed larger draws than expected while metals prices are little changed this morning after another weak session yesterday.

Finally, the dollar is on its back foot, down about -0.15% vs. most of its G10 counterparts save the yen (-0.2%) which continues to drift back toward that 160 level which catalyzed the BOJ’s intervention.  I think the dollar’s movement is the easiest to forecast ahead of the CPI and FOMC as hot CPI will see the dollar rally, as will a hawkish Fed, with the opposite also true in the event that things are cool and/or dovish.

And that’s really all today.  So, buckle up for the 8:30 data and then after that flurry, you can relax until 2:00pm.

Good luck

Adf

Concern ‘Bout the Fate

While waiting for Jay and the Fed
And CPI data on Wed
This week’s 3-year note
Was less than the GOAT
Though risk assets still moved ahead
 
But talk from some sources of late
Exhibit concern ‘bout the fate
Of how the US
Will deal with excess
Supply of bonds as they inflate

 

Since we observe market activities daily, though we remain subject to surprising outcomes (see Friday’s NFP results), there are more consistent features that offer a hint of how the mechanics of financial markets are working, and whether those mechanics are running smoothly or a bit creakier.

Arguably, the thing getting the most press is Nvidia’s stock price, as its continued rapid rise has resulted in the company now representing ~6.5% of the market capitalization of the S&P 500.  Along with Apple and Microsoft, all currently having market caps > $3 trillion, we are looking at three companies representing nearly 20% of the S&P 500.  This is unprecedented and many (including this poet) believe that it is unsustainable in the long run, and probably the medium run.

But another key market, arguably the most important when discussing the financial markets and the Fed, is the US Treasury market.  Countless hours are devoted to dissecting each tick and how movements in the yields of various maturity bonds may impact the economy and overall market sentiment.  With this in mind, when new securities are auctioned, it is always worth a look.  So, yesterday, the Treasury issued $53 billion of 3-year notes at a yield of 4.659%.  The underlying characteristics of this auction were not particularly encouraging for a Treasury that will be issuing 10-year and 30-year bonds as the week progresses, as well as another $trillion this year.  

The numbers that are most closely watched are the tail (the difference between the market estimate of the final yield prior to the auction and the actual results) which was at 1.1bps, a full basis point above the average tail of the past 6 months, an indication that demand was lacking.  As well, the bid to cover ratio (how many $ of bids were received vs. the $53 billion offered) fell to 2.43X, well below the average over the past 6-months of auctions.  Dealers were saddled with nearly 20% of the paper and overall, domestic demand was not very robust.

This gets highlighted because these little data points are often harbingers of bigger problems to come.  After all, if there is a dearth of demand for US Treasury paper, even short-dated paper like 3-year notes, that bodes quite ill for the US government, as well as for global financial markets.  Remember, US Treasury paper is the baseline for virtually all debt issuance around the world.  If it fails here, it will be GFC 2.0 or worse.

Why, you may ask, is this becoming an issue?  Well, one answer would be that the US’s current financial profligacy is starting to be discussed in quite negative terms at key institutions around the world.  For instance, the IMF’s managing director, Kristalina Georgieva, has expressed concern recently that the US is essentially hogging all the borrowing capacity around the world.  As well, Banque de France governor, Francois Villeroy de Galhau, explained, “U.S. fiscal policy is the elephant in the room: it is not in the hands of the Fed, and could significantly affect the level of long-term interest rates.  A large U.S. fiscal deficit tightens financial conditions and fuels inflation.”  

The point is that while Secretary Yellen, and Chair Powell, will not even discuss the potential ramifications of excess US government borrowing, it is being noticed in the halls of power elsewhere in the world, as well as on trading floors and in investment meetings at major asset managers.  This is not to say that anything dramatic is going to happen anytime soon, but death by a thousand cuts is still death.  Remember this, whatever the Fed’s mandate may say about price stability and maximum employment, I assure you, their number one priority, by miles and miles, is a smoothly working Treasury bond market.  A 1 basis point tail may not seem to be much, but like the little boy in Holland with his finger in the dike, it may foretell bigger problems to come.

The reason I can focus on minutiae like the details of a Treasury auction is that there is so little else ongoing from a macro perspective right now.  With US CPI to be released tomorrow and the FOMC meeting, statement and subsequent Powell press conference coming later tomorrow afternoon, most market participants are effectively holding their collective breath waiting for new information.

So, let’s review the overnight activity, which was not that exciting.  After modest gains in the US yesterday, Asia couldn’t seem to follow except for Japan (+0.25%) with most of the rest of the region selling off, notably the Hang Seng (-1.0%) and Australia (-1.3%).  European bourses, too, are under pressure across the board this morning with Spain (-1.4%) leading the way, but all the other large markets lower by at least -0.7%.  There is a rumor that French President Macron may resign if the RN wins the election at the end of the month and the first polling shows that Marine Le Pen’s group will win a plurality of votes, but not necessarily a working majority.  This will obviously be a major focus of markets going forward as regardless of who is in charge, it would be reasonable to expect many of the key issues that have driven this political shift (immigration, inflation, Ukraine) to become policies going forward.  As to US futures, at this hour (6:45) they are lower by about -0.25%.

In the bond market, the big news is really in Europe where the spread between German bunds and French OATs has widened by a further 8bps as concerns over the future government of France creep into investors’ minds.  Historically, Madame Le Pen has been quite anti-Europe so there seem to be some worries that if the RN wins an outright majority, there will be significant ructions in the European Union with France seeking more independence.  In the end, uncertainty breeds investor concern so I would not be surprised to see this spread widen further leading up to the election.  As to the Treasury market, yields have backed off 4bps this morning in what appears to be position inspired trading rather than being caused by new information.

Commodities, which had a very nice rebound yesterday with both energy and metals markets performing well, are back under pressure this morning with oil (-0.3%) and gold (-0.1%) the least impacted but the rest of the metals complex feeling the heat again.  However, NatGas continues its strong rally, up another 5% this morning and looking for all the world like it is going to continue rising until it tests the November 2023 highs of $3.80/MMBtu which is still $.75 higher.

Finally, the dollar continues to gain at the margins with the euro (-0.2%) slipping further on the French political news, although the pound is bucking the trend with a very modest rise.  The other currency that is having a good day is MXN (+0.8%) which continues its slow rebound from its post-election collapse last week.  Otherwise, EEMEA currencies are all under pressure as is the CNY (-0.1%).  Now, 0.1% may not seem like a lot, but the PBOC has been walking the value of the renminbi lower (dollar higher) ever so slightly every day for the past three months and the fix last night was at its highest level since January.  It appears clear that the pressure for a devaluation is strong in China and that the PBOC is working very hard to maintain a sense of stability.  My sense is this gradual weakness will continue for quite a while, at least until the Fed makes a change.

And that’s what we have today.  The NFIB Small Business Optimism Index was just released at 90.5, a bit firmer than forecast, but that is not a market-moving data point.  And there are no other data points to await today, nor any Fedspeak so the FX markets will take its cues from bonds and stocks.  Given that CPI and the Fed are both tomorrow, I anticipate another very quiet session overall in the US as investors (and algorithms) will want new news to drive their next trades.  Broadly, I think we are in a ‘good data is bad’ for risk assets as the mindset is it will delay any Fed rate cuts even further.  Of course, if Treasury auctions continue to see shrinking demand (today there is a 10-year auction for $39 billion) that will certainly have an impact on the bond market, the Fed’s response, and by extension risk assets and the dollar.  So, arguably, that auction is the biggest news of the day this afternoon.

Good luck

Adf