Buzz on Business for Wednesday, January 10, 2024

Stocks finished the day mixed, mostly lower. It was an – interesting – day for those of us who stare into the infinite confines of a Giant Quote Machine all day. And while we would have been happier if stocks had risen, it was a good day. Until we read some of the commentary and analysis that attempts to explain why the markets do what they do and why they do what they do.

Then, we got, shall we say, frustrated?

Stock Market Report

Stocks sold off hard at the open but fought back most of the day but only the techs managed to light up the green numbers.

• The Dow Jones Industrials had been down over three hundred points but closed with a loss of 158 points, off four-tenths of a percent, and starts the day today at 37,525
• The S&P 500 was off seven points or two-tenths of a percent, and it closed at 4,757.
• The Nasdaq Composite finished the session with a gain of fourteen points, almost one-tenth, and closed at 14,858.
• The RSP—the Equal Weight S&P 500 was off a half of a percent. The SOXL—the Semiconductor Index with three-to-one leverage was off a penny, basically flat on the day.

Bond Markets

Bonds! It was bond market commentary that set my blood to boil yesterday! More on that in just a second!

• The two-year Treasury traded in a very narrow range and finished little changed. It now yields 4.366%, off a minuscule one tick.
• Likewise, the twenty-year moved mostly sideways yesterday. It now yields 4.327%. That’s off less than one basis point.

Oil and Gold

• Oil was up $1.31 and closed at $72.14 for every forty-two-gallon barrel.
• Gold had another of those days. It was up and down but closed about where it started. A troy ounce now trades hands at $2,033, off fifty cents.

So what has got us so upset? Well, we might be accurately described as a news hound. We read, we listen, we surf. Our only motivation is to bring you, our listeners, the very best in business, financial, economic, and stock market news. Every day.

So, yesterday, we found two stories. I don’t like to name names, but I’ve got to. In this case, I simply must. Justice demands it!

Both stories were posted on the CNBC website. And we like CNBC. Enough. Both stories, interestingly enough, were written by the same person, Sophie Kiderlin. Sophie seems like a nice lady. I’m sure her mama loves her. She’s got a Master’s Degree in International Journalism, whatever that is, and hey! She’s working for CNBC, and I’m doing some damn podcast. So. . .

Anyway, both stories appeared in my news feed at the same time and NEXT TO EACH OTHER. But it appears that one was written after the markets closed on Monday, at about 4:00 PM ET, and the other about twelve hours later, at 4:00 AM Tuesday morning, but, and this is important, while the markets were still closed.

Here are the two headlines, verbatim:

The first one is, “10-year Treasury yield edges up as investors consider economic outlook”

The second one, “10-year Treasury yield falls, teeters around key 4% level”

I’ve put links to the two stories below, as well as an image from the Giant Quote Machine, showing the yield of the 10-year Treasury over the last month or so. Check it out

A couple of things. First and foremost, the yield on the 10-year Treasury DID NOT EDGE UP on Monday. It fell. I read the headline and panicked because I know what I reported on Tuesday morning’s Buzz on Business. And I thought I was wrong!

I wasn’t.

Secondly, at 4:00 AM ET, the 10-year Treasury was neither falling nor teetering. Treasuries trade twenty-four hours a day, and after Monday’s close, the yield ticked up. It ticked up just a bit, but it didn’t fall. It didn’t teeter.

I get it. Sophie didn’t write these headlines, and it’s been a slow couple of days for news. No earnings. No economic data. Let me tell ya, I feel Sophie’s pain.

But this “news” is flat wrong! It’s deceptive! Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. As far as I’m concerned, neither Sophie nor her editors at CNBC have a clue. You shouldn’t be paying any attention to anything they write or say.

There’s only one thing for you to do.

Keep it right here.

https://www.cnbc.com/2024/01/09/us-treasury-yields-investors-consider-economic-outlook.html

https://www.cnbc.com/2024/01/08/us-treasury-yields-investors-await-key-economic-data.html

https://1drv.ms/i/s!AhOKQMMFxEtpgb55rzXmwNGXzO-A5Q?e=q7qeXD