Futures Slide As Amazon, Apple Slump; Nasdaq Set For Worst Month Since Nov 2008

It has been an illiquid, rollercoaster session on the last day of the week and month, which first saw US index futures modestly rise alongside European stocks propped up by surging Chinese and Asian markets following Beijing’s latest vow to use new tools and policies to spur growth, however the initial move higher quickly faded as markets remembered that not only did Amazon report dismal earnings (with Apple also sliding on weak guidance) but the Fed is set to hike 50bps (or maybe 75bps) next week, and put a lit on any upside follow through. As a result, S&P500 futures dropped 0.9%, while Nasdaq futures retreated 1.1% on the last trading day of April, adding to their 9.3% decline so far this month and on pace for the worst monthly performance since November 2008 as fears of rising rates hurt bubbly growth shares and fuel risks for future profits. The yen snapped a slide while staying near 20-year lows. The yuan, euro, pound and commodity-linked currencies made gains while the dollar dipped. 10Y TSY yields rose, rising by about 4bps to 2.87% while gold moved back above $1900. Bitcoin tumbled as usual, and last traded back under $39,000.

In premarket trading, Amazon.com plunged 9%, after projecting dismal second-quarter sales growth, while the world’s largest company Apple dropped 2.8% after warning on supply constraints. Meanwhile, Tesla shares gained 3.1% premarket after CEO Elon Musk said he doesn’t plan on selling any more stock after a $4 billion stake sale. Here are some other notable premarket movers:

• Intel (INTC US) shares slide 3.1% premarket as analysts flag “light” guidance for the chipmaker’s second quarter, stoking worries over the impact of waning demand for PCs. Intel’s second-quarter forecast missed the average estimate.
• Robinhood (HOOD US) shares are set to open at a record low Friday as a lockdown-driven boom in retail trading continues to fade and a stock market selloff squeezes out some clients.
• Tesla (TSLA US) shares rise as much as 4.2% premarket, after CEO Elon Musk said he doesn’t plan on offloading any more Tesla stock after selling ~$4b of shares in the electric vehicle maker following his deal to buy Twitter.
• Accolade (ACCD US) plummets 36% premarket after the company’s 2023 revenue forecast fell short of estimates, with Morgan Stanley downgrading the healthcare software provider to equal-weight after the loss of a key customer.
• Finch Therapeutics (FNCH US) shares soar as much as 54% premarket after the biotech announced that the FDA removed the clinical hold on Finch’s investigational new drug application for CP101.
• Piper Sandler cut its recommendation on Mastercard (MA US) to underweight, becoming the first broker to downgrade the company with a sell-equivalent rating since August. Shares down 1.1% premarket.
• U.S.-listed Chinese stocks rally across the board in premarket trading after China’s top leaders pledged more support to spur economic growth and vowed to contain Covid outbreaks. Alibaba (BABA US) +13%, JD.com (JD US) +16%.
• Zymeworks (ZYME US) climbs 30% premarket; All Blue Capital made a non-binding offer at $10.50 per share in cash for the biotech company, Reuters reports, citing people familiar with the matter.

Outside of the flagship tech giant earnings misses, the results season has been reassuring so far. S&P 500 earnings growth is tracking 4.3% year-on-year, with 86% of companies beating estimates, according to Barclays strategists. “With continued solid U.S. growth prospects, robust earnings, and relatively strong household balance sheets, a recession in the next 12 months is not in our base case,” said UBS Wealth Management CIO Mark Haefele. 

Meanwhile, as reported earlier, China’s top leaders promised to boost economic stimulus to spur growth.  While China’s announcement brought some relief for markets, many risks remain. They span China’s ongoing Covid challenges, the impact of the Fed on the U.S. economy and Russia’s war in Ukraine.

“The Fed’s record on soft landings is not that strong,” Carol Schleif, deputy chief investment officer at BMO Family Office LLC, said on Bloomberg Television. “Markets are watching very, very carefully to see if we can thread that needle.”

The latest U.S. data showed that the world’s largest economy unexpectedly shrank for the first time since 2020. That reflected an import surge tied to solid consumer demand, suggesting growth will return imminently.  The figures underscore the debate about how much scope the U.S. central bank has to tighten policy before the economy cracks. Markets continue to project a half-point Fed rate hike next week.

“A year from now, 10-year yields are most likely going to be lower than where we are today,” Jimmy Chang, chief investment officer at Rockefeller Financial LLC, said on Bloomberg Television, referring to Treasuries. “I do believe at some point the economy starts to weaken, the Fed will be less hawkish, perhaps even go into a pause mode by, say, early next year.”

Meanwhile, China’s latest vow to prop up markets helped support European stocks (in addition to Asian and Chinese stocks of course), also spurred by a robust earnings season. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index climbed 0.8%, trimming a monthly decline. The Euro Stoxx 50 gains as much as 1.5% with most cash equity indexes gaining over 1% before stalling. Tech, consumer products and financial services are the strongest performing sectors. Here are some of the biggest European movers today:

• Novo Nordisk shares gain as much as 7.3% after the Danish pharmaceutical giant reported its latest earnings, which included a large beat on its blockbuster obesity drug Wegovy. The company also hiked its outlook.
• BBVA rises as much as 5.6% after better-than-expected first-quarter earnings, as the Spanish lender’s performance in Turkey showed signs of vindicating Chief Executive Officer Onur Genc’s bet on the country.
• Johnson Matthey jumps as much as 36%, the steepest gain since at least 1989 when Bloomberg’s records started, after Standard Industries Inc. bought a stake in the company.
• Remy Cointreau climbs as much as 3.8% after the French distiller reported 4Q sales that were in line with consensus. Analysts noted the strong start to the current fiscal year and a limited impact so far from a Covid-19 resurgence in the key Chinese market.
• Spie shares climb as much as 5.1% after the French company reported 1Q figures that Bryan Garnier said were “substantially” above expectations, with planned European investments for energy independence also viewed as a potential headwind.
• AstraZeneca shares decline as much as 1.3% after the company’s first-quarter earnings included a beat on core EPS and overall revenue, but also a slight miss on Alexion rare disease medication and key growth drugs such as Imfinzi.
• Neste falls as much as 8.7% even as the Finnish maker of renewable diesel reported first-quarter results that beat estimates. Jefferies (hold) said the lack of longer-term (full-year 2022) margin guidance could disappoint.
• Henkel tumbles as much as 10% after what RBC says was a “substantial profit warning” for 2022.
• NatWest falls as much as 6% after its 1Q results got a mixed response from analysts. Some were impressed with the performance of the bank’s Go-Forward business, while others highlighted the very low mortgage spread and miss in the CET1 capital ratio.
• Orsted drop as much as 3.2% despite reporting a 1Q profit beat, with analysts focusing on the project delays due to supply chain shortages as well as the impact of high input costs.

Earlier in the session, Asian stocks climbed for a second day led by a jump in Chinese technology shares, amid a series of new policy promises from the country’s top leaders to bolster the economy and markets.  The MSCI Asia Pacific Index advanced as much as 1.7%, with Tencent and Alibaba among the biggest gainers. The Hang Seng Tech Index soared more than 10%, rebounding from earlier losses, as the country vowed to support healthy growth of platform companies. As reported earlier, China’s Politburo, led by President Xi Jinping, vowed to meet economic targets in a sign that it may step up stimulus to support growth. Shortly before the measures were unveiled, Chinese tech stocks reversed earlier losses as traders speculated about a possible relaxation of the yearlong regulatory clampdown. Chipmakers in Taiwan and South Korea also climbed, helping the region’s tech sector. A Bloomberg index of Asian semiconductor stocks rallied as much as 2.4%, its biggest gain in more than two weeks. A key technical indicator suggested that the sector is still oversold after Intel’s disappointing profit forecast.

“After recent selloffs in the semiconductor sector, the price levels have become attractive for dip buyers,” said Seo Jung-Hun, a strategist at Samsung Securities, adding that the rebound may be limited ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve meeting next week.   Stocks in South Korea, Taiwan and Australia advanced while those in Japan were closed for a holiday. Asia’s equity benchmark was still poised for its steepest monthly drop since March 2020 and its fourth monthly decline.

Australian stocks also advanced, paring the week’s decline. The S&P/ASX 200 index rose 1.1% to 7,435.00, paring the week’s loss. Technology and communications sectors gained the most Friday. Pointsbet gained the most in almost a month, snapping a five day losing streak after reporting turnover for the third quarter. Domino’s Pizza fell for a fourth day, dropping the most in a month. New Zealand, the S&P/NZX 50 index was little changed at 11,884.30.

India’s benchmark equities index completed a third monthly slide this year as higher oil prices weighed on sentiment.  The S&P BSE Sensex fell 0.8% to 57,060.87 in Mumbai on Friday, taking its loss in April to 2.6%. Axis Bank Ltd. dropped 6.6% after reporting earnings and was the biggest drag on the Sensex, which saw 23 of 30 member-stocks fall. The NSE Nifty 50 Index also slipped 0.8% to 17,102.55. All 19 sectoral sub-indexes compiled by BSE Ltd. slipped, led by a gauge of oil and gas companies.  “We’ve been seeing the index oscillating in a broader range for the last two weeks and there’s no clarity over the next directional move yet,” Ajit Mishra, vice president for research at Religare Broking Ltd., wrote in a note.  The brokerage maintains a cautious view, with focus on earnings, auto sales data and the initial share sale of Life Insurance Corporation next week.  Of the 15 Nifty 50 firms that have announced earnings results so far, 10 either met or exceeded analysts’ expectations, while five missed. 

In FX, the Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell after touching an almost two-year high yesterday as the greenback weakened against all of its Group-of-10 peers. Treasuries underperformed European bonds, with 3-year yields rising by 7bps. Scandinavian currencies were the top performers as they were supported by month-end flows. The Australian dollar extended intra-day gains after China’s top leaders promised to boost economic stimulus to spur growth and vowed to contain the country’s worst Covid outbreak since 2020, which is threatening official targets for this year. The euro snapped six days of losses against the dollar but was still set for its worst monthly performance in almost four years. Bunds extended losses and yields rose by up to 5 bps after data showed euro-area consumer prices rose by 7.5% from a year earlier in April, in line with the median estimate in a Bloomberg survey. A gauge excluding volatile items such as food and energy jumped to 3.5%. The pound advanced against the dollar, trimming a weekly decline of 2.2%. The cost of hedging against swings in the pound over a one-week period rose to the highest since December 2020. Gilts outperformed bunds and Treasuries, as money markets pared BOE tightening wagers. The yen rose on demand over the currency fix in Tokyo but it remains on track for its worst monthly performance since 2016

In rates, Treasuries hold losses into the U.S. session leaving yields down by as much as 6bps across front-end as the curve flattens. 10-year TSY yields were around 2.86%, cheaper by 4bp vs. Thursday close while 2s10s, 5s30s spreads flatten 2bp and 2.5bp amid front-end and belly-led weakness. German short-end cheapens roughly 5 bps to 0.24% as euro-area core inflation accelerated higher than expected. In Europe, peripherals underperform and lead bond losses while Estoxx50 climbs following better sentiment across Asia stocks after China’s pledge to ramp up stimulus.  Dollar issuance slate empty so far; two names priced $4.5b Thursday, taking weekly volumes through $8b vs. $20b forecast. Expectations are for $20b to $25b next week and a total of $125b to $150b for the month of May

In commodities, WTI rose 1.2% higher to trade near $107. Saudi Aramco is expected to lower its official selling prices for June-loading crudes, market sources told S&P Global Commodity Insights; following tepid Asian demand fundamentals, with the OSP differentials retreating from the record highs. North Sea Crude oil grades underpinning dated Brent Benchmark to average 540k BPD in June (prev. 755k BPD), according to programmes. Indian firms are reportedly seeking oil import deals with Russia, according to sources cited by Reuters; three refiners looking to buy up to 16mln bbl per month of oil from Russia. Spot gold rises roughly $20 to trade around $1,915/oz. Most base metals trade in the green.

Bitcoin prices are softer as usual and briefly retreated beneath the 39,000 level.

Looking at the day ahead now, and data releases include the flash CPI estimate for the Euro Area in April, as well as the first look at Q1 GDP for the Euro Area, Germany, France and Italy. Otherwise from the US, we’ll get March’s data on personal spending and personal income, the Q1 employment cost index, the NI Chicago PMI for April, and the University of Michigan’s final consumer sentiment index for April. From central banks, we’ll hear from the ECB’s de Cos, and the Central Bank of Russia will be making its latest policy decision. Finally, earnings releases include ExxonMobil, Chevron, AbbVie, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Honeywell International, Charter Communications, Aon and NatWest.

Market Snapshot

• S&P 500 futures down 0.9% to 4,242.00
• STOXX Europe 600 up 1.0% to 451.55
• MXAP up 2.0% to 169.00
• MXAPJ up 2.6% to 561.33
• Nikkei up 1.7% to 26,847.90
• Topix up 2.1% to 1,899.62
• Hang Seng Index up 4.0% to 21,089.39
• Shanghai Composite up 2.4% to 3,047.06
• Sensex up 0.5% to 57,796.94
• Australia S&P/ASX 200 up 1.1% to 7,435.01
• Kospi up 1.0% to 2,695.05
• German 10Y yield little changed at 0.88%
• Euro up 0.7% to $1.0574
• Brent Futures up 0.9% to $108.51/bbl
• Brent Futures up 0.9% to $108.51/bbl
• Gold spot up 1.1% to $1,915.10
• U.S. Dollar Index down 0.66% to 102.94

Top Overnight News from Bloomberg

• More than six years after China’s shock 2015 devaluation roiled global markets and spurred an estimated $1 trillion in capital flight, the yuan is weakening at a similar pace. Onshore it’s lost nearly 4% in eight days, while the offshore rate is heading for its worst month relative to the greenback in history. Selling momentum is the strongest since the height of Donald Trump’s trade war in 2018
• Geopolitical turmoil is reviving the dollar’s status as a haven, extending gains seen earlier this year as traders shifted to the U.S. to seize on rising interest rates from the Federal Reserve. On Thursday, one gauge of the greenback pushed through to the strongest level since 2002, swept up by a wave of demand for the world’s reserve currency
• Russia’s war with Ukraine may persuade the Swiss National Bank to adjust its monetary policy if inflation accelerates, SNB President Thomas Jordan said
• Economic expansion in the euro zone began 2022 on a weak footing — underscoring the damage from soaring energy costs and worsening supply snarls following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Output increased 0.2% from the previous quarter in the three months through March — matching the median estimate in a Bloomberg survey
• U.K. house prices rose for a ninth consecutive month in April as the housing market continued to defy an escalating cost of living crisis. The 0.3% gain marked the longest winning streak since 2016
• Oil is poised for a fifth monthly gain after another tumultuous period of trading that saw prices whipsawed by the fallout from Russia’s war in Ukraine and the resurgence of Covid-19 in China

A More detailed look at global markets courtesy of Newsquawk

APAC stocks gained after the firm lead from the US where stocks looked past the surprise contraction in US GDP, but with advances in the region capped heading into month-end and next week’s mass closures. ASX 200 was firmer as tech mirrored the outperformance of the Nasdaq stateside and with gold miners following closely behind after the precious metal reclaimed the psychological USD 1900/oz level. Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp were initially indecisive ahead of next week’s holiday closures including in the mainland where markets will remain closed through to Wednesday, while participants also digested the surprise contraction in Hong Kong’s exports and imports data. However, a surge in Hong Kong tech stocks and policy pledges by China’s Politburo helped shake off the indecision.

Top Asian News

• Bets of Easing Crackdown Spur Dizzying Jump in China Tech Stocks
• Grab Gets Malaysia Digital Bank License as Five Bids Win
• CATL Posts Sharp Drop in Earnings in Abrupt Reversal of Fortune
• China Plans Symposium With Big Tech Firms After Labor Day: SCMP

European equities remained on the front foot on the last trading day of the month.   In terms of sectors, tech currently stands as the clear outperformer amid the sectoral gains on Wall Street yesterday alongside the surge in Chinese Tech. Overall, sectors have a slight anti-defensive bias. State-side futures were dented overnight amid after-hours losses in Amazon (-9% pre-market) and Apple (-2.4% pre-market) following disappointing guidance and inflationary headwinds. Thus, the NQ (-0.8%) currently lags.

Top European News

• Russia Offers Dual-Payment Plan for Oil, Other Trade With India
• Germany Says Won’t Block Embargo on Russian Oil to Punish Putin
• UBS Wealth Says Too Early to Bet on Recession, Fed’s Failure
• U.K. House Prices Deliver Longest Winning Streak Since 2016

FX

• Dollar bulls book profits into month end and DXY pulls back further from near 104.000 peak in the process.
• High betas, cyclical and activity currencies grab the chance to recoup losses vs Buck.
• Euro rebounds amidst more hot Eurozone inflation data, but could be hampered by big option expiries.
• Yuan regroups as Chinese Government promises stimulus measures and aid for sectors of the economy suffering worst covid contagion
• Central Bank of Russia (CBR) cuts key rate by 300bps to 14.00% (exp. 15.00%); sees key rate in 12.5-14.00% range this year (prev. 9.0-11.0%).
• Russia’s Kremlin, when asked about the idea of pegging the RUB to gold prices, says it is under discussion, according to Reuters.

Fixed Income

• Bonds suffer another inflation setback after early EU rebound.
• Bunds some 100 ticks down from 154.69 peak, Gilts flattish between 119.34-118.73 parameters and 10 year T-note nearer 119-04+ low than 19-24 high.
• BTPs weak after so-so reception at end of month Italian auctions – US PCE data also adds to caution as Fed’s preferred measure of inflation.

Commodities

• WTI and Brent front-month futures have been gaining during the European morning.
• Saudi Aramco is expected to lower its official selling prices for June-loading crudes, market sources told S&P Global Commodity Insights; following tepid Asian demand fundamentals, with the OSP differentials retreating from the record highs. (S&PGlobal)
• North Sea Crude oil grades underpinning dated Brent Benchmark to average 540k BPD in June (prev. 755k BPD), according to programmes.
• Indian firms are reportedly seeking oil import deals with Russia, according to sources cited by Reuters; three refiners looking to buy up to 16mln bbl per month of oil from Russia.
• Spot gold has been rising in tandem with a pullback in the Buck but ahead of the US March PCE metric.
• Overnight, base metals saw gains in Shanghai, with some also citing a demand front-load ahead of the Chinese Labour Day.

US Event Calendar

• 08:30: 1Q Employment Cost Index, est. 1.1%, prior 1.0%
• 08:30: March Personal Income, est. 0.4%, prior 0.5%
  • March Personal Spending, est. 0.6%, prior 0.2%
  • March Real Personal Spending, est. -0.1%, prior -0.4%
  • March PCE Deflator MoM, est. 0.9%, prior 0.6%
  • March PCE Deflator YoY, est. 6.7%, prior 6.4%
  • March PCE Core Deflator MoM, est. 0.3%, prior 0.4%
  • March PCE Core Deflator YoY, est. 5.3%, prior 5.4%
• 09:45: April MNI Chicago PMI, est. 62.0, prior 62.9
• 10:00: April U. of Mich. Sentiment, est. 65.7, prior 65.7
  • U. of Mich. Expectations, est. 64.1, prior 64.1
  • U. of Mich. Current Conditions, est. 68.0, prior 68.1
  • U. of Mich. 1 Yr Inflation, est. 5.5%, prior 5.4%; 5-10 Yr Inflation, prior 3.0%

DB’s Jim Reid concludes the overnight wrap

By the time you’re reading this I’ll be lying down with straps around my ankles and wrists and making strange noises while I get manipulated by someone very strict. No I’m not remaking “50 Shades” but instead starting “Reformer Pilates” for the first time at a very early physio appointment. The miracle worker of a back consultant that has for now cured my debilitating sciatica with one simple injection has recommended it as a way of preventing a relapse. At this point, I will do absolutely anything he says so I’m prepared to humiliate myself on a regular basis going forward. So feel free to picture this as you read this.

Some of the bearish chains have been loosened in risk markets over the last 24 hours but volatility remains elevated. We’ve seen another major European bond selloff, the highest German inflation since 1950, a further surge in the dollar, an unexpected US economic contraction in Q1, poor Amazon earnings, as well as growing geopolitical tensions as speculation continues about a Russian oil embargo in Europe. In spite of all that however, major equity indices have continued to advance from their Tuesday lows, with the S&P 500 (+2.47%) staging a huge comeback as investors focused on the more positive stories from recent corporate earnings releases.

This was before Amazon missed sales expectations after the bell and revised down sales expectations for the second-quarter, fueling fears that consumer spending may slow despite evidence of robust activity in yesterday’s GDP data. Amazon shares were -9.15% lower after hours. However, Apple reported earnings that beat estimates on strong iPhone sales, despite supply chain issues coinciding with China’s lockdowns. Shares were -2.19% lower after hours. Overall sentiment still remains fragile with NASDAQ 100 futures (-1.04%) and S&P 500 futures (-0.43%) moving lower in the overnight trade.

This followed the best day for the S&P 500 (+2.47%) since the bounceback after the initial invasion in early March, with every sector more than +1.00% higher. Megacap tech stocks led the way as the FANG+ index rose +4.78%, its best day since mid-March. Europe also saw decent gains, although missing most of the rally that took place in the New York afternoon, with the STOXX 600 (+0.62%), the DAX (+1.35%) and the FTSE 100 (+1.13%) all higher. Given the big run-up in the New York afternoon, the S&P 500 was ‘only’ around +0.8% higher as Europe closed.

Bond markets were again lively with most of the action in Europe, with a significant selloff after the German CPI print for April surprised on the upside yet again. Looking at the details, the year-on-year measure rose to +7.8% using the EU-harmonised method (vs. +7.6% expected), which is certainly the fastest pace of inflation since German reunification, and at the same level briefly seen in West Germany after the first oil shock in 1973. Indeed if you’re looking for German inflation faster than that, you’ve got to go all the way back to the 1950s, since West Germany had much more success than the US or UK for example in keeping inflation in the single-digits even during the 1970s. We’ll have to see what the flash CPI reading for the entire Euro Area brings today, but as I mentioned in my Chart of the Day yesterday (link here), this brings home just how far the ECB is behind the curve, since the last time inflation was around these levels in the 70s, the Bundesbank certainly didn’t have a negative deposit rate.

With the inflation reading coming in above expectations, that catalysed a fresh bond selloff that took the 10yr bund yield up by +9.8bps to 0.89%. This echoes some of the other big moves higher in yields we’ve seen over the last couple of months, but it still leaves them beneath the peak of 0.97% at the end of last week. What was also noticeable was the fresh widening in spreads that speaks to the building minor stresses in European markets right now, with the gap between Italian and German 10yr yields up a further +4.2bps to 181bps, a level not seen since June 2020. As in the previous session, those moves were seen in the credit space too, with the iTraxx Crossover widening +3.7bps to 418bps, leaving it just shy of its recent peak at 421bps in early March.

Another cause for concern in European markets have been the ongoing tensions between Russia and the West over Ukraine, with the Euro falling by a further -0.55% yesterday to $1.0499, the first close below $1.05 since early 2017, although this morning it has moved back up to $1.0514. Conversely the dollar index (+0.65%) continued its upward march, strengthening for the 19th time in the last 21 sessions, and closing at its strongest level since 2002. That comes as the latest reports indicate that a Russian oil embargo is moving closer, with Brent crude ending the day up +2.16% at $107.59/bbl after Dow Jones reported that Germany had dropped its opposition to an embargo, and this morning, Brent has risen further to $108.00/bbl. We also heard from President Biden, who requested $33bn from Congress for further assistance to Ukraine, including $20.4bn on security and military assistance, $8.5bn on economic assistance, and $3bn on humanitarian assistance.

Overnight in Asia, equity markets are mostly trading higher following the strong performance on Wall Street, with tech stocks leading the way. The Hang Seng (+2.04%) has seen one of the strongest performances, far outpacing mainland Chinese indices including the Shanghai Composite (+0.37%) and the CSI 300 (-0.06%). That comes amidst persistent concerns over the country’s lockdowns, with Shanghai seeing an increase in Covid-19 cases for the first time in 6 days, and overnight we also heard from China’s Politburo, with CCTV reporting that they’re urging efforts to meet the economic growth targets. Elsewhere, the Kospi (+0.78%) is trading up while markets in Japan are closed for a holiday today.

Back on the data front, another notable release yesterday came from the US GDP reading for Q1. On one level it’s a fairly backward-looking reading, but the print saw an unexpected contraction, with the economy shrinking at an annualised rate of -1.4%, marking the first quarterly contraction since the lockdowns of Q2 2020. That said, there are no indications this is going to derail the Fed from their path of rate hikes, with a 50bps move next week still fully priced in. In fact, there was a massive drag coming from the surprisingly large trade deficit, while underlying consumption was actually very robust, suggesting rates need to get even higher to slow demand, as we’ve been arguing. In turn, the amount of Fed hikes priced for the rest of the year moved up +2.2bps to 239bps, and this morning they’re up to 242bps, just shy of their closing high last Friday at 244bps. That led to a renewed flattening in the yield curve, and 2yr yields gained +2.6bps while 10yr yields fell -0.9bps. Despite the tepid headline nominal move, there was a big divergence in 10yr inflation breakevens and real yields. Breakevens gained +7.3bps to 2.98%, a few bps shy of their highest levels on record from last week. By contrast, real yields fell -8.2bps to -0.16%, taking them a further from positive territory ahead of next week’s FOMC where its also widely-anticipated they will announce the beginning of their QT program.

To the day ahead now, and data releases include the flash CPI estimate for the Euro Area in April, as well as the first look at Q1 GDP for the Euro Area, Germany, France and Italy. Otherwise from the US, we’ll get March’s data on personal spending and personal income, the Q1 employment cost index, the MNI Chicago PMI for April, and the University of Michigan’s final consumer sentiment index for April. From central banks, we’ll hear from the ECB’s de Cos, and the Central Bank of Russia will be making its latest policy decision. Finally, earnings releases include ExxonMobil, Chevron, AbbVie, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Honeywell International, Charter Communications, Aon and NatWest.