Financial News and Portfolio Management Discussion through July 20th

US stocks fell over the week on expectations of just a quarter percent rate cut by the fed and mixed corporate earnings.  The S&P 500 fell 1.2% and the Dow declined 0.7% for the week.  Abroad, Europe eked out a 0.1% gain and Japan dropped 1.0% for the week.  Oil rose 4.5% over the week to end at $60.21 a barrel.  The yield on the 10-year Treasury eased to finish the week at 2.05%.

China posted its slowest pace of growth since 1992 with a second-quarter GDP of 6.2%.  Economists had expected 6.3% and last quarter the country grew at a 6.4% rate.

US retail spending rose 0.4% in June for the fourth straight month of rising spending showing the US consumer remains a strength for the economy.

US and China trade negotiations have stumbled over how to handle restrictions the US has placed on telecommunications giant Huawei.

Fed officials made their clearest signals yet that a quarter percent rate cut is on tap at their July meeting.

Netflix posted its first decline in US users in close to a decade.

With 15% of S&P 500 firms reporting earnings to date, earnings are on pace to decline 2.1% in the second quarter compared to a year earlier.  This is an improvement on the expected 3% contraction.

 

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