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'Volatility Is Everywhere': The Market Tactic That’s Driving Stocks Haywire
June 12, 2020--Markets were once dominated by bulls who thought stocks would go up and bears who thought they would go down. These days, another animal is on the rise. It doesn't much care what stocks do, as long as they do something.
These investors are focused on volatility, the amount of movement in prices over time. In recent years, volatility has gone from a specialty of derivatives traders to a vehicle for trading in its own right. Investors big and small are wagering hundreds of billions of dollars on volatility, including by betting...
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Source: wsj.com
ETFGI reports ETFs and ETPs listed in US gathered net inflows of 28.38 billion US dollars during May 2020
June 11, 2020--ETFGI, a leading independent research and consultancy firm covering trends in the global ETFs/ETPs ecosystem, reported today that ETFs and ETPs listed in US gathered net inflows of US$28.38 billion during May, bringing year-to-date net inflows to US$131.45 billion which is significantly higher than the US$67.25 billion net inflows gathered at this point last year.
Assets invested in the US ETFs/ETPs industry have increased by 4.6%, from US$4.05 trillion at the end of April, to US$4.23 trillion at the end of May, according to ETFGI's May 2020 US ETFs and ETPs industry landscape insights report, an annual paid-for research subscription service. (All dollar values in USD unless otherwise noted.)
Highlights
Assets of $4.23 trillion invested in ETFs/ETPs listed in US at the end of May are the 4th highest on record.
During May 2020, ETFs/ETPs listed in US gathered $28.38 billion in net inflows. Fixed Income products gathered the majority of NNA.
Year-to-date net inflows of $131.45 billion are nearly double the $67.25 billion gathered at the end of May 2019.
The Feds investment in May into Investment Grade and High Yield ETFs has helped to support the ETF industry.
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Source: ETFGI
Direxion Launches Three First of Their Kind ETFs
June 11, 2020--Strategies Seek to Target Downside Risk Management, Sustainable Growth, and Potential Outperformance
Direxion has expanded its range of buy and hold products with the launch of the three new ETFs: the Direxion Dynamic Hedge ETF (Ticker: DYHG, Net Expense Ratio: 0.57%), the Direxion High Growth ETF (Ticker: HIPR, Expense Ratio: 0.40%), and the Direxion Fallen Knives ETF (Ticker: NIFE, Expense Ratio: 0.50%).
"Recent market events have reminded investors about the need for diversification and created opportunities to introduce unique exposures in portfolios," said Dave Mazza, Managing Director at Direxion. "We're excited to introduce these strategies to help investors build more robust portfolios in a challenging market environment."
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Source: Direxion
Vanguard Seeks to Draw Younger Investors With New Robo Service
June 11, 2020--Amid the disruption caused by the coronavirus crisis, a lot of people are looking for financial advice. Vanguard Group is hoping to capitalize on that, while also expanding the reach of the world's second-largest money manager to a younger clientele.
The firm is launching a robo advisory service that covers key elements of long-term financial planning at the low cost for which the company is known. The automated service, called Digital Advisor, is aimed at younger investors and cuts out human financial advisers entirely.
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Source: wsj.com
U.S. Business Debt Soars by Record on Bond Issuance, Loans
June 11, 2020--U.S. nonfinancial business debt soared in the first quarter by the most on record as loans and corporate bond issuance jumped, underscoring companies’ preparations to deal with the coronavirus fallout.
Firms boosted debt at an annualized 18.8% in the first quarter to a total outstanding $16.8 trillion, which surpassed the level of household debt, according to a Federal Reserve report out Thursday.
At the same time, household net worth fell the most on record, dropping to $110.8 trillion from $117.3 trillion in the prior period, as stock prices collapsed in February and March amid fears of the coronavirus.
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Source: bnnbloomberg.ca
Federal Reserve issues FOMC statement
June 10, 2020--The coronavirus outbreak is causing tremendous human and economic hardship across the United States and around the world. The virus and the measures taken to protect public health have induced sharp declines in economic activity and a surge in job losses. Weaker demand and significantly lower oil prices are holding down consumer price inflation.
Financial conditions have improved, in part reflecting policy measures to support the economy and the flow of credit to U.S. households and businesses.
The ongoing public health crisis will weigh heavily on economic activity, employment, and inflation in the near term, and poses considerable risks to the economic outlook over the medium term. In light of these developments, the Committee decided to maintain the target range for the federal funds rate at 0 to 1/4 percent. The Committee expects to maintain this target range until it is confident that the economy has weathered recent events and is on track to achieve its maximum employment and price stability goals.
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Source: federalreserve.gov
U.S. May deficit nearly doubles to $399 billion
June 10, 2020--The U.S. federal budget deficit in May nearly doubled to $399 billion from a year earlier amid continued strong spending on coronavirus relief programs and a 25% drop in receipts, the Treasury Department said on Wednesday.
The May deficit brought the year-to-date fiscal deficit to $1.88 trillion, already eclipsing the previous full-year record of $1.4 trillion in 2009, with some analysts predicting a gap as high as $3.8 trillion for the fiscal year to Sept. 30.
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Source: reuters.com
Dovish Powell Sees Fed Keeping Foot on Gas Until Jobs Come Back
June 10, 2020--Fed maintains Treasuries, MBS buying at least at $120b a month
Says virus continues to pose considerable risks to the economy
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell sent a powerful message Wednesday that the central bank will keep pumping stimulus into the U.S. economy until its traumatized labor market has healed from the harm of the coronavirus pandemic.
"We're not even thinking about thinking about raising rates," he told a video press conference after the Federal Open Market Committee held its key interest rate near zero and almost all officials forecast keeping it there through 2022.
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Source: bloomberg.com
Bakkt, Galaxy Digital to Offer Bitcoin Trading, Custody Solution for Institutions
June 10, 2020--Two New York-based crypto companies hope to scoop up growing institutional demand for physical bitcoin.
Announced Wednesday, Galaxy Digital's trading arm and regulated bitcoin futures provider Bakkt said the service will offer asset managers and other institutional investors a "white glove" trading and custody solution.
As part of the collaboration, Galaxy will provide all the trading services and functionalities, leveraging its existing plugins to 30 different exchange venues. Meanwhile, Bakkt will offer custody services through its Bakkt Warehouse, which it currently uses to facilitate physically settled bitcoin contracts.
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Source: coindesk.com
Stock Pickers Underperformed During Coronavirus Market Turmoil
June 10, 2020--In the early months of 2020, most U.S. large-cap stock-picking funds lagged behind the S&P 500
Most U.S. large-cap stock-picking funds underperformed the benchmark S&P 500 during the tumultuous early months of 2020, according to new data from S&P Dow Jones Indices.
As fears of the coronavirus pandemic and related economic damage rippled through the markets, the S&P 500 tumbled 34% from its February high to its March low. But by the end of April, the index had shot back up 30% and posted its best one-month percentage gain since January 1987.
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Source: wsj.com