Rally Hopes Crumble as Powell’s Rates Reality Hits Full Force (Yields UP, Stock Futures DOWN)

I remember appearing on Fox Business’ Varney and Company about The Federal Reserve. When Stuart Varney asked me what will happen when The Fed finally removes the monetary stimulus, I made an explosion gesture. Well, its starting to happen.

(Bloomberg) The rally that’s bolstered risk assets over the past month was just a blip in a bear market that’s likely to worsen from here.

That’s the view of investors who seem to be finally getting the message that a resolutely hawkish Federal Reserve and central bank peers are planning to raise interest-rates at all costs to combat the hottest inflation in a generation.

Monday’s trading give credence to that prospect: equities, developed and emerging-market currencies and even haven Treasuries tumbled as fund managers digested Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s stern message that rates would keep going up even if it spells pain for households and businesses everywhere.

“The environment has changed,” said Kim Fournais, founder and chief executive of Saxo Bank A/S. “I just have a hard time seeing how this market, that is still trading close to all-time highs, can stay at those levels. There will be a period of great volatility.”

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. pegs the dollar as the main beneficiary amid the market chaos, Westpac Banking Corp. warns of fresh yen pressure and BNP Paribas Wealth Management sees more losses for developing-nation assets.

Almost every equity benchmark tumbled in Asia trading Monday as the fallout from the Fed’s hawkish rhetoric ripped through markets. S&P 500 futures dropped as much as 1.3%, indicating that US stocks are poised to extend a rout that saw the index erase $1.2 trillion on Friday.

Yields on two-year Treasuries jumped to the highest since 2007 as traders ratcheted up rate hike bets, while the yen hurtled toward the closely-watched 140 level. The risk-sensitive Korean won led losses among emerging peers, tumbling to a 13-year low.

Oddly, the Fed Funds Futures market wasn’t rattled by Powell’s announcement at Jackson Hole. The Fed’s target rate is 2.50% and is expected to rise to 3.863% by March then cool-off. The Cleveland Fed’s Mester said 4% then keeping it at 4% for an extended period of time.

But it is in Europe where Lagarde and company where the REAL action was. The ECB’s target rate is at 0% with a negative effective rate of -0.08%. But the ECB is expected to keep raising their target rate to 2.136% by July 2023.

Sovereign yields are rising across the board. Except for jolly old England.

Global equity futures are down across the board as well. But not like Friday’s plunge.

US Treasury Secretary Yellen Says Signs of US Recession Aren’t in Sight for Now (As Yield Curve And Atlanta Fed GDPNow Tracker SCREAM Recession)

Just remember, the US economy had strong employment figures just prior to the 2008 Great Recession and financial crisis, so US Treasury Secretary Yellen, Biden’s economic cheerleader Bernstein and Obama’s economic cheerleader Sperling are all relying on a bad indicator of economic health to justify that the US economy is in great shape.

(Bloomberg) — Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen expressed confidence in the Federal Reserve’s fight against inflation and said she doesn’t see any sign that the US economy is in a broad recession.

“We’re likely to see some slowing of job creation,” Yellen said on NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday. “I don’t think that that’s a recession. A recession is broad-based weakness in the economy. We’re not seeing that now.”

With US consumer prices rising at the fastest rate in four decades, a growing number of analysts say it will take a recession and higher joblessness to ease price pressures significantly. The Federal Reserve raised rates in June by the most since 1994 and is expected to approve another 75 basis-point hike this week.

Inflation is “way too high,” Yellen said, while renewing the Biden administration’s argument that it’s also high in many other advanced economies.

“The Fed is charged with putting in place policies that will bring inflation down,” said Yellen, a former Fed chair. “And I expect them to be successful.”

Dammit, Janet. All of Biden’s anti-fossil fuel orders are still in place and Biden/Pelosi/Schumer are still trying to pass the highly-inflationary Build Back (Inflation) Better bill. And The Fed still has not shrunk it massive balance sheet yet.

But Janet, the US Treasury 10Y-2Y yield curve remains inverted (historically ahead of a recession) while the Atlanta Fed GDPNow Q2 tracker is at -1.6% which would make the second quarter in a row of negative real GDP growth in a row (historically a definition of recession).

My preferred 10Y-2Y chart shows the yield curve more inverted than even prior to The Great Recession!

But in Yellen’s defense, The Fed’s preferred yield curve (implied yield on 3-month T-Bills in 18 month – 3 month T-Bill yield) is still positive, though crashing like a paralyzed falcon.

So, the Biden administration is sticking to the strong labor market story. But what the Biden Administration (and Yellen) fail to acknowledge is 1) unemployment is a lagged indicator of a recession (unemployment was low prior to the 2008 GREAT recession, then exploded and 2) there is still a tremendous amount of monetary stimulus outstanding that The Fed has taken away … yet.

Essentially, the Biden Administration is panicking over the coming mid-year election and will say anything at this point to stay in power. So, I would probably ignore anything said by Biden, Yellen and their talking heads before the midterms elections. But when Biden’s economic advisor says that the US economy is strong, I want to ask him how having NEGATIVE wage growth is a good thing,

Let’s see if Yellen is correct and The Fed’s Fireball will tame inflation. Frankly, I think the global slowdown is the only thing that will tame inflation.

Bidenflation Strikes! Dow Down 2% As Recession Fears Grow (Check Out M1 Money Growth!)

Lightning strikes!

Inflation has been a disaster for millions of Americans. As inflation grows (highest in 40 years), fears of recession are jolting markets.

The Dow today is down 2%.

Then again, Europe is down even more.

My favorite chart for explaining the surge in inflation is M1 Money Stock around the Covid outbreak in early 2020. Which has NOT been removed.

The US Treasury 10Y-2Y yield curve just inverted.

No, this is not a real ECB currency, but it might as well be.

S&P 500 Posts Worst First Half Rout Since 1970 As 10Y Treasury Yield Tanks 14 Basis Points (Biden Approval Drops To 38.3% On Rising Inflation, Gasoline Prices)

Run runaway! For safety to Treasuries.

A “recession shock” begins for markets following the worst first-half for the S&P 500 in more than 50 years.

And investors are running to Treasuries for safety as US Treasury 10-year yields tank 14 basis points.

Biden’s approval rating has collapse with inflation and rising gasoline prices. Note that Biden’s approval rating dropped below 50 in mid-August 2021, long before the Russian invasion of Ukraine in late February 2022. Gasoline prices had risen 49% since Biden’s inauguration as President, but before the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Winter is coming!

More On Fed’s Bullard’s “Consumers Healthy” Remark (Consumer Sentiment At Lowest Level Since 1977 While Unemployment Rate At Only 3.6%)

St. Louis Fed President Bullard made a remark the other day that consumers are healthy so a recession is unlikely.

Consumers are healthy? It is true that the US U-3 uemployment rate is low (3.6% versus 14.70% in April 2020 thanks to government shutdowns over Covid). But even though unemployment is low, consumer sentiment is at its lowest point since 1977.

Generally, consumer sentiment is high when unemployment is low, but not this time around. Currently, inflation is at the highest level since March 1980 even though consumer sentiment bottomed-out in April 1980.

Here is my chart showing that REAL average hourly earnings growth YoY is negative and getting worse, hardly a sign of “healthy consumers.”

Of course, rising gasoline and diesel prices have risen dramatically since 2021, but are declining slightly thanks to the global economic slowdown (read “lower demand”).

And a M2 Money Stock (green line) declined, US rents (blue line) declined as well.

We are truly living in Birdland. As in bird-brain land.

Already Gone! Russia Defaults on Foreign Debt for First Time Since 1918 (Europe Sov Yields UP 10+ BPS)

Already gone!

Russia defaulted on its foreign-currency sovereign debt for the first time in a century, the culmination of ever-tougher Western sanctions that shut down payment routes to overseas creditors.

For months, the country found paths around the penalties imposed after the Kremlin’s invasion of Ukraine. But at the end of the day on Sunday, the grace period on about $100 million of snared interest payments due May 27 expired, a deadline considered an event of default if missed.

It’s a grim marker in the country’s rapid transformation into an economic, financial and political outcast. The nation’s eurobonds have traded at distressed levels since the start of March, the central bank’s foreign reserves remain frozen, and the biggest banks are severed from the global financial system.

But given the damage already done to the economy and markets, the default is also mostly symbolic for now, and matters little to Russians dealing with double-digit inflation and the worst economic contraction in years.

War is hell and Ukraine is paying the price as well.

Meanwhile, European sovereign bond yields are up over 10 basis point this morning, but not UK and Sweden (non-ECB nations).

Opening Hell! Markets In Sea Of Red Thanks To Global Slowdown And Fed Signals Of Tightening (Global Markets In Sea Of Red)

Today’s opening bell is “Opening Hell!”

US Treasury 10Y yields are up +12.1 basis points as of 9:40am EST. And rising across the globe.

Equity markets? Dow is down -621.93 points and the NASDAQ is down almost -3%. But equity markets are down across the globe.

Commodities? Once again, all commodities in the red except corn (which I don’t eat) and natural gas.

Speaking of opening hell. The US Treasury 10Y-2Y yield flattened to 7 basis points.

And then we have Markit’s Credit Default Swaps index rising to the highest level since Covid (April 2020).

Markets are in a “Sea of Red.”

Inflation Inferno! Bidenflation Still Soaring, But Metals Dive -15% Since May 4th (Food UP 61.5% Under Biden, Gasoline UP 86%, Diesel UP 111%, Rents UP 16%)

Americans are suffering under Joe Biden. Call it Inflation Inferno!

Foodstuff are up 61.5% under Biden’s Reign of Error. Gasoline prices are up 85.8%, diesel prices are up 111%. Yet the government inflation index (aka, CPI) is up only 8.3% in April.

But while energy and food prices are soaring, the CRB Spot Metals Index has plummeted -15% since May 4 as Covid is ravaging the Chinese economy. Recession alter anyone?

And then we have soaring home prices and rents. But notice that Zillow’s Rent index is slowing down as mortgage rates soar.

We have a stalling Chinese market, down 28% since October. Is Biden President of China??

On the currency front, the Russian Ruble is soaring relative to the US Dollar while the Chinese Renminbi, the Japanese Yen and the Euro (or in this case, the Gyro) are sinking like a rock.

If I compare the Russian Ruble and Ukrainian Hryvnia, you can see Ukraine is losing the currency war with Russia.

Inflation Inferno thanks to Biden’s misguided energy executive orders and cancellation of Alaskan and Gulf of Mexico drilling leases.

Biden’s economic mismanagement team: American Gothics Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Fed Chair Jay Powell.

Panic In (Fed) Needle Park! Mortgage Purchase Applications INCREASE Despite Rapid Rise In Mortgage Rates (FEAR Of Further Fed Taking Away Punchbowl)

Today, the US Treasury 10-year yield exploded upwards by over 12 basis points. With it, the 30-year mortgage yield is above 5%. And MBA Mortgage Purchase Applications are actually increasing.

Today’s bond market summary shows the 10-year Treasury yield up 12.7 basis points. Its the same all over the western world. Asia? Not so much.

Fear of further Fed fireballs coming from removal of the monetary punchbowl.

Alarm! Treasury 10Y Term Premium Remains Deeply Negative As Fed Plans Its Attack On Mortgage Rates And Treasury Yields (3M TBill/OIS Spread Crashes As 30Y Mortgage Rate Is -3%) Venezuela 2Y Yield At … 436.77%

Alarm!

The 10-year Treasury term premium, the amount by which the yield on a long-term bond is greater than the yield on shorter-term bonds, remains steeply negative (white line) as The Federal Reserve steps up its attack (aka, monetary tightening). Meanwhile, the 10Y-2Y curve actually rose into positive territory.

Historically, the 10-year Treasury Term Premium declines before a recession.

Meanwhile, 3 month Treasury bill to Overnight Indexed Swaps spread is crashing to the lowest level since 2017.

But with inflation raging at the fastest pace in 40 years, the REAL 10-year Treasury yield remains negative at -5.236% while the REAL 30-year mortgage rate is -3.01%. Both were in positive territory when Biden was installed as President.

Speaking of interest rates, the infamous PIGS (Portugal, Italy, Greece, Spain) are all seeing surges in their 10-year sovereign yields. Sweden, while not a PIG has the largest spike today at 13.8 BPS.

Actually, the biggest spike in sovereign yields occurred in Ukraine where their 2-year yield popped +205.8 BPS. But Lebanon has the highest 2-year yield at 162.29%. Turkey is in third place in the sovereign demolition derby at 23.52%. Sadly, Poland’s 2-year yield is up 16 bps today.

But the winner of the sovereign debt demolition derby is …. drumroll … VENEZUELA! At 436.77%.

I am really surprised that Biden hasn’t adopted Maduro’s fashion sense.