US Markets Stocks were up on Wednesday after a two-day decline to start the week due to strong company earnings and economic data. - Stocks futures are down slightly overnight as markets struggled to maintain the positive investor sentiment.
- The S&P 500 hit its highest point in over a month on Wednesday as tech stocks led the rise in equities. The S&P 500 is up 14% from its recent low.
- The services purchasing managers index (PMI) for July came in at 56.7, above expectations and slightly up from the previous month, indicating that the economy might not be contracting as much as previously thought.
- St. Louis Federal Reserve President James Bullard said he does not think the U.S. is in a recession.
- The current 10 Year US Treasury yield is set at 2.70550%
| Dow Jones | 32,812.50 | 1.29% | | S&P 500 | 4,155.17 | 1.56% | | Nasdaq | 12,668.16 | 2.59% | | Russell 2000 | 1,908.93 | 1.41% | *Stock Market data as of the last closing bell. Data received directly from the references indexes through ICE Data Services. Do you not understand any of these figures? Check out our explainer.
| |
 A message from PERCENT Trying to find sizable returns in this volatile market? Percent gives accredited investors exclusive access to the $7 trillion private credit market, letting you invest like hedge funds and pension plans. What is Private Credit? An asset class involving investments in private loans and debt financing. Investors loan money to companies, receiving interest in return. Investing in these deals means the chance to earn high-yielding interest. Percent investors have unprecedented access to different types of debt financing, including: - Non-bank lenders’ small business and consumer lending portfolios (receivables, merchant cash advances, installment loans)
- Corporate loans to startups
- Automated exposure to multiple private credit investments
Why Percent? They offer up to 18% APY, with an average maturity of 9-months. Plus, deals are largely uncorrelated from the stock market. Ready to add high-yield investments to your portfolio? Start today and get up to $500 with your first investment. Get Started
| |
Canadian Markets Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland said the Canadian Government has a political responsibility to assist European countries attempting to reduce their dependence on Russian fossil fuels. - Canada is already discussing potential LNG projects to boost exports to Germany.
- Freeland is currently traveling through Atlantic Canada, including visits to energy facilities and LNG terminals.
- This statement comes at a time when numerous countries are trying to fill the gap left by decreasing fossil fuel exports from Russia due to the war in Ukraine.
*Canadian stock prices are as of the last close. Data received directly from the references indexes through ICE Data Services
| |
 A message from VANTA The fastest way for organizations to become compliant is with the help of automated security platforms. Researching and committing to an automated security platforms can be tricky — where do you start and what do you need? Vanta’s 5 Must-Haves in an Automated Security Platform guide dives into the five features organizations should look for in an automated platform. The guide will also cover, how the features can accelerate the compliance process and why investing in the right compliance platform now can enhance your security in the future. Download the guide today
| |
European Markets European markets were up significantly late on Wednesday after U.S. services PMI showed surprising growth in July. - Commerzbank, SocGen, BMW, Banco BPM, Siemens Healthineers, and more reported their earnings.
- The Stoxx 600 was up 0.5% on the day, with tech stocks leading markets by adding 3.5%.
- Avast shares were up 43% after the UK provisionally cleared the company's sale for $8.6B.
| Euro STOXX 50 | 3,732.54 | 1.30% | | UK (FTSE 100) | 7,445.68 | 0.49% | | Germany (DAX) | 13,587.56 | 1.03% | | France (CAC 40) | 6,472.06 | 0.97% | *European stock prices are as of 7 am ET. Data received directly from the references indexes through ICE Data Services.
| |
Asian Markets Stocks in Asia were up on Wednesday despite some volatility throughout the trading day. - CATLS shares lost more than 4%; the company is a major supplier to Tesla.
- Taiwan's Taiex index was down amid the controversy of U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's visit to the country.
- Chinese state media reported that the country's military plans to conduct live-fire drills in areas surrounding Taiwan for the rest of the week.
| S&P Asia 50 | 4,560.83 | -0.78% | | Japan (Nikkei 225) | 27,741.90 | 0.53% | | South Korea (KOSPI) | 2,461.45 | 0.89% | | China (Hang Seng) | 19,767.09 | 0.40% | | India (SENSEX) | 58,350.53 | 0.37% | *Asian stock prices are as of 7 am ET. Data received directly from the references indexes through ICE Data Services.
| |
Commodities Oil prices were down on Wednesday as new data from the Energy Information Administration showed that U.S. stockpiles increased last week. - Crude oil reserves were up by 4.5 million barrels, significantly above the 600,000 barrel increase expected by analysts.
- Gasoline stockpiles were up by 200,000 barrels, whereas analysts expected a 1.6-million-barrel decrease.
- Brent crude was down 3.7% on Wednesday while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude fell by 4%.
| Oil (NYSEARCA:OIL) | 31.71 | -2.97% | | Gold (NYSEARCA:GLD) | 164.45 | 0.24% | | Silver (NYSEARCA:SLV) | 18.49 | 0.43% | | Corn (NYSEARCA:CORN) | 24.16 | 0.50% | | Lumber (NASDAQ:WOOD) | 78.39 | 0.50% | *Commodity prices are as of 7 am ET. Data from MarketWatch. To understand why investors track the prices of these commodities, click here.
| |
Currency Exchange Rates The U.S. Dollar rose against the Japanese Yen on Wednesday after declining significantly against the safe haven currency earlier in the week due to concerns surrounding Pelosi's visit to Taiwan. - Federal Reserve officials also claimed they would continue raising rates to fight inflation, increasing confidence in the U.S. Dollar.
- The U.S. Dollar Index is currently at 106.40, below its 20-year high set in July.
- The Canadian Dollar also rose on hopes that Canada will increase energy exports, which would boost demand for the Canadian Dollar.
| UK(GBP) | £0.82 | 0.94% | | Europe (EURO) | €0.98 | 1.00% | | Canada (Canadian Dollar) | $1.29 | 0.05% | | Japan (Yen) | ¥134.07 | 1.90% | *Exchange rates as of 7 am ET. Data from Morningstar Financial Research. To understand why we track these currencies and the differences between them, click here.
| |
Cryptocurrency Bitcoin continued its decline on Wednesday despite a short-lived rally in the middle of the day that saw the currency rise as high as $23,300. - A hacker stole $5M worth of Solana on Wednesday morning but Solana's price was unaffected.
- Chile has seen a 50% increase in demand for stablecoins over the last three months as runaway inflation and the devaluation of the Chilean Peso prompted locals to choose cryptocurrencies over fiat.
- Astrologer Susan Miller has released zodiac-themed NFTs on the Polygon blockchain.
| Bitcoin | $22,796.50 | -2.05% | | Ethereum | $1,611.51 | -1.21% | | Litecoin | $57.66 | -0.74% | | Bitcoin Cash | $135.70 | -1.57% | *Exchange rates as of 7 am ET. Data from Morningstar Financial Research. To understand why we track these currencies and the differences between them, click here.
| |
 |  | Liam Gill is a founder, lawyer and investor.
He previously founded Fumarii Technologies, which became a top 20 ranked cloud computing service (Yahoo Finance! 2019) valued at over $30M. He holds an LLB Laws (UK), MSc Management and Master of Laws and currently practices law at Zargar Lawyers + Business Strategists in Vancouver, Canada.
|   | | Editor | Eduardo Garcia is a writer and editor based in New York. He is the author of "Things You Can Do," an illustrated book about climate action. Bylines in The New York Times, The Guardian, Slate, Scientific American, and others. In one of his previous lives, Eduardo worked as a Reuters correspondent in Latin America for nearly a decade. | |
Percent: Private Credit Investments. High-Yield Investing. Short-Term Durations. Learn More. | |
| |
