* Major U.S. indexes higher, Nasdaq leads
* Tech leads major S&P sector gainers; energy weakest group
* Euro STOXX 600 index up ~0.9%
* Dollar, crude down; gold up, crude falls; Bitcoin ~42k
* U.S. 10-year Treasury yield ~1.64%
May 20 - Welcome to the home for real-time coverage of
markets brought to you by Reuters reporters. You can share your
thoughts with us at markets.research@thomsonreuters.com
STOPPING THE BLEEDING (1016 EDT/1416 GMT)
Major U.S. indexes are higher in the early stages of
Thursday trading, with each poised to snap a three-day streak of
declines as mixed economic data helped ease concerns about the
timing of a move by the Federal Reserve to pull back on its
accommodative stance.
Data showing weekly initial jobless claims suggested job
growth picked up last week, while manufacturing in the
mid-Atlantic region grew at a slower pace helped cool jitters
about a central bank move in the wake of Wednesday's knee-jerk
reaction to the minutes from the central bank's most recent
meeting which hinted at tapering down the road.
Tech and communication services are
leading the way higher and helping lift the Nasdaq by
more than 1%, and giving the index a gain for the week for the
time being as it looks to avoid its longest weekly losing streak
in nine years.
Below is your market snapshot:
(Chuck Mikolajczak)
*****
THE TAKE-PRIVATE BOOM (0905 EDT/1305 GMT)
Private equity firms have completed more take-private deals
in the first five months of the year than in any year since at
least the global financial crisis, data from Dealogic shows.
In the five months to May, 12 companies in the UK were
delisted and 96 globally. This represents the highest number of
take-private acquisitions over the same period since at least
2008.
The number and volume of deals so far this year put 2021
already on track to be one of the strongest year for take
private acquisitions in Britain.
One of the latest deals includes Clayton, Dubilier & Rice
(CD&R) deal to buy London-listed UDG Healthcare for 2.6
billion pounds ($3.7 billion).
(Joice Alves)
*****
NASDAQ COMPOSITE: LACKING THAT INTERNAL SMILE (0850 EDT/1250
GMT)
The Nasdaq Composite is down around 6% from its
April highs and with this, the tech-laden index is on pace to
accomplish a relatively rare feat.
Indeed, the Composite on track to fall for a 5th-straight
week. Since the Great Financial Crisis low in March 2009, the
IXIC has only seen two other losing streaks of more than 4
weeks. A 5-week stretch in May-June 2011, and a 6-week run of
losses in October-November 2012. Thus, it's been almost 9 full
years since the Composite last fell for at least 5-straight
weeks.
With this recent setback, measures of internal strength have
severely weakened. For example, the Nasdaq New High/New Low
(NH/NL) index, which matched a 10-year high of 96.4% in
January, has now fallen to 50.2%:
However, it is now reaching what can be considered support.
Since the March, 2020 market lows, this measure has bottomed in
49.7% to 43.8% area.
Therefore, it may now be critical for the broader Nasdaq to
show its mettle. That said, the NH/NL index will need to reclaim
its descending 10-day moving average (now 60.6%) to add credence
to the view that it has formed some sort of low.
Falling below 43.8%, and maintaining its downtrend, can
suggest potential for a greater collapse. Of note, major lows in
late 2018 and early 2020 were in the 1.2%-1.6% area.
(Terence Gabriel)
*****
FOR THURSDAY'S LIVE MARKETS' POSTS PRIOR TO 0850 EDT/1250
GMT - CLICK HERE:
(Terence Gabriel is a Reuters market analyst. The views
expressed are his own)
