EmailWe're setting the over-under for today's market at 1.25 points. It is a betting line that revolves around the prospect of the S&P 500 closing at least 1.25 points above yesterday's closing level.
For some wagering perspective, here is a brief rundown of the point changes over the last four trading sessions, beginning with Monday: -0.92, +2.42, +0.90, and +1.05.
This is a fictional betting line of course since we don't actually have a casino license, yet it is a playful way of teasing the fact that trading activity this week has been uneventful. A prop bet would be whether the S&P 500 experiences a closing surge to save the day from a negative print.
Fittingly, the S&P futures are little changed at the moment and are pointing to a relatively flat start for the cash market.
In corporate news, Procter & Gamble (PG) has lowered its FY13 EPS outlook by three cents to account for the impact of Venezuela devaluing its currency; UPS (UPS) boosted its dividend 8% and announced a new $10 bln share repurchase program; and several food companies -- Kraft (KRFT), Campbell Soup (CPB), and JM Smucker (SJM) -- have reported earnings ahead of the Capital IQ consensus estimate.
Carnival (CCL), however, continues to receive top headline billing in the media, with the docking (finally!) of its incapacitated cruise ship Triumph in Mobile, Alabama.
In economic news, the New York Empire Manufacturing Index for February surprised on the upside with a reading of 10.04 (Briefing.com consensus 0.0) that was up noticeably from -7.8 in January. The February reading is the highest print since May 2012.
The futures market barely batted an eye at this good news, which is in keeping with the listless disposition the cash market has shown throughout the week.
In other developments, it has been reported that a meteorite blazed over central Russia, triggering a sonic boom, setting off car alarms, shattering windows, and providing a blinding display of light.
That's the story the general media is going with, but that blinding display of light and the sonic boom really might have been a case of spontaneous combustion resulting from all of the carbon dioxide being emitted at the same time from G20 finance ministers meeting in Russia and spewing about currency wars -- real, imagined or otherwise.
The draft communique simply says the G20 would like to avoid foreign exchange volatility and disorderly movements in foreign exchange rates. Okay. Thanks for that.
As you might imagine, the market didn't react much to that oh-so-diplomatic and axiomatic statement.
It's looking like a flat start for the market. What will it be? Over or under 1.25 points?
