Archive - Nov 2014

Job cut announcements in tech doubled from a year ago. Worst year since 2009.

Speaking from The Bank of France is crap-covered Paris, Janet Yellen stated that "bond purchases have ben effective", and encouraged Mario Draghi to print moar, noting "central banks need to be prepared to employ all available tools, including unconventional policies, to support economic growth and reach their inflation targets," but warned from the other side of the her two faces, that, "policy normalization will lead to heightened volatility."

The 'miss' on nonfarm payrolls but 'beat' on the unemployment rate appear to have been the perfect anti-goldilocks - not bad enough to warrant Fed speakers to discuss resurrecting QE and not good enough to confirm the growth meme... Having initially tumbled, Treasury sellers came in quickly after the NFP print, but since that BTFD, yields have collapsed 9bps... As we warned here, the market is still notably short bonds and liquidity is anything but strong.

These people know the gravy train is about to run off the rails and they’re looking for safety. They don’t care if they miss out on another 5% gain in the stock market, they want to get out of stocks NOW.

Of the whopping nearly 700K increase in October jobs according to the Household survey, a whopping 528K jobs were as a result of (seasonally-adjusted) workers aged 16-24 finding a job. This is shown in the chart below: it is also the biggest monthly jump in young workers in the past decade, and one of the highest in history.

In October the US economy added the most waiters and bartenders in over a year. In fact at 42K, one in every five jobs "created" in the US economy went to a bartender, or a waiter.

The central planners are in a state of fear and panic.  They are trying everything and anything to create market validation for their policies, watching with trepidation as their favored economic metrics fail to respond to all of their frenzied efforts. They are so far over the tips of their skis right now that there's nothing they won't do.  By the time a central bank is behaving as recklessly as Japan, it's time to edge towards the exit, because the chance of a flash fire in the building has grown uncomfortably high. That is, instead of providing comfort, these most recent moves should invoke greater worry for those of us alert enough to see them for what they are: acts of panic.

Having promised that he would not run again if unemployment rates remain high, French President Francois Hollande faces not just record low approval ratings but feces-flinging-farmers. In a show of protest against expressing their anger at collapsing prices (due in part to sanctions against Russia), increased environmental regulations, cheap imports, and high costs, thousands took to the streets, dumping pumpkins, potatoes, and carrots, burning cars, flinging apples, and spraying shit all over a government building in Toulouse. The French are not amused...

A week ago the Russian Ruble exhibited intraday volatility that makes the JPY look quiet when it crashed to record lows then soared dramatically on intervention hopes. Since then we have had a Russian Central Bank disappointment and some jawboning which did nothing press the Ruble to record-er lows against the USD. Then today, last week's volatility in the Ruble was dwarfed when USDRUB blew past 48.5 only to be sent soaring (USDRUB lower) below 46 on hope of intervention. Russia is not alone. The Saudi Riyal has seen massive vol in recent weeks and Nigeria, another oil-producing nation, saw the Naira collapse yesterday then soar 8 handles this morning on what is confirmed intervention by the nation's central bank. It appears the strong dollar is becoming an issue for the world's oil-producing nations...

Treasury yields were leaking higher into the print then collapsed on the headlines. Stocks smashed higher on the 'good' news of a lower unemployment rate then read the details and have plunged. Silver prices smashed higher, futures were halted, then tumbled back. Total and utter chaos in the liquid markets... Is "good" news now bad news?

Following last month's total collapse in the participation rate, dropping to 36 year lows, this month there was a modest improvement in the composition of the labor force, with the Household Survey suggesting the ranks of the Employed rose by 683K people, while the Unemployed actually declined by 267K, leading to a drop of the people not in the labor force to 92.378MM from 92.584MM. In other words, a little over 101 million Americans are unemployed or out of the labor force. Still, if only looking at this metric, the Fed would likely have no choice but to proceed with a rate hike in the first half of 2015.

Following the gross distortions of the ISM Services Employment index, which printed at a seasonally adjusted near record high, the whisper number for today's NFP was well above the official consensus estimate of 235K. Instead what happened was, naturally, what nobody expected: a miss, with the headline print coming in at 214K, well below the 235K expected, and down substantially from last month's upward revised 256K. Looks like the momentum is stalling fast. And  just to complete the farce, the unemployment rate of the nation that just threw out democrats in protest over the economy.... dropped to 5.8%

• US Change in Nonfarm Payrolls (Oct) M/M Exp. 235K (Low 140K, High 314K), Prev. 248K, Jul 180K.
• US Unemployment Rate (Oct) M/M Exp. 5.9% (Low 5.8%, High 6.1%), Prev. 5.9% European
• This will be the first employment report since the Fed announced the conclusion of QE3
• Stronger data of late has increased expectations of a solid October report
• Seasonal factors could also be supportive
• Focus could again may turn to the wage component of the jobs report as the Fed looks to exit easy policy

There was a time when the merest hint of Russia military activity at the Ukraine border would do the unthinkable: challenged central planners and send stocks lower. Who can forget the market drubbing when the Russian humanitarian convoy was going to enter east Ukraine and allegedly carry a DIY army? Well, those days are long gone. Because with Ukraine repeating day after day after day, how many Russian soliders have entered the country, how many artilery shells have landed, and how Putin is just salivating to invade the economically devastated country, everyone completely tuned out. Case in point, yet another report earlier today from Kiev, according to which "a column of 32 tanks, 16 howitzer artillery systems and trucks carrying ammunition and fighters has crossed into eastern Ukraine from Russia." Market reaction: absolutely none.