U.S.Import Prices Fall, World Markets Lack Direction

Nichole Harper
10 Dec, 2015
New York City

Stocks struggled to advance on Wall Street after weekly jobless claims rose but remained below the threshold of 300,000. Import prices declined largely on the strength of the dollar and declined 9.4% from a year ago month in November.

[R]12:35 PM New York City, New York – Stocks struggled to advance on Wall Street after weekly jobless claims rose but remained below the threshold of 300,000. Import prices declined largely on the strength of the dollar and declined 9.4% from a year ago month in November.[/R]

Stocks traded higher on Wall Street and latest jobless claims report showed an increase but still remained below the critical level.

Seasonally adjusted weekly jobless claims jumped 13,000 to 282,000 from the previous week unrevised claims of 269,000.

The preliminary insured unemployment rate in the week ending November 28 was 1.7% an increase of 0.1 percentage point from the prior week''s unrevised rate, the U.S. Department of Labor said.

Jobless claims below 300,000 are considered consistent with the healthy job market and claims have been below the mark for the longest since early 1970s. Claims have been below 300,000 threshold for 40 weeks in a row.

Separately, the department reported November import price index declined 0.4% after 0.3% decrease in October. In November, export prices dropped 0.6% following 0.2% decrease in October.

U.S. dollar has advanced 18% in the last eighteen months and import prices have fallen in 15 of the last 17 months. Import prices also fell 9.4% from the month a year ago.

On Wall Street, Tollbooth Strategy Index increased 53.36 or 0.5% to 10,962.62.

S&P 500 index added 8.98 or 0.4% to 2,056.67 and the Nasdaq Composite Index rose 21.50 or 0.4% to 5,044.41.

Crude oil in New York fell 24 cents to $36.92 a barrel and gold edged up 53 cents to $1,073.31 an ounce.

U.S. Movers

Ciena Corporation ((CIEN)) tumbled 16.6% or $3.99 to $20.12 after the networking equipment provider reported revenues in the fourth-quarter ending in October soared 17.1% from a year ago to $692 million.

Net loss in the quarter narrowed to $13.8 million or 10 cents per diluted share compared to $30.7 million or 29 cents per share from the same quarter last year.

Ciena forecasted revenues for the first-quarter in the range of $555 million to $590 million and gross margin of about 44%.

Men''s Wearhouse Inc ((MW)) plummeted 23.2% or $4.27 to $14.12 after the specialty retailer said revenues in the third-quarter ending in October slipped 2.8% from a year ago to $865.4 million.

Comparable store sales in the quarter jumped 5.3%.

Net in the quarter swung to a loss of $27.2 million or 56 cents per diluted share compared to profit of $6.8 million or 14 cents per share from the same quarter last year.

European Markets

European stock markets declined on Thursday, briefly touching a two-month low in a seesaw trading as pessimism dominated investor sentiment.

Oil prices continued to decline after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries’ reported that production rose by 230,000 barrels a day in November to 31.70 million.

The Bank of England left its main lending rate unchanged at 0.5% and the inflation remains low and the central bank guided the rate of inflation is likely to be below 1% until the second-half of next year.

The central bank also preserved its asset-purchase program for £375 billion.

The seasonally adjusted UK trade deficit in goods and services in October widened to £4.1 billion from £3.1 billion in September. Export prices in October fell 0.2% and import prices slid 0.7%, the Office of the National Statistics said.

The trade in goods deficit in three months to October widened by £2.5 billion to £31.6 billion.

In London trading, FTSE 100 index slipped 34.6 or 0.6% to 6,092.35 and in Frankfurt the DAX index slid 0.60 to 10,590.32.

In Paris, CAC 40 index edged down 2.99 to 4,637.67.

Accor SA gained 0.5% to €39.06 after the France-based hotel operator agreed to acquire the holding company of the luxury hotels Fairmont, Raffles and Swissotel, for about $2.9 billion in cash and stock.

The company agreed to pay 46.7 million new shares and €768 million, or $840 million, in cash for FRHI Holdings Ltd.

Sports Direct International Plc tumbled 10.3% to 596.82 pence after the U.K.-based sports goods retailer reported revenues in the first-half ending on October 25 edged up 0.1% from a year ago to £1.43 billion.

Net profit in the period surged 27.9% from a year ago to £147.5 million compared to £115.3 million and diluted earnings per share increased to 23.1 pence from 18.6 pence.

Asian Markets

The Nikkei average extended 3-day losses and the referenced index dropped to a five-week low after the yen advanced. The producer price index in November fell 0.1%.

The Nikkei average dropped for a third consecutive day and declined to a five-week low after the yen strengthened and crude oil extended six-day slide.

The yen jumped to three-month high as traders speculated that the rising glut in the oil market may lead to more uneven economic growth in the U.S.

Stronger yen makes Japanese products less competitive in the world markets with the growing competition from China and Korea.

Shares of export-oriented companies, including Canon, Honda, Mazda, Sony, and Toyota, were among the largest decliners on Thursday.

The producer price index declined at a slower pace of 0.1% in November after falling at 0.6% in October, the Bank of Japan said.

On an annual basis, the producer price index declined 3.6%.

Export prices fell 0.3% compared to the previous month and declined 6.7% from a year ago month.

The Nikkei 225 Stock Average declined 254.52 or 1.3% to 19,046.55 and the broader Topix index slumped 15.23 to 1,540.35.

The yen surged against the dollar to 121.67.

Stocks in Mumbai traded higher and the Sensex index halted six-day decline as investors returned to search bargains.

The shipping companies led gainers after the Cabinet approved up to 20% financial assistance for ships built in India under its ‘Make in India’ initiative.

ABG Shipyard Ltd jumped 3.4%, Shipping Corp of India advanced 2.4% and Great Eastern Shipping Co. Ltd gained 3%.

Rupee strengthened 12 paisa to 66.71 against one U.S. dollar.

The Sensex Index increased 216.27 or 0.9% to close at 25,252.32. The CNX Nifty rose 70.80 or 0.9% to 7,683.30.

Bharti plans to launch 4G service in Rajasthan.