#treasury-yields

#treasury-yields

Wall Street is holding steady Thursday as the countdown ticks to an update on the U.S. job market coming Friday that could clear the way for the cuts to interest rates that investors love. The S&P 500 was virtually unchanged in morning trading. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 52 points, or 0.1%, as of 10:10 a.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was flat.

The US dollar steadied on Thursday, as traders weighed signals of a softer labour market and awaited further releases. Job openings fell to a low in July, undershooting expectations, while factory orders dropped for a second consecutive month. These indicators reinforced the view that the economy is cooling, even as attention now shifts to today's ISM Services index, expected at 51, and to Friday's payrolls.

Google's parent company was one of the strongest forces lifting the market and climbed 8.7% after avoiding some of the worst-case scenarios in its antitrust case. A federal judge on Tuesday ordered a shake-up of Google's search engine but did not force a sale of its Chrome browser. Because Alphabet is one of Wall Street's most valuable companies, its stock movements carry more weight on the S&P 500 and other indexes than the typical company's.

On Friday, a federal appeals court ruled many of the President's recently announced tariffs unconstitutional, raising the prospect that monies raised from the levies will have to be refunded, and will not in fact reduce the deficit at all. With this income stream now threatened, yields on US Treasury bonds are rising, with the 30-year Treasury bill approaching 5% today.

In a move without precedent in modern US history, Trump said on Tuesday evening that Cook was "effective immediately" removed from her position on the Fed's seven-strong governing board over allegations of mortgage fraud. Cook has denied wrongdoing and said she would not resign, setting the stage for a legal battle over whether the president has the authority to fire a Fed governor. The dispute comes as Trump intensifies pressure on the central bank to deliver steep interest rate cuts to support the economy and the jobs market.

"U.S. producer prices surged 0.9% m/m in July, far exceeding expectations of 0.2% and marking the largest monthly gain since June 2022. On an annual basis, PPI rose 3.3%, up from 2.4% in June, while core PPI jumped to 3.7% from 2.6%. The data shattered forecasts across the board, underscoring the inflationary impact of recent tariff policy and justifying Fed caution regarding rate cuts," George Vessey of Convera told clients this morning.

Gold prices fell as the US dollar strengthened and Treasury yields rose, retreating within a recent consolidation range. A partial resolution of political uncertainty also influenced prices.

Dividend Aristocrats, or stocks that have raised dividends for 25 years+, are solid investments, though high Treasury yields currently make them less attractive.

Musk's experience illustrates the challenges entrepreneurs face in politics, where the allure of balanced budgets fails against Washington's short-term incentives.