Powell is Talking Today

For our beach investors… drink your favorite rum and get paid. 1M today could be around an extra 50k in one year with less risk than trading.

These are the best rates you can find in the fixed-income markets:

• C.D.s (New Issues): 5.45% (1-year term)

• U.S. Treasury Bonds: 5.36% (6-month period)

• U.S. Treasury Zeros: 4.94% (1-year period)

• Agency/GSE: 5.62% (10-year period)

• Corporate (Aaa/AAA): 5.57% (10-year period)

• Corporate (Aa/A.A.): 5.66% (1-year period)

• Corporate (A/A): 6.80% (10-year period)

• Corporate (Baa/BBB): 8.64% (3-year period)

• Municipal (Aaa/AAA): 4.52% (20-year term)

• Municipal (Aa/AA): 4.70% (20-year term)

• Municipal (A/A): 4.75% (20-year period)

• Taxable Municipal: 5.75% (30-year+ period)

For our street investors… face the wall with A.I. sentiment analysis and adjust your trading for Today (June 20, 2023):

Today's market sentiment indicates a likely pullback, with pre-market activity revealing a slight decline in major index ETFs like the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) and Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ), down by 0.2%. This comes in the face of anticipated testimony from Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell and impending economic data, adding to overall market uncertainty.

Monitoring Powell's Senate testimony is crucial, as the Federal Reserve's stance significantly impacts market trends. The ongoing debate around inflation persists among experts, with Greg Peters of PGIM Fixed Income suggesting inflation is too high to expect rate cuts soon. This could exert additional downward pressure on equities, potentially inflating the CBOE Volatility Index (VIX), a popular gauge of market fear.

Bitcoin's premarket rise by 3.7% could hint at a hedging strategy adopted by investors seeking refuge from the potential volatility in equities. Still, keep an eye on the ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF (BITO) which is off 2% and may offer a risk-to-reward opportunity.

In sector-specific movements, energy stocks may face pressure as US West Texas Intermediate crude oil fell 2%. Gulfport Energy's (GPOR) 10% drop in pre-market following the pricing of their public offering could further hamper sentiment in the sector. Concurrently, the technology sector is experiencing slight premarket weakness, evidenced by a 0.3% dip in the Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK).

Watch out for Healthcare stocks, given the CDC's advisory committee backing GSK's respiratory syncytial virus vaccine. Despite this, GSK fell 2.3% pre-market, which may reflect broader market sentiment or specific company factors.

Emerging market currencies are flat, but the lira hit a record low following Turkey's central bank's decision to raise interest rates by 650 basis points to 15%. This significant monetary policy shift could induce further volatility in the region, possibly impacting the iShares MSCI Turkey ETF (TUR).

Finally, with critical data due to be released, any surprises in jobless claims, the Chicago Fed National Activity Index, or the current account figures could trigger further market fluctuations. Pay attention to the VIX, which may rise given these market conditions, signaling potential short-term buying opportunities if volatility spikes and reverts to the mean.