Daily Market Insights: March 15, 2024: Market Overview: U.S. Stocks, Bonds, and Commodities Analysis

MARKET WRAP

STOCKS, BONDS, COMMODITIES

On Thursday, U.S. stocks showed a lack of upward momentum, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average falling 137 points (-0.35%) to 38,905, the S&P 500 dropping 14 points (-0.29%) to 5,150, and the Nasdaq 100 declining 53 points (-0.30%) to 18,014.

• The U.S. 10-year Treasury yield continued its recent rally, gaining 9.8 basis points to 4.290%.

• U.S. data showed that producer-price growth accelerated to 1.6% on year in February (vs +0.9% expected), and retail sales rose 0.6% on month (vs +0.5%).

• The latest number of initial jobless claims dipped to 209,000 (vs 219,000 expected).

• Real estate, financials, and utilities stock sectors led the market lower.

• Tesla (TSLA) slid 4.12%, and Nvidia (NVDA) fell 3.24%.

• On the other hand, Microsoft (MSFT) rose 2.44%, Alphabet (GOOGL) climbed 2.37%, Amazon.com (AMZN) gained 1.24%, and Apple (AAPL) was up 1.09%.

• Dick's Sporting Goods (DKS) surged 15.47%. The sporting goods retailer posted stronger-than-expected quarterly earnings.

• Dollar General (DG), a discount retailer, fell 5.13%, and Lennar (LEN), the largest homebuilder in the U.S., tumbled 7.64%, as both companies reported lower-than-expected quarterly results.

• Under Armour (UA) sank 10.15%. The athletic apparel firm announced that founder Kevin Plank will return to the company to take up the post of chief executive.

In Europe, the DAX 40 declined 0.11%, the FTSE 100 dropped 0.37%, while the CAC 40 was up 0.29%.

• U.S. WTI crude-oil futures rose $1.38 (+1.73%) to $81.1 a barrel.

• Gold price retreated $11 to $2,162 an ounce.

MARKET WRAP: FOREX

The U.S. dollar regained some strength against other major currencies. The dollar index climbed to 103.34.

• EUR/USD fell 62 pips to 1.0884.

• USD/JPY increased 51 pips to 148.25.

• GBP/USD slid 45 pips to 1.2751. In the U.K., the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors house price index improved to -10% in February (vs -15% expected).

• AUD/USD dropped 38 pips to 0.6582.

• USD/CHF climbed 48 pips to 0.8835, and USD/CAD gained 59 pips to 1.3528.

• Bitcoin saw another dramatic trading session. It ran up to an all-time high of $73,835 in Asian hours before tumbling over $5,000 to a low of $68,454 in U.S. afternoon hours. It later rebounded to levels around $71,600.

GBP/USD Intraday: the downside prevails.

Pivot:1.2765

Our preference:Short positions below 1.2765 with targets at 1.2705 & 1.2685 in extension.

Alternative scenario:Above 1.2765 look for further upside with 1.2785 & 1.2805 as targets.

Comment:As long as the resistance at 1.2765 is not surpassed, the risk of the break below 1.2705 remains high.

USD/JPY Intraday: the upside prevails.

Pivot:148.00

Our preference:Long positions above 148.00 with targets at 148.75 & 149.00 in extension.

Alternative scenario:Below 148.00 look for further downside with 147.55 & 147.20 as targets.

Comment:The break above 148.00 is a positive signal that has opened a path to 148.75.

EUR/USD Intraday: the downside prevails.

Pivot:1.0905

Our preference:Short positions below 1.0905 with targets at 1.0860 & 1.0840 in extension.

Alternative scenario:Above 1.0905 look for further upside with 1.0920 & 1.0935 as targets.

Comment:As long as the resistance at 1.0905 is not surpassed, the risk of the break below 1.0860 remains high.

Dow Jones (CME)‎ (M4)‎ Intraday: the downside prevails.

Pivot:39430.00

Our preference:Short positions below 39430.00 with targets at 39090.00 & 39020.00 in extension.

Alternative scenario:Above 39430.00 look for further upside with 39560.00 & 39680.00 as targets.

Comment:The RSI is mixed with a bearish bias.

Please note that due to market volatility, some of the key levels may have already been reached and scenarios played out.