Monday Morning Meeting Notes (01/08/2024)

General Info:

• U.S. employment report for December showed 216,000 new jobs added (vs. expectations of 170,000), while the unemployment rate remained at 3.7%
• The prior two months’ reports were revised downwards by a combined -71,000, bringing the November and October reports down to 173,000 and 105,000, respectively
• Also worth noting is the decline in quality of the jobs report – the monthly survey is sent to approximately 122,000 businesses and government agencies, but the response rate has declined significantly in recent years (which has led to larger revisions and larger month-to-month swings)
• In 2019, the survey had a 60% response rate; the response rate today is barely above 40%
• Fun Fact: Researchers have discovered that penguins sleep in microbursts of just seconds of rest at a time, repeating this cycle up to 600 times an hour. The strange sleep patterns may be a result of their noisy and dangerous habitats, which don't allow the birds the same level of peaceful sleep we’re accustomed to having

Monday 01/08:

• Eurozone retail sales, economic confidence, and consumer confidence data
• Chile copper exports for December

Tuesday 01/09:

• Neogen and WD-40 report earnings
• The Consumer Electronics Show takes place in Las Vegas (and runs through Friday) and will highlight advancements in digital health, generative AI, sustainability, gaming, and vehicle technology
• U.S. NFIB Small Business Optimism Index for December
• China aggregate financing, money supply, and new yuan loans for December
• Eurozone unemployment data for November
• Japan consumer price index (CPI) for December
• Germany industrial production for November

Wednesday 01/10:

• National Houseplant Appreciation Day – studies have shown that houseplants may boost productivity, reduce anxiety, and reduce air pollutants
• Deadline for U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to vote on bitcoin ETF applications
• World Economic Forum’s annual global risks report is released
• South Korea unemployment rate for December

Thursday 01/11:

• U.S. CPI data for December
• CPI is expected to have risen 0.2% month-over-month and 3.2% year-over-year
• Core CPI, which excludes volatile food and energy costs, is expected to have risen 0.3% month-over-month and 3.8% year-over-year
• U.S. initial jobless claims and continuing claims data

Friday 01/12:

• UnitedHealth Group, JPMorgan, Citigroup, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, BNY Mellon, BlackRock, and Delta Air Lines report earnings
• U.S. producer price index (PPI) for December
• CPI data for Spain, France, China, and India
• U.K. industrial production for November