Weekly Market Recap – July 2, 2021
On Thursday, a five-year $715 billion infrastructure bill was passed by the House. In the Pacific Northwest, heat-related deaths climbed into the hundreds. On Friday, tropical storm Elsa barreled into the Caribbean. The coronavirus Delta variant has now been detected in all 50 states.
The following economic statistics were released during the week: construction spending down 0.3% (vs. +0.1%), motor vehicle sales 15.4 million (vs. 17.1 million), factory orders rose 1.7% (vs. -0.1%), the consumer confidence index was 127.3 (vs. 120.0). The balance of trade sank further, as the deficit for May was -$71.2 billion (vs. April’s -$69.1 billion). There were 364,000 Initial jobless claims, the lowest figure since the pandemic began; new jobs are rising as evidenced by June’s 850,000 nonfarm payrolls figure, 46% higher than May’s 583,000.
Stocks performed strongly throughout the week. The Dow Jones Industrial average advanced 1.0%, closing at 34,786.35. Both the S&P 500 and the NASDAQ Composite finished with record highs on Friday: the former settled at 4,352.34 (+1.7%), and the latter ended at 14,639.33 (+1.9 %). CBOE volatility index retreated 3.5%, finishing at 15.07 points, its lowest level since February 2020. In currency markets, the U.S Dollar Index rallied to 92.24 (+0.5%). As a group, the commodities sector rose during the week. Factoring in the S&P GSCI’s 2.2% gain, it settled at 541.45, its highest level since October 2014.
Metal futures mostly advanced. Settlement prices and percentages were as follows: gold at $1,783.30 (+0.3%), silver at $26.501 (+0.3%), platinum at $1,087.70 (-1.6%), palladium at $2,792.50 (+5.9%), copper at $4.2760 (-0.3%), and aluminum at $2,562.00 (+3.1%).
Energy markets continue to soar. Wednesday marked the finish of the first half of 2021; the futures we track here have all increased over 50%, year-to-date. The end-of-week prices and changes stacked up like this: NYMEX WTI at $75.16 (+1.5%), ICE Brent at $76.17 per barrel (+1.0%), heating oil $2.1791 (+1.3%), RBOB gasoline $2.2998 (+1.7%). At the pump, Americans are paying the highest prices seen in seven years, according to AAA. And, still rising from the heatwave, natural gas jumped 5.1% to $3.700 per MMBtu.
Our recap covers nine agricultural futures contracts; there were five gainers and four losers. Soybeans leaped to $13.99 (+10.2%), and corn climbed 11.7%, going out at $5.79¾ per bushel. Wheat firmed up to $6.52¾ (+1.9%). Coffee fell to $1.5305 per pound (-3.0%), sugar gained 4.9%, ending the week at 18.15¢/lb., cocoa declined 2.6% to $2,319 per ton, and cotton settled at 86.97¢/lb. (-0.2%). Livestock futures were mixed: live cattle eased to 122.000 (-0.7%) and lean hogs inched up to 106.875 (+0.5%).
Current Standings
2021 World Cup Championship of Futures Trading®
| RANK | NAME | NET RETURN | LOCATION |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kevin McCormick | 139.1% | United States |
| 2 | Jürg Diemand | 115.8% | Switzerland |
| 3 | Kevin Davey | 77.3% | United States |
| 4 | Stefan Seibert | 77.1% | Germany |
| 5 | John Lah | 73.8% | United States |
January 1, 2021 – July 2, 2021
2021 World Cup Championship of Forex Trading®
| RANK | NAME | NET RETURN | LOCATION |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Robert Miner | 224.9% | United States |
| 2 | Sergey Shirko | 178% | Latvia |
| 3 | Patrick Nill | 176.4% | Germany |
| 4 | Cristian Franchi | 133.3% | Italy |
| 5 | Chien-Hung Chen | 126.4% | Taiwan |
January 1, 2021 – July 2, 2021
2020-2021 Global Cup Trading Championship
| RANK | NAME | NET RETURN | LOCATION | DIVISION |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jan Smolen | 246.6% | Slovakia | Futures |
| 2 | Stefan Seibert | 222.7% | Germany | Futures |
| 3 | Marek Chrastina | 182.4% | Slovakia | Futures |
| 4 | Patrick Nill | 125.7% | Germany | Futures |
| 5 | Maxim Schulz | 78.8% | Germany | Futures |
June 1, 2020 – May 28, 2021 – Final Pending Audit
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