Most major stock indices ended the Thanksgiving holiday week with modest gains.  Only the emerging markets index ended with losses.  Stocks reacted positively after the FED released minutes from the November meeting indicating most members prefer smaller rate hikes going forward.  While a half percent hike is most likely in December, the eventual decision will depend on incoming data before then.  It was a mixed week for economic numbers, with unemployment claims rising but durable goods orders and new home sales showing strength. 

It was announced last week that Germany completed a new floating terminal to accept liquified natural gas.  The facility was completed in record time after extensive red tape cutting.  Sweden confirmed that explosives were used to damage the Nord Stream pipelines in the Baltic Sea.  A satellite data monitoring company has discovered that two ships had passed within several miles of the explosions with their tracking beacons turned off but could not identify whose ships these were.

Treasury bond yields fell with the 30-year bond down to 3.741% and the 10-Year note at 3.688%.  30-year mortgage rates fell to 6.87%.  Crude oil fell to $76.55 a barrel and natural gas rose to $7.22 per MMBTUs.  The U.S. dollar index fell to 106.05 and gold rose to $1755.00 an ounce.

• The Commerce Department reported:
  • Durable goods orders rose 1.0% in October.
    • New car orders rose 0.6%.
    • Aircraft orders rose 7.4%.
    • Excluding volatile transportation, durable goods orders rose 0.5%.
  • New home sales rose 7.5% in October.
    • New homes make up about 10% of total home sales.
    • New home sales are down about 5.8% from October 2021.
• The Labor Department reported:
  • Seasonally adjusted first-time claims for unemployment were 240,000, up from a revised 223,000 in the prior week.

• • • The 4-week moving average of claims, designed to smooth out volatility, was 226,750 up from a revised 221,250 in the prior week.
    • For the full unemployment report go here:  https://www.dol.gov/ui/data.pdf .
• The EIA weekly oil report is here: http://ir.eia.gov/wpsr/wpsrsummary.pdf .  Also, the EIA reported in the prior week:
  • Field production of crude oil was unchanged at 12.1MM BPD.
  • Natural gas storage fell 80BN cubic feet and is about at the 5-year average at this time of year.
• Baker Hughes reported the number of active oil rigs rose 4 to 627.  The number of active natural gas rigs fell 2 155.

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Thank you,

Loren C. Rex, CFP^®, MA                                                                     Erik A Smith, AIF®

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These are the opinions of Loren Rex and Erik Smith and are not necessarily those of Cambridge, are for informational purposes only, and should not be construed or acted upon as individualized investment advice. The Indices mentioned are unmanaged and cannot be invested into directly.