WTI Breaks $81 — Pie Day — PGA — The Players Without The Players — March 14, 2024

Locator: 46753B.

Updates

Later, 1:49 p.m. CDT: inflationary pressures persist.

Later, 1:33 p.m. CDT: and this was before today's CPI data. Ouch. Link here.

Later, 11:56 a.m. CDT: on the "Half-Time Report," CNBC, folks are starting to talk about the possibility of a rate hike; senior CNBC analyst says too early to talk about; long way from a rate hike. But.

Original Post

SpaceX and WTI both "up" nicely before noon. Smiling faces. Sometimes.

SpaceX's Starship rocket, designed to eventually send astronauts to the moon and beyond, completed nearly an entire test flight on its third try on Thursday, making it farther than before through a cruise in low orbit but was destroyed during atmospheric re-entry, the company said.

SpaceX Starship launches successfully:

• notches records / milestones on path around earth; simply amazing;

All major indices green: at the open, but wavering; 

• tea leaves — market could close lower today; or, the market could have another great day; tea leaves soggy; unhelpful at the moment; energy-weighted portfolios should do well;
• indices turn red half-hour after opening;

WTI: up 1.71%; up $1.36; trading at $81.05. [Later: $81.25.]

• as soon as WTI hit $81, CVX went green, jumping a $1.10 from the morning's low.

Economy: 

• retail sales surge; less than expected but huge jump from prior month (January);
  
• inflation way down year/year; core PPI, 2.0% vs 1.9% forecast (hoped for?); isn't the Fed's magic number, 2.0%?
• some are asking: is the entire inflation number due to housing?
  
• tea leaves: Apple will continue to be able to pay savers 4.5%;
• cherry on top: WTI trending toward $81

Market: at opening, market likes the reported numbers.

CNBC: economic numbers this morning — a nothing-burger: five minutes after numbers released, talk on CNBC — 

• US Steel;
• Boeing
• Macy’s
• no talk about the numbers or the Fed
• Dick’s Sporting Goods: surges — tells me all I need to know about economy
• Family General / Dollar General: struggling; closing 945 stores; we know what that means:
• Nvidia - Oracle partnership;