Copper breaks support while crude gets hammered

Copper broke support at $7900/tonne, signaling a primary decline with a target of its 2022 low at $7000. The primary down-trend warns of a global economic contraction.

Copper

The bear signal has yet to be confirmed by the broader-based Dow Jones Industrial Metals Index ($BIM) which is testing primary support at 155.

DJ Industrial Metals Index ($BIM)

Crude oil

Crude fell sharply this week, after a 3-month rally.

Nymex Light Crude

The fall was spurred by an early build of gasoline stocks ahead of winter, raising concerns of declining demand.

Gasoline inventories added a substantial 6.5 million barrels for the week to September 29, compared with a build of 1 million barrels for the previous week. Gasoline inventories are now 1% above the five-year average for this time of year….. production averaged 8.8 million barrels daily last week, which compared with 9.1 million barrels daily for the prior week. (oilprice.com)

Gasoline Stocks

Crude inventories have stabilized after a sharp decline during the release of strategic petroleum reserves (SPR).

EIA Crude Inventory

Releases from the SPR stopped in July — which coincides with the start of the recent crude rally. It will be interesting to see next week if a dip in this week’s SPR contributed to weak crude prices.

Strategic Petroleum Reserves (SPR)

Stocks & Bonds

The 10-year Treasury yield recovered to 4.78% on Friday.

10-Year Treasury Yield

Rising yields are driven by:

  • a large fiscal deficit of close to $2T;
  • commercial banks reducing Treasury holdings; and
  • the Bank of Japan allowing a limited rise in bond yields which could cause an outflow from USTs.

Bank of Japan - YCC

The S&P 500 rallied on the back of a strong labor report.

S&P 500

The S&P 500 Equal-Weighted Index test of primary support at 5600 is, however, likely to continue.

S&P 500 Equal-Weighted Index

Expect another Russell 2000 small caps ETF (IWM) test of primary support at 170 as well.

Russell 2000 Small Caps ETF (IWM)

Labor Market

The BLS report for September, with job gains of 336K, reflects a robust economy and strong labor market.

Job Gains

Average hourly earnings growth slowed to 0.207% in September, or 2.5% annualized. Manufacturing wages reflect higher growth — 4.0% annualized — but that is a small slice of the economy compared to services.

Average Hourly Earnings

Average weekly hours worked — a leading indicator — remains stable at 34.4 hours/week.

Average Weekly Hours

Unemployment remained steady at 6.36 million, while job openings jumped in August, maintaining a sizable shortage.

Job Openings & Unemployment

Real GDP (blue) is expected to slow in Q3 to 1.5%, matching declining growth in aggregate weekly hours worked (purple).

Real GDP & Hours Worked

Dollar & Gold

The Dollar Index retraced to test new support at 106 but is unlikely to reverse course while Treasury yields are rising.

Dollar Index

Gold is testing primary support at $1800 per ounce, while Trend Index troughs below zero warn of selling pressure. Rising long-term Treasury yields and a strong Dollar are likely to weaken demand for Gold.

Spot Gold

Conclusion

Long-term Treasury yields are expected to rise, fueled by strong supply (fiscal deficits) and weak demand (from foreign investors and commercial banks). The outlook for rate cuts from the Fed is also fading as labor market remains tight.

The sharp drop in crude oil seems an overreaction when the labor market is strong and demand is likely to be robust. Further releases from the strategic petroleum reserve (SPR), a sharp fall in Chinese purchases, or an increase in supply (from Iran or Venezuela) seem unlikely at present.

Falling copper prices warn of a global economic contraction led by China, with Europe likely to follow. Confirmation by Dow Jones Industrial Metals Index ($BIM) breach of primary support at 155 would strengthen the bear signal.

Strong Treasury yields and a strong Dollar are likely to weaken demand for Gold unless there is increased instability, either geopolitical or financial.

US adds 222 thousand jobs

From the Wall Street Journal:

U.S. employers picked up their pace of hiring in June. Nonfarm payrolls rose by a seasonally adjusted 222,000 from the prior month, the Labor Department said. The unemployment rate ticked up to 4.4% from 4.3% the prior month as more people joined the workforce…..

Job Gains

Source: St Louis Fed & BLS

Forecast GDP for the current quarter — total payrolls * hours worked — is rising, showing an improving economy.

Real GDP Forecast

Source: St Louis Fed, BLS & BEA

Declining corporate profits as a percentage of net value added (RHS) is typical of mid-cycle growth, while employee compensation (% of net value added) is rising at a modest pace. Peaks in employee compensation are normally accompanied by troughs in corporate profits…..and followed by a recession.

US Corporate Profits and Employee Compensation as percentage of Value Added

Source: St Louis Fed & BEA

Average wage rate growth, both for production/non-supervisory and all employees, remains below 2.5% per year. Absence of wage rate pressure suggests that the Fed will be in no hurry to hike interest rates to curb inflationary pressure.

Hourly Wage Rate Growth

Source: St Louis Fed & BLS

Which should mean further growth ahead.

Australia: Jobs surge

The May 2017 ABS Labour Force Survey surprised to the upside, with employment increasing by 42,000 over the previous month (full-time jobs even better at +52,100). These are seasonally adjusted figures and the trend estimates are more modest at 25200 jobs.

Australia Jobs and Unemployment

Seasonally adjusted hours worked also jumped, reflecting an annual increase of 2.3%.

Australia Hours Worked and Real GDP

The Australian Dollar surged as a result of the impressive numbers but Credit Suisse warns that there may be some issues with the latest strong NSW estimates:

By state, the gains in full-time employment were particularly strong in NSW…..

But beware the sample rotation bias ….the ABS has confessed that for the sixth time in seven months, it has rotated the sample in favour of higher employment-to-population cohorts. Officials report that this has had a material impact on the NSW employment outcomes.

If the numbers are correct, there are only two areas that could account for the job growth: apartment construction and infrastructure. The former is unlikely to last and the latter, while an important part of the recovery process, are also not a permanent increase.

I would prefer to wait for confirmation before adjusting my position based on a single set of numbers.

One swallow does not make a spring, nor does one day.

~ Aristotle

Is the US labor market tightening?

I wouldn’t read too much into weaker US job gains of 138 thousand for May 2017. Job gains seem to be tapering in 2017, with February highest at 232 thousand, but this could also be a sign of tightening labor conditions.

Monthly Nonfarm Payroll: Job Gains

Comments from respondents in yesterday’s ISM report showed hints of a tightening labor market:

  • “Business conditions are steady, and with competition increasing, it’s making negotiations even more intense to reduce costs.” (Machinery)
  • “Business is booming, and getting direct employees is increasingly difficult.” (Fabricated Metal Products)
  • “Difficult to find qualified labor for factory positions.” (Food, Beverage & Tobacco Products)

Unemployment continues to fall, reaching 4.3% for May 2017. The dip below the natural rate of unemployment also warns of tighter labor market conditions.

Unemployment and the Natural Rate

But there are no real signs of a tight labor market in hourly wages. In fact, hourly wage rate growth in the manufacturing sector is slowing.

Hourly Wage Rate Growth and Core CPI

Employee compensation as a percentage of value added (Q1 2017) is starting to rise and the percentage of profits (after tax) is declining. The lines tend to invert, with employee compensation peaking and profits dipping ahead of a recession. This still seems 12 months away.

Profits and Employee Compensation as % of Value Added

In summary, declining unemployment and rising employee compensation as a percentage of value added both indicate a tight labor market. But soft wage rate growth and falling core CPI suggest the Fed will be in no haste to apply the brakes. At least for the next three quarters.

Inflation surges

Inflation is rising, with CPI climbing steeply above the Fed’s 2% target. But core CPI excluding energy and food remains stable.

Consumer Price Index

Job gains were the lowest since May 2016.

Job Gains

But the unemployment rate fell to a low 4.5%.

Unemployment

Hourly wage rate growth has eased below 2.5%, suggesting that underlying inflationary pressures are contained.

Average Hourly Earnings Growth

The Fed is unlikely to accelerate its normalization of interest rates unless we see a surge in core inflation and/or hourly earnings growth.