As we begin
Well folks, another new week with the same challenges. Today’s piece will serve as a guide to help us figure out what is going to move the markets this week.
The major overseas indices were mixed overnight. Here in the U.S. indices opened in the green, with big tech still leading the way. Around midday, we saw much of the same and by the close, indices sat well in the green. Elsewhere, oil, gold and volatility were up on the day.
Did you miss the last edition? No worries! Get it right here and catch up on the madness. Consider subscribing down below so you never miss another edition and read from the comfort of your inbox.
Fundamentals
Monday’s Close:
Dow Jones: +0.90%
S&P 500: +0.72%
NASDAQ: +1.47%
U.S. Dollar Index: 93.51
US 10 YR: 0.549%
Crude OIL: $40.83
Spot Gold: $1976.46
Market Madness Portfolio: +0.89%
COVID 19 Global Cases: 18,149,860
Indices Overseas:
FTSE 100: +2.29%
Nikkei 225: +2.24%
Hang Seng: -0.56%
TEDRATE: 0.14
LIBOR (3 month): 0.24875%
Thought pieces for the week
A lot of focus is gathering around Capitol Hill as they drag out recovery stimulus talks, drawing lines in the sand that also fall along party lines,as many who are out of work because of closures had a major unemployment shell shock yesterday when filing. They might not be feeling the burn, but the citizens here in the trenches definitely are. There is a degree of separation between those on the hill and their constituents, and that often makes realizing the day-to-day of those they represent difficult — many are beginning to understand this now more than ever before.
As we mentioned yesterday this week is going to be big for economic indicators and data releases. A large amount of factory production in the U.S., Europe, and parts of Asia saw a rise in production in the month of July. Increased production is only part of the equation, however. In tandem with dampened recovery outlook and weakened global trade, the produced goods don’t seem to have a home yet. The weak levels of trade and demand will put produced goods on shelves to collect dust as everyone still looks into the murky future and economic recovery.
A great deal of emphasis and focus still remains on big pharma companies and their test results from vaccines they are simultaneously developing. With the motto being ‘full speed ahead’ in this department, health officials and others are beginning to worry how much safety and effectiveness we are likely trading off to get a vaccine out and issued before November. There are obvious persons behind this speed.
TikTok is apparently a huge deal still, with Donnie relaxing his tone and perspective, allowing Microsoft to engage in some talks to purchase the U.S. division. Others in the national security space think that this could lead to bad outcomes because Microsoft has operations in China (just like almost every other major U.S. corporate, by the way). I think the thought process is still in progress on this one, but will no doubt continue to be headline news in the interim.
Quick Takes
Donnie graces Microsoft with the green light to deal with TikTok, but under a limited time window. (via CNBC and via WSJ)
More business bankruptcies this morning: Lord and Taylor, Tailored Brands (parent company of Jos. A. Banks and Men’s Warehouse). (via CNBC)
U.S. credit outlook revised to ‘negative’ from ‘stable’ by Fitch. (via MarketWatch)
Latest notes from the WHO on COVID 19. (via CNBC)
Clorox crushes sales estimates as consumers stock up on disinfectants. (via WSJ)
Here’s the latest on the pending stimulus on Capitol Hill. (via CNBC)
Reader’s Corner
The reader hopes you think about this general banter:

I really enjoy the Heisenberg Report (both the snarky tweets and the well written financial articles) — check them out!
Furthermore, a reader sent me a really interesting website for anyone interested in financial crimes related to potential insider trading, check this website out — https://unusualvolume.info/ (Thanks Billy!)
Do you like what you have read? Consider subscribing so that Market Madness is hand-delivered to your inbox each day! If you know of anyone missing out on Market Madness, save them the trouble and share it with them!
Behind the Madness
You’ve made it through the madness. I’ve worked really hard to ensure that you leave this page having learned something, and I hope that benefits you in your daily adventure. Thank you again for checking in.
Daily Reader Count: 151
Connect with Market Madness
For more Madness, check out the archive.
Some Sign-ups (that are definitely worth your time)
Atom Finance: “Atom’s platform offers an ever-growing arsenal of powerful research and portfolio monitoring tools to anyone…” Sign up for a FREE account here.
Koyfin: Financial websites have basic data and are cluttered with advertisements. Professional tools like Bloomberg are very expensive and difficult to use. Koyfin was created to provide investors with affordable and intuitive analytical tools to research stocks and understand market trends. Our mission is to empower investors with high quality data and analytics to help them make more informed investment decisions. Most of all, we are obsessed with creating a delightful user experience. Read more and join for FREE here.
AK Fallible - Financial Entertainment: AK is here to entertain, inform, and educate you about financial markets so you can make more money! Check out his YouTube page here. Also, consider his free investing tutorial.
DataHub: Check out DataHub, a free (with premium upgrade options) data hub for information across multiple industries (see their available collections here). Check them out here. Also, grab a free account here.
TOGGLE: TOGGLE puts hedge-fund grade analytics within reach of every investor. Sign up for a FREE account here. Also, grab a FREE daily briefing for some tickers here.
Robinhood Sign Up: You get a stock, and you and you and you, and me! Follow my Robinhood link (if you’ve not signed up before) and we both get a randomly picked stock! A great way to get a jump start on investing, especially if you are hesitant to invest your own money at first. Your free stock is waiting for you here.
Dirty Dozen Chart Pack (from Macro Ops): Good intelligence is vital. Great intelligence is priceless… Sign up to receive my weekly chart pack of the 12 most important and actionable charts that’ll make sure you kick your week off right. Sign up here.
Morning Brew: Become smarter in just 5 minutes. Get the daily email that makes reading the news actually enjoyable. Stay informed and entertained, for free. Sign up here. Grab their other, new, newsletters too: Emerging Tech Brew, Retail Brew, and Marketing Brew.
Axios News Sign Up: News worthy of your time. Get newsletters featuring news, scoops & expert analysis by award-winning Axios journalists like Mike Allen, Dan Primack and Ina Fried. View and sign up for their newsletters here.
The Hustle: Bold business and tech news. We cut through the noise with the most impactful headlines. Sign up here.
Wall Street Breakfast: Wall Street Breakfast, Seeking Alpha's flagship daily business news summary, is a one-page summary that gives you a rapid overview of the day's key financial news. Get today’s piece here.
The Water Coolest: The Water Coolest is a daily business news and professional advice email newsletter for young professionals. Biz news. Financial advice. Unfiltered commentary. One daily email. In 5 minutes or less. Sign up here.
DISCLAIMER ON SIGNUPS: I am not sponsored by any of these sites, companies, or individuals.
GENERAL DISCLAIMER: All rights reserved to respective sources where I pull my information. I do not own or have vested interests in the websites where I get my news and information. Links are provided as credit and to provide additional context where reader’s might want more information outside of what is printed here on these sheets.
