U.S. Congress has turned to a new chapter in its long-running battle over the federal budget, as the Senate on Thursday approved and sent to the White House a $1.012 trillion spending bill that keeps the government running through September.
(Source: Wall Street Journal)
The average dispersion between S&P 500® stocks over the twelve months of the year was just below 5%, which is the lowest value across the 23-year data.
In such circumstances, the relative value of active management in the equity markets is constrained. Simply put, accurate bets deliver less alpha.
Based on calculations by The Wall Street Journal, Goldman Sachs employees are sitting on more than $600 million in extra bonus money, for the past year alone, thanks to the bank’s surging stock price.
(Source: Wall Street Journal)
That is the startling lifetime accuracy of the Super Bowl Predictor of the stock market. This year, it predicts the Dow will rise for 2014 in the event of a Seattle or San Francisco win and drop if the winner is Denver or New England.
(Source: Wall Street Journal)
The U.S. government’s revenues outpaced spending by $53.22 billion in December, the first surplus for the month since the 2007 fiscal year and the biggest on record.
(Source: Wall Street Journal)
The Fed has begun tapering asset purchases, starting with $10 billion in January, split evenly between U.S. Treasuries and mortgage-backed securities. If the Fed continues to taper by an additional $10 billion at each meeting, QE3 would end in October 2014, still providing liquidity throughout most of the year. The Fed is expected to keep short-term rates near zeor until at least 2015.
Pope Francis appointed 16 new cardinals who are under the age of 80 and therefore currently young enough to vote in a conclave to elect a future pope.
(Source: Wall Street Journal)
281%
The stock of a little-known biotech company, Intercept Pharmaceuticals Inc., went up 281% on Thursday after the company’s liver-disease drug performed well in a clinical trial, marking the biggest one-day stock leap among Nasdaq Composite companies of a similar size since at least 2012.
(Source: Wall Street Journal)
U.S. exports rose to their highest level on record in November, a seasonally adjusted $194.86 billion, the Commerce Department said Tuesday.
(Source: Wall Street Journal)
