EQUITY MARKETS

US

S&P500 +1.41%(2,459.27); NASDAQ +2.59% (6,312.47); DJIA +1.04% (21,637.74)

This week’s reports:

June’s CPI rose 1.6% y/y versus May’s +1.9% y/y. CPI ex Food and Energy rose 1.7% y/y, the same as in May.
June’s Retail Sales fell 0.2% from May’s -0.1%. Retail Sales ex Autos fell 0.2% from May’s -0.3%.
July’s Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index (prelim.) fell to 93.1, a nine-months low, from June’s 95.1.
June’s Industrial Production rose 0.4% from May’s +0.1%. Capacity Utilization rose to 76.6% from May’s 76.4%.
May’s Business Inventories rose 0.3% from April’s -0.2%.
Initial Jobless Claims for the week ending July 7^th fell by 3K to 247K. Continuing Jobless Claims for the week ending June 30^th fell by 20K to 1,945K.

US stocks rallied, with both the S&P 500 Index and Dow Jones Industrial Average reaching new highs, as US inflation data came in short of Federal Reserve expectations, weakening the central bank’s case for another hike this year. The chances of another hike also lessened after testimony from Fed Chair Janet Yellen, who indicated the Federal Reserve won’t rush to tighten monetary policy.