Morning Call For March 16, 2016

OVERNIGHT MARKETS AND NEWS

Jun E-mini S&Ps (ESM16 -0.04%) are unchanged ahead of the outcome of today’s FOMC meeting and press conference from Fed Chair Yellen. Gains in mining stocks and energy producers are supporting the overall market as the price of crude oil and copper gain. European stocks are up +0.12% as a rally in automakers leads the market higher after data from the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association showed European new car registrations rose for a 30th month in Feb. Asian stocks settled mixed: Japan -0.83%, Hong Kong -0.15%, China +0.21%, Taiwan +1.02%, Australia +0.15%, Singapore +0.17%, South Korea +0.22%, India +0.53%.

The dollar index (DXY00 +0.25%) is up +0.23%. EUR/USD (^EURUSD) is down -0.20%. USD/JPY (^USDJPY) is up +0.36% as the yen weakened after comments from BOJ Governor Kuroda who said that a negative -0.5% Japanese benchmark rate was a possibility.

Jun T-note prices (ZNM16 +0.06%) are unchanged.

BOJ Governor Kuroda told a Japanese parliamentary committee that “looking at Europe, theoretically, there is a lot of room” to cut the negative interest rate further. He added that a cut in the interest rate to -0.5% was a possibility.

Eurozone Feb new car registrations rose +14.3% y/y t0 1.057 million, the 30th consecutive month that new car registrations have increased.

U.S. STOCK PREVIEW

Key U.S. news today includes: weekly MBA mortgage applications (previous +0.2% with purchase sub-index +4.2% and refi sub-index -2.3%), (2) Feb housing starts (expected +4.6% to 1.150 million, Jan -3.8% to 1.099 million), (3) Feb CPI (expected -0.2% m/m and +0.9% y/y, Jan unch m/m and +1.4% y/y) and Feb CPI ex food & energy (expected +0.2% m/m and +2.2% y/y, Jan +0.3% m/m and +2.2% y/y), (4) Feb industrial production (expected -0.3%, Jan +0.9%), and (5) the FOMC post-meeting statement and a press conference by Fed Chair Yellen.

There are 3 of the Russell 1000 companies that report earnings today: FedEx (consensus $2.34), Williams-Sonoma (1.58), Jabil Circuit (0.60).