✈️ Boeing crashes United

Good morning investors! The earnings season has official started and about 75% of companies so far have reported positive earnings.

Today we cover:

• The world isn’t going into a recession.

• Stocks continue to go down.

• Companies are announcing earnings.

📊 Economy and News 

Don’t fear, recession is not here

Pierre-Olivier Gourinchas, the International Monetary Fund’s economic counsellor, expressed optimism, stating that the likelihood of a global recession is "quite low." 

This positive outlook is supported by robust economic performance in the U.S. and various emerging markets, as well as a quicker-than-expected decline in inflation despite slower growth in Europe.

Nevertheless, risks to economic growth persist, particularly from escalating tensions in the Middle East.

Global hits:

• Russia is expected to grow faster than all advanced economies this year at 3.4%.

• Middle East tensions pose the biggest threat to rate cuts, European Central Bank policymaker says.

• TGI Fridays to go public through merger with its U.K. franchisee.

Controversial: Tesla asks shareholders to vote again on Musk’s $56 billion payout. The company is down -33.77% YTD.

📈 Stocks

S&P 500 5,022.21 (-0.58%)
DJIA 37,753.31 (-0.12%)
NASDAQ 17,493.62 (-1.24%)
BRENT CRUDE 87.33 (-1.98%)
* Prices as of Apr 18th, 12:20 AM UTC

S&P 500 and Nasdaq close lower for a fourth straight day

On Wednesday, the S&P 500 experienced its fourth consecutive drop, with pressure from struggling technology stocks like Nvidia weighing on the market.

This marked the third consecutive session in which stocks opened higher but declined as the day progressed.

The Dow also faced its seventh negative session in the last eight. Both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite recorded four-day losing streaks, their longest since early January.

In afternoon trading, Nvidia unexpectedly turned to losses, dropping by -4%.

This decline, along with losses in other major tech stocks like Netflix, Meta, Apple, and Microsoft, contributed to the tech sector's -1.7% decline, making it the worst-performing sector in the S&P 500.

Nvidia's downturn was attributed to ASML, a key semiconductor manufacturing equipment maker, reporting a more significant sales drop than anticipated.

ASML's main customers are TSMC, Samsung, and Intel, which are the top processor foundries in the world, producing chips for AMD, Nvidia, Qualcomm, and Apple.

Meanwhile, Boeing continued to face challenges as it came under scrutiny in Senate hearings regarding aircraft safety and quality.

A whistleblower alleging that the company had compromised on its 787s and 777s testified, although Boeing refuted these claims, describing them as "inaccurate."

The company is now -32.39% YTD.

Earnings: United Airlines surged more than +17% after posting a narrower-than-expected loss and beating on revenue.

The company took a $200 million hit in the first quarter after the Boeing 737 Max 9 was grounded following the door plug incident aboard an Alaska Airlines flight.

The company said that it would have been profitable without the cost of the grounding.

On the other hand, J.B. Hunt Transport Services dropped more than -8% after missing analysts’ expectations on the top and bottom lines.

Sponsored by RiskReversal Recap

🔐 Crypto

Bitcoin $61,515 (-2.22%)
Ethereum $2,992 (-3.1%)
Total market cap $2.22 (-3.3%)
* Prices as of Apr 18th, 12:20 AM UTC

Will BTC bounce back?

It is not a good time to be a crypto investor as digital coins have been on a losing streak with Bitcoin momentarily going down $60,000.

However, some think that changes such as the recent approval of spot Bitcoin ETFs and the upcoming halving of Bitcoin mining rewards, estimated to occur on April 16, 2024, will help push BTC higher.

💵 Personal Finance

Can you retire on $500,000?

$500,000 might not sound like a lot of money to most people but it is a healthy nest egg to supplement Social Security and other income sources.

In fact, most people in the U.S. retire with less than $1 million.

So, you can do it too. But, how long will $500,000 last?

Assuming a 4% withdrawal rate, $500,000 could provide $20,000/year of inflation-adjusted income for 25 years.

The 4% “rule”, however, is oversimplified, and you will likely spend differently.

The amount you need depends on things like your monthly spending and income sources.

Plus, you can make your $500,000 run longer by being smart and investing in the right assets.

For example, you could receive $25,000 a year from a savings account that pays 5%. This is possible since a large number of banks in the US are now offering high returns.

The key lies in choosing the right country to live (affordable living) and investing your money smartly.

Check this video for more:

💰 Be a Better Investor

👩🏽‍⚖️ Legal Stuff
Nothing in this newsletter is financial advice. Always do your own research and think for yourself.

Advertise with Us