Again, the market likes the fundamentals, or maybe not. Perhaps it is the more positive sense about earnings that is creeping into the news flow. Then again …
- Data showed China’s export growth rebounded sharply to a seven-month high in December, a strong finish to the year after seven straight quarters of slowdown, even as demand from Europe and the United States remained subdued.
The interesting question that arises from the above is: if the US and Europe are not providing impetus for Chinese exports, who is? Should we be turning our gaze toward the emerging economies? I haven’t really checked in on Latin America, Asia (other than China), or Eastern Europe lately. Maybe I will.
- Chrysler Group LLC’s Jeep brand sold more than 700,000 vehicles worldwide for the first time in 2012, an increase of 19 percent from the previous year, Chrysler said on Wednesday. Sales in Asia in 2012 rose 94 percent, were up 29 percent in Europe, and up 18 percent in Latin America. Jeep’s sales were up 13 percent in the United States at 474,131.
Okay, so China’s exports are rising and so is consumer spending, apparently. But what about that Europe? Consumers there are buying Jeeps? How can they afford to do that? Jeeps are not cheap. And, there is Latin America again. I definitely need to get a better view of the world. In the meantime, my view of the US is still quite clear – the economy is setting up for a strong 2013.
- DirecTV’s Chief Executive said on Tuesday that the top U.S. satellite provider added 100,000 net subscribers in the fourth quarter and is still mulling an acquisition of Vivendi’s Brazilian telecom unit, GVT. Mike White [CEO] said DirecTV had a “good quarter” and that the churn, or rate of cancellations was better than expected. “The U.S. business delivered 100,000 net adds. That was significantly above where we thought we’d be,” he said.
New subscribers and less cancellations makes for a nice DirecTV equation – more revenue equals higher profits. DTV is an interesting play. It is sitting just below its 52-week high with a P/E around 12.7, sound fundamentals, a short covering of 3.6 days, and it is on a growth spurt. DTV is something to look at, certainly.
- Finland’s Nokia said its fourth-quarter results were better than expected and that the mobile phone business achieved underlying profitability.
I don’t know about Nokia, but I do know the telecom sector, particularly the phone side of things, is still going strong.
Okay, as I write these words, the market has turned south, which means my three live trades are less likely to hit my preset profit targets, and two of them were so tantalizingly close. This dang volatility irks me, unless, of course, it fits nicely into my trading plans. Then, volatility is my friend.
Trade in the day; Invest in your life …
