(Bloomberg) -- U.S. stocks fell after Arizona and Florida reported their biggest increases in new Covid-19 cases since the pandemic began and Apple said it would close some stores in those states. Oil turned positive after briefly dropping into the red.Stocks had rallied at the start of U.S. trading amid reports that China plans to accelerate purchases of American farm goods to comply with the phase one trade deal boosted risk appetite. Still, with uncertainty over how quickly economies can emerge from lockdowns, and a welter of options set to expire in a quarterly event know as quadruple witching, investors are being whipsawed by bouts of volatility.“That’s a worrisome sign for markets,”said Matt Forester, chief investment officer of BNY Mellon’s Lockwood Advisors. “This is a continuation of the first wave, this is not a second wave.”In Europe, investors focused on negotiations over the EU’s proposed 750 billion-euro ($840 billion) program to...
Saturna Capital Corporation is the investment management company of Sextant Mutual Funds. Sextant Mutual Funds recently released Q1 2020 Investor Letter, a copy of which you can download here. The Sextant Growth Fund posted a return of -15.13% for the quarter, outperforming its benchmark, the S&P 500 Index which returned -19.60% in the same quarter. […]...
(Bloomberg) -- Oil lost momentum on Friday amid signs the coronavirus pandemic is worsening in U.S. Sun Belt states.Earlier in the day, crude futures rose above $40 a barrel in New York, extending a slow rise over the last month fueled by signals of a pickup in demand. Prices then slipped to $38.40 a barrel on reports that Arizona and Florida have recorded their biggest rise in new Covid-19 cases since the pandemic began. Apple Inc. said it could close some stores in those states.Initially, oil prices were pushed up as two of the world’s biggest commodity trading houses, Vitol Group and Trafigura Group, said global oil demand is recovering at a rapid pace this month, while Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman also said he sees encouraging signs of a consumption recovery.Timespreads are also showing strength. Brent crude’s prompt spread is rallying after settling in backwardation -- a bullish...
