Ukadike Micheal

Personal income saw a notable increase in March, along with a significant uptick in personal consumption expenditures, driven by higher spending on both goods and services.

The Fidelity Bitcoin fund recorded its inaugural net outflow since its listing. Reduced expectations for Fed rate cuts are dampening risk appetite, resulting in a significant daily outflow of $218 million from US Bitcoin exchange-traded funds.

Economists expect 0.3% increases in March for both headline and core PCE price indexes, with year-over-year rises forecasted at 2.6% and 2.7%, respectively.

In March 2024, the yearly expansion rate of the broad monetary measure M3 rose to 0.9%, up from 0.4% in February, averaging 0.4% over the preceding three months.

European stocks rose as US equity futures surged on strong earnings from Microsoft Corp. and Alphabet Inc., while the yen hit a 34-year low after the Bank of Japan held its key interest rate steady.

Mainland China's interventions spurred a rally in Hong Kong's stock market, signaling cautious optimism amid ongoing challenges.

In the week ending April 20, the seasonally adjusted initial claims decreased by 5,000 to 207,000 from the previous week's level of 212,000. The 4-week moving average also declined by 1,250 to 213,250 from the previous week's average of 214,500.

According to the "advance" estimate from the Bureau of Economic Analysis, real gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 1.6 percent in the first quarter of 2024, marking a slowdown from the 3.4 percent growth recorded in the fourth quarter of 2023.

Almost all indicators signal a robust US economy in the past three months, with economists expecting strong growth for the quarter.

Shares of Meta Platforms (META.O) plummeted by 14% in premarket trading on Thursday following concerns among investors sparked by the company's statements regarding extended spending on artificial intelligence.