US Close: Stocks remain in doom and gloom mode after FedEx Warning, Oil’s bad week, Gold steadies, Bitcoin follows equities lower

US stocks were dealt another blow after FedEx warned that the economy was about to enter a ‘worldwide recession.’ Wall Street was already nervous that the Fed’s inflation fighting mission was going to trigger a recession, but now it seems corporate America is already showing signs that the economy is slowing.

FedEx

FedEx shares plunged the most in forty years after they had withdrawn their guidance.  A weakening economy and rising competition from Amazon complicate how FedEx will perform this holiday season.  FedEx might have a couple tough quarters ahead of it, but this should not be the story that indicates doom and gloom times are here to stay.

Oil

This was a bad week for oil prices as global growth fears appear they won’t be going away anytime soon.  It is just bad news on the crude demand side from both the US and Europe, while skepticism remains elevated that China will have a smooth reopening.

Baker Hughes reported that the oil rig count rose 8 to 599 rigs, but that is still shy of pre-pandemic levels. The oil market is losing its tightness and that will likely continue if central banks worldwide remain aggressive with fighting inflation.

Next week, energy traders will pay close attention to both the FOMC decision and China’s detailed trade data that might show demand for energy is weakening.

Gold

The lead up to the FOMC meeting has been very bearish for gold.  Gold is stabilizing here as selling pressure has exhausted itself and will likely need to wait for the FOMC decision. The bond market selloff might be showing signs of slowing down, but expectations are growing for the Fed and all the other major central banks to remain aggressive with fighting inflation.  Gold’s fate will likely be determined by the FOMC decision, which means if the Fed signals they are stepping up their fight against inflation further pain could be ahead for the precious metal.

Cryptos

Bitcoin is lower following the selloff in equities as risk appetite remains in hiding.  Adding to crypto jitters was the release from the White House that tried to outline a framework on regulating cryptos.  It’s been six months since President Biden’s executive on cryptocurrencies, but this framework hardly puts anything major in motion.  New goals for the SEC and CFTC were expected, while the proposed regulation on eliminating illegal activity fell short of complete guidelines on how that will be achieved.  The Treasury Department will lead the charge in finding a justification for a digital dollar, but that still seems like it is many years away from seriously happening.

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