Futures for the leading stock indexes are up a fraction this morning, as neither an ambitious State of the Union address nor a new watergate�seem to be affecting the markets very much.
What is moving the market is yesterday’s surprise announcement that Comcast (CMCSA) is buying the rest of General Electric‘s (GE) stake in NBCUniversal for $16.7 billion:
Two years ago Comcast bought an initial 51% stake in NBCU, transforming the nation’s biggest cable operator into a diversified media company. Now, Comcast is doubling down, despite the uncertainty facing the industry, given the rise of digital outlets like�Netflix�Inc.�and�Amazon.com�Inc.
As the recent success�at Disney (DIS) and Time Warner (TWX) has shown, to be a big, far-reaching media conglomerate is to be in a very strong position these days. Comcast’s stock is up 8% while GE’s is seeing a 3% premarket rise.
Dropping this morning are shares of iron ore producer Cliffs Natural Resources (CLF), down about 13% after last night reporting a fourth-quarer loss and a 76% cut in its dividend.
Retail sales came in as expected this morning, with a 0.1% rise in January. But while expected, the figures nevertheless are a plus, as they bode well for the wider economy.
Retailers such as�Gap Inc.�and�Target Corp.�are getting a sales boost as job gains support household disposable income, helping to counter the effects of the higher payroll levy in January. Firming property values and rising stock prices are also bolstering consumers and adding traction to purchases that make up about 70 percent of the economy.
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