Good Evening. US stocks declined on Thursday as worries about rising inflation and the possibility of a recession weighed heavily on risk assets. The major averages recorded significant declines for the months of June, the second quarter, and the first half of 2022.
The S&P 500 experienced its worst start to a year since 1970, losing 0.88%, a 20.60% decline for the first half of 2022. The Dow Jones ended down by 0.82%, losing 15.30% year to date for its worst first half since 1962. Additionally, Nasdaq’s declined by 1.33%, losing 29.50% so far in 2022, and has been the worst first-half ever.
JUST NOT ENOUGH
Better-than-expected sales and earnings in the fiscal first quarter were reported by Constellation Brands Inc. (STZ), giving the fiscal 2023 year off to a strong start. The metrics have also gotten better every year. Strong consumer demand for its portfolio of high-end, premium products boosted results. Additionally, the beer industry’s double-digit operating income and net sales growth helped the top and bottom lines.
- Earnings Per Share: $2.37 vs. $2.10 estimated
- Revenue: $2.36 Billion vs. $2.188 Billion
To support the expansion of its high-end Mexican beer portfolio, the company laid out plans for incremental capacity expansion in Mexico. Between the fiscal years 2023 and 2026, it projects a total capital outlay for the beer industry of $5 to $5.5 billion. The most recent expansion includes building a brewery in Veracruz, Southeast Mexico, to support an additional 30 million hectoliters of modular capacity. It also aims to improve the current Nava and Obregon breweries and continue to grow them.
However, the stock gapped lower at market open and has lost about 4.34% of its value at closing.
THE CRYPTO WINTER CONTINUES
A cryptocurrency-focused hedge fund called Three Arrows Capital has entered liquidation, worsening the crisis and gripping the entire world’s market for digital assets. Insiders in the cryptocurrency industry predicted that the liquidation would mark a turning point in the industry’s ongoing disintegration. The cryptocurrency market has expanded rapidly over the past few years.
However, the firm’s failure is likely to prompt more inquiries about the regulatory oversight that cryptocurrencies and other digital assets are subject to in the major financial hubs of the world.
The Three Arrows Capital crisis came to light earlier this month when cryptocurrency broker Voyager Digital said it was thinking about sending a default notice in connection with a loan worth hundreds of millions of dollars.
The value of assets like stablecoins, which are digital currencies linked to the value of assets like the US dollar or gold, has fallen precipitously, and the crypto landscape is undergoing turbulent change as a result.