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Stocks flat as investors remain guarded over Fed moves – US trade deficit climbs – Home prices predicted to fall 20% – Homes pulled off market at record pace last month – Fed probes Musk’s Neuralink over animal treatment
In early market trading on Tuesday, the S&P 500, the Dow Jones industrial average, and the NASDAQ composite were essentially unchanged. The stagnant activity on Wall Street was attributed to investors awaiting results of the Georgia Senate runoff election, moves by the Fed, and a digesting of new information on October’s US trade deficit, Yahoo reported.
Oil prices continue to trade lower on Tuesday, with Brent crude futures at $75.83 per barrel.
The benchmark US 10-year Treasury was down -0.04 percent to yield at 3.557% as of 10:36 AM EST.
The Federal Reserve begins the first day of its two-day policy meeting next week on December 13, which comes when the Labor Department will release the Consumer Price Index for November. Although the Fed had hinted at a 50 basis-point increase, strong job gains are the opposite of what the Federal Reserve would like to see in its battle against inflation and has investors wondering if the Fed will enact a fifth consecutive increase of 75 basis points.
The US trade gap was 74.1 billion in September, but as a strong dollar and weaker global demand made an impact, the trade deficit climbed by 12.7% to $78.2 billion for October, CNN reported. Some economists are expecting another increase in the deficit going forward amid higher oil prices.
According to new data from a research firm, as part of a multi-year correction, it will be necessary for US home prices to decline by as much as 20% before the housing sector can return to historical trends.
Looking at the most recent correction cycle, the housing bubble in the 1990s and the implosion in the mid-2000s, the housing market took several years to get back on track, concluded research firm DataTrek Research, the New York Post reported.
In a note to investors this week, obtained by Insider, DataTrek Research wrote: “US home prices need to fall by about 15-20 percent over the coming years in order to return to their long run growth trend. That process is clearly starting but has a good way to go.”
An average of 2% of US homes up for sale were delisted each week during the 12-week period ending on Nov. 20, according to a new report by real estate firm Redfin. The percentage of homes pulled from the market represents the highest on record and up 0.4% from 1.6% delisted homes during the same period one year ago, the New York Post reported.
Redfin attributed the spike in delisted homes for sale to a recent collapse in buyer demand and comes at a time when the average monthly payment on a long-term mortgage is 40% more expensive than it was at this time last year.
Neuralink, a medical device company owned by Elon Musk, is under federal investigation for potential animal-welfare violations under the animal welfare act, which governs how researchers treat and test some animals, the New York Post reported.
According to sources familiar with the investigation and documents exclusively reviewed by Reuters, internal staff has complained that animal testing is being rushed, which has led to needless suffering and deaths of the test animals.
According to records reviewed by Reuters, approximately 1500 animals have been killed by Neuralink, including over 280 sheep, pigs, and monkeys, in experiments undertaken since 2018. The company has also conducted research using mice and rats. The total number of animal deaths does not necessarily indicate that Neuralink is violating regulations or standard research practices.
Neuralink is developing a brain implant it hopes will help paralyzed people walk again and cure other neurological ailments
