Coronavirus Update. Hubei province, the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak that has killed at least 1,380 people in China and sickened at least 68,850, hopes that some business will be able to resume operations on Feb. 21 after weeks of closures meant to curb the spread of the virus, officially named COVID-19 this week by the World Health Organization. With numerous production sites both in Hubei and across China having postponed plans to reopen because of lockdown, and with cascading supply chain disruptions in China, it will be difficult for any return to normalcy to occur in the next week. The outbreak has already prompted some South Korea- and Japan-based manufacturers to shift their operations temporarily out of China.
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Happy Tuesday. Good Luck out there this week.
Global Spotlight
U.S.-Taliban Truce. Reports emerged from AP and other news sources Feb. 14 that the United States and the Taliban had reached an agreement on a seven-day “reduction in violence” that a senior Trump administration official said would begin “very soon.”
Pompeo Heads to Africa. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo began his first trip as America’s top diplomat to sub-Saharan Africa, landing in Senegal on Feb. 15.
EU Budget Summit. The leaders of the 27 members of the European Union will hold a special summit on Feb. 20 to discuss the bloc’s 2021-2027 budget.
Parliamentary Elections in Iran. Iranians will vote in parliamentary elections on Feb. 21. The Iranian parliament plays an important role in debating and passing legislation and shaping the country’s domestic economic and social policy.
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Economic Calendar
Briefing.com has a good U.S. economic calendar for the week. Here are the main U.S. releases.
Briefing.com
Last Weeks Numbers
Review Last weeks numbers here.
Earnings
Source I/B/E/S data from Refinitiv.
Aggregate Estimates and Revisions
- Fourth quarter earnings are expected to increase 2.6% from 18Q4. Excluding the energy sector, the earnings growth estimate is 5.5%.
- Of the 387 companies in the S&P 500 that have reported earnings to date for 19Q4, 71.6% have reported earnings above analyst expectations. This compares to a long-term average of 65% and prior four quarter average of 74%.
- 19Q4 revenue is expected to increase 5.1% from 18Q4. Excluding the energy sector, the growth estimate is 6.4%.
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