Week of Mar 23 2018 Weekly Recap & The Week Ahead
“I measure what’s going on, and I adapt to it. I try to get my ego out of the way. The market is smarter than I am so I bend.” – Martin Zweig
1. Apple is Developing MicroLED Screens — Apple has made a “significant investment in the development of next-generation MicroLED screens” at a facility near its California headquarters, but consumers will “probably have to wait a few years before seeing the results.” MicroLED screens use different light-emitting compounds than the current OLED displays and promise to make future gadgets slimmer, brighter and less power-hungry. Its move into displays has the long-term potential to hurt a range of suppliers, from screen makers like Samsung Electronics Co., Japan Display Inc., Sharp Corp. and LG Display Co. to companies like Synaptics Inc. that produce chip-screen interfaces.
2. France Expects EU Tariff Exemption — the EU is expected to obtain a full exemption from new U.S. steel and aluminum tariffs that are due to kick in on March 23, according to French finance minister Bruno Le Maire. The European Commission has said that, if the bloc is not exempted, it could set duties of 25% on a range of U.S. products, whose annual imports to the EU are worth €2.8B.
3. U.S. Air Force to Test Fighter-Mounted Laser — the U.S. Air Force is set to begin testing a laser this summer that will be mounted on an F-15 warplane. With an output of about 50 kilowatts, the system will review abilities to zap drones or cruise missiles. The Pentagon awarded the $26M contract to Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) last year for the laser program called SHiELD (Self-protect High Energy Laser Demonstrator).
4. Saudi Crown Prince meets with Lockheed, Boeing — Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman will meet with officials from Boeing (NYSE:BA) and Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) as part of a trip across the U.S. that could see $35B in deals signed. It follows Salman’s visit to the U.K., where Riyadh inked a military equipment MOU with the British government for 48 Typhoon jets from BAE Systems (OTCPK:BAESY).
5. Fed Raises Rates, Steepens Path of Hikes as Outlook Strengthens— the Federal Reserve raised rates for a sixth time since the policymaking Federal Open Market Committee began raising rates off near-zero in December 2015. “The economic outlook has strengthened in recent months,” the committee said in its post-meeting statement, a sentence that had not been in previous releases. Fed officials also raised their forecast for 2017 GDP growth from 2.5 percent in December to 2.7 percent, and increased the 2018 expectation from 2.1 percent to 2.4 percent.
6. Trump’s Plan to Impose Stiff Tariffs on China — President Trump signed a memorandum “targeting China’s economic aggression.” Tariffs on Chinese imports worth as much as up to $60B could be unveiled, stoking fears of a global trade war. Beijing noted it will take measures against the 128 U.S. products in two stages – that cover about $3B and $1.9B, respectively – if it cannot reach an agreement with Washington. Legal action under WTO rules will also be considered.
7. Trump Fired National Security Adviser McMaster, Replaced with John Bolton — President Trump has named John Bolton as his new national security adviser, succeeding Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster. The move follows fresh appointments to the roles of national economic advisor and Secretary of State. Bolton was the former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations under President George W. Bush.
The week ahead — Economic data from Econoday.com:
