Latest news with #Sifma
Finextra
2 days ago
- Business
- Finextra
Industry associations highlight cybersecurity risks at US regulatory agencies
Four industry trade associations have called for significant reforms to how federal financial regulators handle sensitive data following a data breach at the Office of the Comproller of the Currency that exposed over 148,000 private correspondences containing sensitive supervisory information about US financial institutions. 0 In a letter addressed to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, The Bank Policy Institute, American Bankers Association, MFA and Sifma say that growing threats from hostile nation-states targeting US critical infrastructure serve as a reminder of the urgency to address vulnerabilities. 'Government agencies are increasingly the target of persistent and sophisticated nation-state attacks that could disrupt financial markets and our economy,' the organizations wrote. 'It is imperative that federal regulators recognize that they are equally a target of malicious actors and implement the same or substantially similar cybersecurity and incident response practices that they expect financial institutions to maintain.' Financial institutions are legally required to share sensitive, proprietary and non-public information with their regulators as part of the supervisory process. This information can range from capital and liquidity management to cybersecurity protocols. However, centralizing large amounts of data can create a prime target for illicit actors seeking to harm US economic security, says the organisations. They point out that over the past two years, both the Treasury Department and the OCC have suffered significant cyber incidents. At the OCC, hackers were at work inside its systems for over a year-and-a-half before the intrusion were discovered. Immediately after the breach was reported both JPMorgan Chase and Bank of New York Mellon scaled back electronic information sharing with the agency. To mitigate risk and prevent similar problems in the future, the groups are urging the Treasury to hold federal agencies to the same security and data protection standards as private companies. They want to limit data collection to only what is necessary and avoid centralisation of sensitive data, allowing companies to maintain control and access to their data. The letter states: 'As firms are required to share non-public, highly sensitive information with regulators as part of the supervisory process, compromises at regulatory agencies could expose institutions' vulnerabilities and business information to malicious actors, putting them at strategic disadvantage.'
Globe and Mail
19-05-2025
- Business
- Globe and Mail
Stocks Trade Lower as Moody's Downgrades its US Credit Rating
The S&P 500 Index ($SPX) (SPY) today is down -0.76%, the Dow Jones Industrials Index ($DOWI) (DIA) is down -0.40%, and the Nasdaq 100 Index ($IUXX) (QQQ) is down -0.97%. June E-mini S&P futures (ESM25) are down -0.64%, and June E-mini Nasdaq futures (NQM25) are down -0.80%. Stock indexes today are trading lower, and T-note yields jumped after Moody's Ratings stripped the US of its top credit rating. Late last Friday, Moody's Ratings downgraded the US government's credit rating from Aaa to Aa1, citing a ballooning budget deficit and fiscal concerns. The dollar also fell to a 1-week low, and the 1-year T-note yield jumped to a 5-week high of 4.562% as investors shed dollar assets on the news. The US already lost its top credit rating from S&P in 2011 and from Fitch in 2023. With its downgrade on Friday, Moody's finally caught up with its competitors. The amount of outstanding Treasury securities has soared from $4.5 trillion in 2007 to nearly $30 trillion today, reflecting the explosion of government borrowing during the pandemic and the persistent inability of the US to curb its federal budget deficit. Sifma, a bond market trading group, reports that annual gross sales of government debt ballooned from $362 billion in 2007 to $2.6 trillion last year. Also, the ratio of total US public debt to the size of the economy has risen from about 35% in 2007 to 100% today, according to the Congressional Budget Office. Comments today from Atlanta Fed President Bostic were bearish for stocks and bonds when he said, 'Given the trajectory of our two mandates, I worry a lot about the inflation side, and mainly because we're seeing expectations move in a troublesome way.' He said he is leaning toward only one Fed rate cut this year. He added that last Friday's decision by Moody's Ratings to downgrade their rating of US debt could have a negative impact on US companies and households who seek to borrow money. The markets this week will focus on any tariff news or signing of any new trade deals. On Thursday, weekly initial unemployment claims are expected to climb +1,000 to 230,00. Also, the May S&P manufacturing PMI is expected to fall -0.3 to 49.9. Finally, on Thursday, Apr existing home sales are expected to climb +2.0% m/m to 4.10 million. On Friday, Apr new home sales are expected to fall -4.7% m/m to 690,000. The markets are discounting the chances at 9% for a -25 bp rate cut at the next FOMC meeting on June 17-18. Q1 earnings reporting season is winding down. So far, over 85% of companies in the S&P 500 have reported quarterly results, and 77% have beaten estimates, the highest since Q2 of 2024. Earnings growth in Q1 is running at +13.1%, compared with just +6.6% expected before the start of the season. Full-year 2025 corporate profits for the S&P 500 are seen rising +9.4%, down from the forecast of +12.5% in early January. Overseas stock markets today are mostly lower. The Euro Stoxx 50 is down -0.74%. China's Shanghai Composite closed unchanged. Japan's Nikkei Stock 225 closed down -0.68%. Interest Rates June 10-year T-notes (ZNM2 5) today are down -20 ticks. The 10-year T-note yield is up +6.0 bp to 4.537%. June T-notes on falling today, and the 10-year T-note yield jumped to a 5-week high of 4.562% after Moody's Ratings late last Friday downgraded the US government's credit rating from Aaa to Aa1, citing a ballooning budget deficit and fiscal concerns. The downgrade may prompt investors to demand higher yields to hold Treasuries. T-notes are also under pressure on negative carryover from a slide in European government bonds. In addition, comments today from Atlanta Fed President Bostic weighed on T-notes when he said he's seeing inflation expectations 'move in a troublesome way.' European government bond yields today are moving higher. The 10-year German bund yield is up +3.5 bp at 2.625%. The 10-year UK gilt yield rose to a 5-week high of 4.726% and is up +4.5 bp to 4.694%. ECB President Lagarde said the dollar's recent decline against the euro reflects 'the uncertainty and loss of confidence in US policies among certain segments of the financial markets.' Swaps are discounting the chances at 91% for a -25 bp rate cut by the ECB at the June 5 policy meeting. US Stock Movers The weakness of the Magnificent Seven Stocks is weighing on the broader market. Tesla (TSLA) is down more than -3%, and Apple (AAPL) is down more than -2%. Also, Nvidia (NVDA) is down -0.87%, and Meta Platforms (META) is down -0.50%. In addition, Alphabet (GOOGL) is down -0.35%, and (AMZN) is down -0.15%. Chip stocks are sliding today. Marvell Technology (MRVL) is down more than -4% to lead losers in the Nasdaq 100, and ARM Holdings Plc (ARM) is down more than -3%. Also, ON Semiconductor (ON), Intel (INTC), Microchip Technology (MCHP), NXP Semiconductors NV (NXPI), Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), Micron Technology (MU), and GlobalFoundries (GFS) are down more than -2%. Reddit (RDDT) is down more than -4% after Wells Fargo Securities downgraded the stock to equal weight from overweight. NuScale Power (SMR) is down more than -3% on signs of insider selling after an SEC filing showed CEO Hopkins sold $623,375 worth of shares last Thursday. Shake Shack (SHAK) is down more than -2% after TD Cowen downgraded the stock to hold from buy, citing an already high valuation amid a challenging consumer spending backdrop. Netflix (NFLX) is down more than -1% after JPMorgan Chase downgraded the stock to neutral from overweight. Gold mining stocks are climbing today, with the price of COMEX gold going up by more than +1%. Anglogold Ashanti Plc (AU) and Gold Fields Ltd (GFI) are up more than +1%. Recently beaten-down health insurance stocks are rebounding today. UnitedHealth Group (UNH) is up more than +4% to lead gainers in the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrials. Also, Humana (HUM) is up more than +1%. RxSight (RXST) is up more than +16% after Wells Fargo Securities upgraded the stock to overweight from equal weight with a price target of $25. Take-Two Interactive Software (TTWO) is up more than +2% to lead gainers in the Nasdaq 100 after Morgan Stanley raised its price target on the stock to $265 from $210. Earnings Reports (5/19/2025) 8x8 Inc (EGHT), Agilysys Inc (AGYS), Aldeyra Therapeutics Inc (ALDX), Gencor Industries Inc (GENC), Safe Bulkers Inc (SB), Target Hospitality Corp (TH), Transcat Inc (TRNS).
Axios
27-03-2025
- Business
- Axios
The Wall Street bull is still roaring
Wall Street had a banner year in 2024. The stock market volatility we've seen so far in 2025 isn't going to change its fortunes very much. Why it matters: As is often said, the stock market is not the economy. By the same token, Wall Street is not the stock market. Indeed, when the market goes through a period of high-volatility down days, traders can end up making enormous profits. Driving the news: Last year turns out to have been even better than many thought: The bonus pool divvied up by New York securities firms hit a new record high of $47.5 billion in 2024, per New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli. If you look instead at the broad banking system, total revenue hit a record high of $856 billion in 2024, per Sifma. Net income of $198 billion was second only to the boom year of 2021. Zoom out: Wall Street makes money in lots of different ways. The revenue stream most correlated to the level of the stock market is asset management fees, which are generally set as a percentage of total assets managed. When those assets go up in price, the fee income goes up, too. Traders, however, tend to make their biggest profits during periods of volatility, rather than from boringly strong markets. They also benefit when a lot of small individual investors start trading the markets, as they're doing at the moment. When banks lend money, their profit — net interest income — tends to be high when interest rates are elevated, as they are now. Then there's dealmaking. That's still looking slow, but sluggishness here doesn't seem to have hurt the bottom line of the industry as a whole. What they're saying: "Wall Street finds a way," quips New York Deputy Comptroller Rahul Jain. "Just because the Dow or the NASDAQ is down today does not mean that it's going to be a bad year for the securities industry," he tells Axios. Between the lines: The industry is still adding jobs, with employment in New York state alone rising above 200,000 in 2024 for the first time in decades. What to watch: While neither the bonus data nor Sifma's profit data includes pure crypto firms, there's still abundant optimism that the crypto-friendly Trump administration will allow a whole suite of new products that could drive fresh revenue in this and coming years. Many firms are also eyeing a future where AI could replace many of their very expensive employees, which would also be bullish for corporate profits. The bottom line: Wall Street will always have something to worry about, whether it's the stock market or interest rates or tariffs or general dealmaking uncertainty.
