Latest news with #Yung-YuMa
Yahoo
29-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
It's not just Big Tech. Industrial stocks are on fire.
The stock market is hitting new records — and Big Tech isn't the top performer. The Industrials (XLI) sector has been on fire this year as it has outperformed the entire market to lead the S&P 500 (^GSPC) to all-time highs. The sector is up 16% year to date, outpacing Technology (XLK), which has risen 13%, and Utilities (XLU), up 11% over the same period A boom in aerospace production, combined with AI-driven data center build-outs and investments in power infrastructure, has created a crop of Industrial highfliers. On Tuesday, Boeing (BA) posted better-than-expected quarterly results, signaling continued progress in its recovery. The aerospace giant's stock is up 28% year to date, trailing only AI chip maker Nvidia (NVDA) on the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI). Shares of the aircraft maker, which is undergoing a turnaround plan, are up nearly 30% year to date and roughly 70% since the April lows. The company has emerged as a major beneficiary of President Trump's dealmaking abroad, clinching its biggest order ever from Qatar Airways in May and securing a commitment from British Airways as part of a UK trade framework. GE Aerospace (GE) also recently highlighted a growth in engine orders stemming from deals abroad. Shares of the engine maker have surged more than 60% year to date as revenue and earnings per share jumped more than 20% last quarter. The outperformance of the Industrials sector underscores Trump's focus on beefing up manufacturing both through dealmaking and incentives within the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, signed into law earlier this month. Tax incentives, including write-offs for capital expenditures and onshoring, are expected to be a tailwind for the sector. "We think that the fiscal bill adds to some of the strength that industrials will see in the coming quarters," Yung-Yu Ma, chief investment strategist at PNC Asset Management Group, told Yahoo Finance on Tuesday. "We think there is still a lot of momentum, we don't think we're in the late innings of industrials strength, we're probably in the middle innings though," he added. Power generation for AI data centers and upgrades to the electrical grid have also driven a rally in shares of power equipment makers. GE Vernova (GEV) stock is up more than 90% year to date as the manufacturer of natural gas turbines saw its order books balloon last quarter with strong demand from data centers. Meta (META), Microsoft (MSFT), Amazon (AMZN), and Google parent Alphabet (GOOGL, GOOG) are expected to spend a cumulative $325 billion in 2025, driven by a continued commitment to building out artificial intelligence infrastructure. "The data center build-out is quite dramatic lately thanks to a lot of Big Tech spending," CFRA research analyst Jonathan Sakraida told Yahoo Finance earlier this month. He added, "In order to for any of this to take place, you need the industrial sector to be thriving." Ines Ferre is a senior business reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter at @ines_ferre. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
29-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Market is seeing 'pockets of speculation,' not 'excessive' froth
Concerns about extended market valuations are reemerging as the S&P 500 (^GSPC) and the Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) trade at record highs. PNC Asset Management Group chief investment strategist Yung-Yu Ma says while there are "individual pockets of speculation," that doesn't necessarily translate to broader market frothiness. He also highlights market drivers that could fuel gains. To watch more expert insights and analysis on the latest market action, check out more Morning Brief here. Well, stocks closed at yet another record on Monday, making for the 15th all-time high for the S&P 500 in 2025. With stocks at this level, should investors be concerned about markets getting frothy, about extended valuations? Want to bring in Yong-Yu Ma, PNC Asset Management Group Chief Investment strategist. It's great to see you. So, this has been an ongoing question, right? Because we keep seeing markets hit highs, and we keep seeing the price earnings ratio move higher for the S&P 500. Do you think we are in a sort of frothy period here? Thanks, Julie. It's great to be here. I think we have to distinguish between pockets of speculation and outright excessive market froth. I don't think we have excessive market froth here. Yes, you can point to individual pockets of speculation, which is natural actually, after two years of strong gains in 2023, 2024, uh right now where we are in the S&P 500 hitting new highs. You're going to see some pockets of speculation. But it's really not until you see sort of rampant excessive froth across the board that you should really be concerned that markets have just gone too far and priced in too much. I don't think we're at that point. I don't even think we're close to that point for that matter. Yong-Yu, just for reference, what would that look like? What signals would you be looking for? Yeah, there are a few big ones. Investor sentiment right now is just not it it's actually pretty neutral if you look at some of the survey measures of investor sentiment that during times of froth tend to stay high, even during pullbacks, tend to stay high. You're seeing them read pretty neutral these days. The IPO market is just getting back to what I would say is a normal healthy level rather than sort of a booming IPO market where, uh, you're just getting a flood of companies coming to the market, massive first day gains across the board. That's really some signs that you would see, uh, froth really taking hold across the market. I think you you might see some meme stocks, as we're seeing now, uh, being speculative, but that doesn't mean there's across the board, uh, froth that's in the market right now. Gotcha. So, in terms of what is driving markets higher that might be sort of more fundamental here, is it as simple as earnings? That we continue to see earnings come in perhaps better than feared, and we're seeing that fundamental strength, the consumer keeps spending, etc. I think earnings are part of it. Uh, inflation is part of it. I think there's a belief in the marketplace right now that inflation will be transitory and that the Fed will cut rates, uh, not not this week, of course, but later in the year the Fed will begin a new rate cutting campaign. And of course, tech and AI and and the strength of that and the spending that goes into that are just very strong drivers, and there's a lot of momentum that doesn't look like it's going to be slow down anytime soon. So, I think really those drivers when you put that together in the context of a macroeconomic environment, we look six months out, we're getting interest rate cuts, we're getting stimulus from the fiscal spending or the the fiscal budget bill. And you have an environment where those drivers that are in place, uh, can really remain strong and have some more tail winds, uh, with the Fed cutting rates. I think that's what the market is keying off of right here.
Yahoo
25-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Will the stock market continue to soar? Experts weigh in.
The stock market has been on a tear in recent weeks, shrugging off newly imposed tariffs, caution at the Federal Reserve and war in the Middle East. The S&P 500 has soared 20% since an April low suffered after President Donald Trump's 'Liberation Day' tariff announcement. Over that period, the tech-heavy Nasdaq has climbed 28%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average has jumped 12%. Over the past month -- even as a U.S.-China trade tensions resurfaced and the Iran war broke out -- the S&P 500 climbed more than 5%. MORE: 2 million student loan borrowers at risk of garnished wages in July Concern among investors about topsy-turvy economic policy has given way to cautious optimism about a dialed-back tariff posture and continued economic growth, some analysts told ABC News. While day-to-day price swings will likely persist, they added, the current outlook points to further gains over the remainder of the year. 'The market is making a pretty concerted effort to try to look past some of these near term disruptions,' Yung-Yu Ma, chief investment strategist at PNC Financial Services, told ABC News. In recent weeks, Trump has rolled back some of his steepest levies, easing costs imposed upon companies and alleviating concern about a sharp surge of inflation. A trade agreement last month between the U.S. and China slashed tit-for-tat tariffs between the world's two largest economies and triggered a surge in the stock market. Within days, Wall Street firms softened their forecasts of a downturn. The downshift of tariffs has coincided with data demonstrating a healthy economy. Fresh inflation data earlier this month showed a slight acceleration of price increases, but inflation remains near its lowest level since 2021. Hiring slowed but remained sturdy in May as the uncertainty surrounding on-again, off-again tariffs appeared to curtail hiring less than some economists feared, a government report this month showed. The outbreak of tit-for-tat strikes between Iran and Israel earlier this month sent stocks falling and hiked oil prices. Those challenges proved short-lived, however, as stocks resumed their gains and oil prices eased amid a ceasefire. 'The stock market doesn't care about geopolitical events,' Ivan Feinseth, a market analyst at Tigress Financial, told ABC News. 'The market might react for a day or two, but it was nothing sustained.' Investors have also placed hope in an expected lowering of interest rates at the Fed. So far this year, the central bank has taken up a wait-and-see approach, holding interest rates steady as policymakers await the potential effects of tariffs. A recent Fed forecast suggested a likely pivot, however, predicting two quarter-point cuts this year as well as two quarter-point cuts next year. "The stock market's recent strength reflects growing optimism around a soft landing, improving corporate earnings and the potential for lower interest rates ahead," Brian Buetel, managing director at UBS Wealth Management, said in a statement last week. Still, the market faces meaningful risks, analysts said. Trade tensions could worsen and tariffs could escalate, some analysts said, while noting the difficulty of anticipating exactly where the levies will land. A resumption of hostilities in the Middle East could drive up oil prices and hamper global economic growth, they added. A burst of tariff-induced inflation could nudge the Fed toward a cautious approach and delay potential interest rate cuts. MORE: Trump admin live updates: Trump touts new NATO defense commitment as 'big win' "Despite the market getting close to its highs, getting too enthusiastic is probably not what's called for at this point," Ma said. "It's still a back-and-forth market." Nevertheless, analysts expect an upswing in the stock market over the remainder of 2025. Feinseth forecasted an uptick in the S&P from its current level of 6,090 to 6,500, which would mark an increase of 6%. Ma predicted similar gains, saying the market would rise at least 5%. "We think the overall end destination is one that will be palatable for markets," Ma said. "But it will be a bumpy path from here to there." Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
25-06-2025
- Business
The stock market is surging. Will it last?
The stock market has been on a tear in recent weeks, shrugging off newly imposed tariffs, caution at the Federal Reserve and war in the Middle East. The S&P 500 has soared 20% since an April low suffered after President Donald Trump's 'Liberation Day' tariff announcement. Over that period, the tech-heavy Nasdaq has climbed 28%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average has jumped 12%. Over the past month -- even as a U.S.-China trade tensions resurfaced and the Iran war broke out -- the S&P 500 climbed more than 5%. Concern among investors about topsy-turvy economic policy has given way to cautious optimism about a dialed-back tariff posture and continued economic growth, some analysts told ABC News. While day-to-day price swings will likely persist, they added, the current outlook points to further gains over the remainder of the year. 'The market is making a pretty concerted effort to try to look past some of these near term disruptions,' Yung-Yu Ma, chief investment strategist at PNC Financial Services, told ABC News. In recent weeks, Trump has rolled back some of his steepest levies, easing costs imposed upon companies and alleviating concern about a sharp surge of inflation. A trade agreement last month between the U.S. and China slashed tit-for-tat tariffs between the world's two largest economies and triggered a surge in the stock market. Within days, Wall Street firms softened their forecasts of a downturn. The downshift of tariffs has coincided with data demonstrating a healthy economy. Fresh inflation data earlier this month showed a slight acceleration of price increases, but inflation remains near its lowest level since 2021. Hiring slowed but remained sturdy in May as the uncertainty surrounding on-again, off-again tariffs appeared to curtail hiring less than some economists feared, a government report this month showed. The outbreak of tit-for-tat strikes between Iran and Israel earlier this month sent stocks falling and hiked oil prices. Those challenges proved short-lived, however, as stocks resumed their gains and oil prices eased amid a ceasefire. 'The stock market doesn't care about geopolitical events,' Ivan Feinseth, a market analyst at Tigress Financial, told ABC News. 'The market might react for a day or two, but it was nothing sustained.' Investors have also placed hope in an expected lowering of interest rates at the Fed. So far this year, the central bank has taken up a wait-and-see approach, holding interest rates steady as policymakers await the potential effects of tariffs. A recent Fed forecast suggested a likely pivot, however, predicting two quarter-point cuts this year as well as two quarter-point cuts next year. "The stock market's recent strength reflects growing optimism around a soft landing, improving corporate earnings and the potential for lower interest rates ahead," Brian Buetel, managing director at UBS Wealth Management, said in a statement last week. Still, the market faces meaningful risks, analysts said. Trade tensions could worsen and tariffs could escalate, some analysts said, while noting the difficulty of anticipating exactly where the levies will land. A resumption of hostilities in the Middle East could drive up oil prices and hamper global economic growth, they added. A burst of tariff-induced inflation could nudge the Fed toward a cautious approach and delay potential interest rate cuts. "Despite the market getting close to its highs, getting too enthusiastic is probably not what's called for at this point," Ma said. "It's still a back-and-forth market." Nevertheless, analysts expect an upswing in the stock market over the remainder of 2025. Feinseth forecasted an uptick in the S&P from its current level of 6,090 to 6,500, which would mark an increase of 6%. Ma predicted similar gains, saying the market would rise at least 5%. "We think the overall end destination is one that will be palatable for markets," Ma said. "But it will be a bumpy path from here to there."
Bloomberg
26-03-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Bloomberg Markets 03/26/2025
"Bloomberg Markets" follows the market moves across every global asset class and discusses the biggest issues for Wall Street. Today's guests; BMO Wealth Management Chief Investment Officer Yung-Yu Ma, Invesco Head of Alternatives ETF Strategy Kathy Kriskey, Melius Research Head of Consumer and Retail Research Karen Short, Bloomberg's Jonathan Levin, Mike Dorning, Ana Andrade, and Allison McNeely. (Source: Bloomberg)
