Fed eyes interest rate cut, TikTok heads to court: Catalysts
On today's episode of Catalysts, Hosts Seana Smith and Madison Mills break down key stories from how an interest rate cut and the election may impact markets to TikTok's legal battle against a potential ban in the US. While tech has certainly spearheaded the market's record growth this year, many investors are gearing up for a potential rotation as interest rates ease. HSBC head of equity strategy for the Americas Nicole Inui explains that the market will likely broaden outside of tech, benefiting sectors like financials (XLF), utilities (XLU), and healthcare (XLV). She adds, "When we look at the market as a whole, it looks like it's trading at a very hefty premium. You take out the Mag Seven, you take out tech, valuations aren't as elevated compared to historical levels. So yes, tech, Mag Seven, you still see strong earnings growth." EY chief economist Greg Daco expects the Federal Reserve to initiate a 25-basis-point cut as it kicks off its rate-easing cycle. However, he notes that the central bank walks a delicate tightrope: "If you ease monetary policy by 25 basis points, it does little to nothing in terms of consumer rates, auto loan rates, mortgage rates, very little. But the risks are asymmetric. If the Fed does not ease monetary policy by as much as markets are anticipating, then you'll actually see a repricing of rates and you're going to see upward movement in terms of rates, and that could damage consumer spending activity, housing activity, business investment. That is the real risk right now." Meanwhile, TikTok is in court on Monday for a key hearing in its ongoing battle to block a law that could ban the app in the US. Rachel Tipograph, the CEO of e-commerce analytics company MikMak, tells Yahoo Finance that the odds of a TikTok disruption, either through a ban or a sale, are rising. Looking at Snapchat (SNAP) and Meta Platforms (META) stock, the analyst says, “There is an implied probability there that TikTok disruption is more likely than not in the next four months, and I feel that could manifest into either a complete sale, complete ban, or somewhere in between.” He says this means “eyeballs and money move away from TikTok” which helps Meta and Snapchat. GenWealth Financial Advisors financial advisor and host of "Get Ready for the Future Show" Scott Inman joins Catalysts to discuss how the election may impact markets (^DJI,^GSPC, ^IXIC) and how investors can best prepare their portfolios for the rest of the year. He believes that markets "don't really care about who is in office," noting that they have performed well and GDP (gross domestic product) has grown regardless of a Democratic or Republican administration. This post was written by Melanie Riehl
