STOCKS DIP: Here's what you need to know
All major indices finished down.
First up, the scoreboard:
- Dow: 20,585.69, -65.61, (-0.32%)
- S&P 500: 2,346.51, -7.27, (-0.31%)
- Nasdaq: 5,841.46, -25.75, (-0.44%)
- US 10-year yield: 2.268%, -0.047
- WTI crude oil: $52.95, -0.45, -0.84%
1. The new director of the Office of Management and Budget said Trump's promise to eliminate America's $20 trillion problem was "hyperbole." "It's fairly safe to assume that was hyperbole," Mulvaney told CNBC's John Harwood. "I'm not going to be able to pay off $20 trillion worth of debt in four years. I'd be being dishonest with you if I said that I could."
2. Trump said the US dollar is too strong partially because of him. In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, Trump said: "I think our dollar is getting too strong, and partially that's my fault because people have confidence in me. But that's hurting - that will hurt ultimately."
3. Chris Christie asked the Trump administration to help stop the United Airlines fiasco from happening again. "As you are aware, every day passengers are 'bumped off' flights under authority given to United Airlines under 14 CFR Part 250. The practice has become unconscionable by United and is abusing passengers coming into Newark Airport and around the nation without cause," Christie wrote in a letter to the Secretary of Transpiration Elaine Chao.
4. The Bank of Canada held rates again at 0.5%. "Global economic growth is strengthening and becoming more broadly-based than the Bank had expected in its January Monetary Policy Report, although there is still considerable uncertainty about the outlook," the bank said in the accompanying statement.
5. Even doctors are getting priced out of San Francisco's housing market. Medical practitioners such as anesthesiologists and surgeons occupy the top nine spots in the Bureau of Labor Statistics' ranking of the highest-paying jobs in America. But by comparing doctors' annual median salary to the median house price in San Francisco, Trulia found only 41.6% of homes to be affordable even for them.
6. The rand climbed after thousands of South Africans gathered to protest against the president. The currency was up by 2.1% at 13.5226 in late afternoon trade ET.
7. The rally in infrastructure stocks has stalled. Infrastructure stocks soared after Trump's election win, with the S&P 500 Materials sector gaining nearly 13% before topping out at the beginning of March. However, all of these stocks have given up a portion of their post-election gains.
8. A top trader at Credit Suisse just quit to take a role at JPMorgan. Matt Mallgrave, head of US equity flow trading at Credit Suisse, resigned today, according to people familiar with the matter. He is set to join JPMorgan, the people said.
ADDITIONALLY:
Fischer's secret speech shows the Fed has learned nothing from its leak scandal.
There are a few simple ways Trump could cause Obamacare to "explode."
David Einhorn accused GM of sabotaging him.
China appears to be making a key concession on North Korea.
Trump's budget chief suggests a government shutdown wouldn't be that bad.