Wednesday, August 26, 2026

The Morning Call---The off balance sheet time bomb

The Morning Call

 

8/26/26

 

The Market

         

    Technical

 

            Tuesday in the charts.

https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/bonds-stocks-bid-oil-skids-quiet-summer-tuesday-ahead-nvda?gift=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJuaWQiOiIxMTIyODA0Iiwic2VuZGVyVWlkIjoiUUhnc3BaZVVFS2E3RHhXM216eFlKbjhaWEFoMiIsImlhdCI6MTc4NzY4OTE3MiwiZXhwIjoxNzkwMjgxMTcyLCJhdWQiOiJ6aC1naWZ0In0.ckDilDmR5e02o7mmZGnddoWMQsK7uj8eauLgDQVK2pE

 

            Tuesday in the technical stats.

            https://www.barchart.com/stocks/momentum

            https://www.barchart.com/stocks/market-performance

            https://www.barchart.com/stocks/sectors/rankings

            https://www.barchart.com/stocks/signals/new-recommendations

 

            Credit is asking questions that equity has ignored.

https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/ai-story-not-dead-goldman-warns-range-outcomes-getting-wider?gift=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJuaWQiOiIxMTIyNzYwIiwic2VuZGVyVWlkIjoiUUhnc3BaZVVFS2E3RHhXM216eFlKbjhaWEFoMiIsImlhdCI6MTc4NzY4OTkyOSwiZXhwIjoxNzkwMjgxOTI5LCJhdWQiOiJ6aC1naWZ0In0.GKNlqxryveeDtkc6g39k7VzYHE2HJJteW-w3iWvUh1A

 

Wednesday morning setup: Stock futures are flat and Treasuries slipped while oil stumbled heading into today's PCE report and NVDA earnings. As of 8:00am ET, S&P Futures are unchanged and Nasdaq futures drop 0.2% as NVDA and MRVL both rise 0.2% with Semis flat, Memory down 80bp, Korea down 46bp, Software down 1.3%, but Unprofitable Tech +83bp which point to continued de-risking into NVDA / MRVL where expectations are positive, but a stronger print may mean more for the ecosystem than for the individual stocks. Elsewhere, both Cyclicals and Defensives are mixed with Healthcare standing out to the upside and Energy to the downside. Bond yields are +1-3bp as the curve bear flattens, giving back some of yesterday’s gains. Confirming out report from Monday about Bessent's plan, JPM reports this morning that "There is chatter of CTAs accelerating buying as 10Y yield approaches / breaches 4.60%." USD is higher, crude is lower on US / Iran deal optimism, but WTI may have support at $80/bbl until a deal is announced. Base Metals are stronger, precious metals are weaker, and Ags are mixed but net higher. Today’s macro data focus is on PCE where consensus expects a headline PCE +0.1% MoM / +3.6% YoY and Core PCE +0.3% MoM / +3.3% YoY. Nvidia reports earnings after the close. 

 

    Fundamental

 

       Headlines

 

              The Economy

 

                        US

 

Weekly mortgage applications declined 1.0% while purchase applications were down 2.0%.

 

Month to date retail chain store sales rose 9.1% versus +7.6% in the prior week.

 

The June Case Shiller home price index was up 0.4%, in line.

https://bonddad.blogspot.com/2026/08/yoy-repeat-home-sales-prices-continue.html

 

                                  Q2 GDP (2nd est) grew 1.5%, in line.

 

July personal income was up 0.4% versus predictions of +0.3%; July personal spending was up 0.2%, in line; July real personal spending was up 0.0% versus +0.2%.

 

July durable goods orders increased 1.1% versus consensus of +0.7%; ex transportation, they were up 0.4% versus +0.5%.

 

July PCE was up 0.2% versus projections of +0.1%; core PCE was up 0.2%, in line.

 

July new home sales fell 10.5% versus estimates of -1.3% while building permits were down 2.6% versus +5.0%.

https://mishtalk.com/economics/new-home-sales-decline-10-5-percent-housing-remains-stagnant/

 

The August consumer confidence index came in at 89.4 versus expectations of 90.2.

 

The August Richmond Fed manufacturing index was 4 versus forecasts of 7.

 

                        International

 

 

                        Other

 

            Iran

 

              Overnight news.

                          https://www.zerohedge.com/energy/oil-dumps-iran-oman-push-reopen-hormuz-satellite-image-show-gulf-producers-ramping

 

              China’s ties with Iran are not as strong as many think.

  https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-08-25/how-china-is-caught-in-trump-bessent-s-push-for-economic-d-day-for-iran?srnd=homepage-americas&sref=loFkkPMQ

 

Summary: The relationship between China and Iran is far more lopsided and less strategic than commonly assumed. Beijing’s investment in Iran has fallen dramatically short of headline agreements, its military ties are limited and its broader Middle East strategy depends on balancing relations with Iran’s regional rivals. China is Iran’s dominant trade partner, but the relationship is asymmetric. China absorbs roughly a third of Iran’s trade, while the Islamic Republic accounts for less than 1% of commerce for the world’s second-largest economy, according to the Center for Strategic and International Studies. China’s official data show its foreign direct investment stock in Iran totaled $4.5 billion by the end of 2024, compared with $9.5 billion in the UAE. The American Enterprise Institute’s China Global Investment Tracker, which monitors transactions of at least $100 million since 2005, puts cumulative Chinese investment in Iran at about $4.7 billion, concentrated primarily in energy and metals. By contrast, it places Chinese investment in Saudi Arabia at about $16 billion across energy, technology, metals and entertainment. “Chinese companies have a very limited footprint in Iran relative to other countries in the region,” said Esfandyar Batmanghelidj, chief executive of the Bourse & Bazaar Foundation, a London think tank. “Major Chinese firms have steered clear of Iran due to secondary sanctions risks.”

 

 

            Monetary Policy

 

              Warsh’s Jackson Hole opportunity.

                          https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-08-25/jackson-hole-offers-warsh-high-profile-slot-to-rebut-his-critics?srnd=homepage-americas

 

 Summary: Kevin Warsh’s first major speech as chairman of the Federal Reserve is a test of his communications style, which has been criticized for not being forthright with his views on the economy. Warsh faces pressure from Wall Street to provide more transparency and communication on the Fed's policy moves, after a shaky press conference last month triggered a bond market rebuke. Warsh’s defenders argue that the market reaction to his July press conference was overdone, and that he is aiming to rein in explicit guidance on where policy is headed as part of a communications overhaul.

 

 

            Fiscal Policy

 

              Let the bond market speak.

              https://www.wsj.com/opinion/let-the-bond-market-speak-81529d74?st=zM5wPC&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink

               

                  The real $40 trillion debt crisis.

              https://www.realclearmarkets.com/articles/2026/08/25/the_40_trillion_debt_isnt_the_crisis_the_40_trillion_debt_is_the_crisis_1201373.html

 

              The Treasury raises the stakes in the battle to control interest rates.

              https://www.capitalspectator.com/treasury-raises-the-stakes-in-a-battle-to-cap-long%e2%80%91term-yields/

 

            AI

 

             The off balance sheet time bomb.

  https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/balance-sheet-time-bomb-inside-ai-hits-31-trillion-13tn-three-months?gift=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJuaWQiOiIxMTIyODMyIiwic2VuZGVyVWlkIjoiUUhnc3BaZVVFS2E3RHhXM216eFlKbjhaWEFoMiIsImlhdCI6MTc4Nzc0OTQ2MywiZXhwIjoxNzkwMzQxNDYzLCJhdWQiOiJ6aC1naWZ0In0.1LHc8eo8pajlPkjK0Lu6MWcaa2WuTTsBdt8uaj2YL5k

 

 

     Investing

 

            This is how overvalued the stock market really is.

            https://www.marketwatch.com/story/heres-how-overvalued-the-stock-market-really-is-f26540c5?st=Ao6GMQ

           

            Have we really learned the lessons of the great financial crisis?

            https://bondvigilantes.com/blog/2026/08/have-we-really-learnt-the-lessons-of-the-gfc/

 

            The danger in the S&P 500 ETF.

https://smeadcap.com/missives/the-long-and-winding-stock-market-road/?utm_campaign=Missives&utm_medium=email&_hsmi=434015080&utm_content=434014384&utm_source=hs_email

The five levels of wealth.

            https://dariusforoux.com/the-5-levels-of-wealth/

 

            Sabotaging your returns.

            https://www.advisorperspectives.com/commentaries/2026/08/25/investor-psychology-sabotaging-returns-chapter

 

    News on Stocks in Our Portfolios

 

 

 

What I am reading today

 

           

 

 

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