Today in markets

Even though some Russian missiles hit targets (well, places) in Poland, the market had a risk-on tone today. PMI readings supported the ‘inflation under control’ narrative, which pushed commodities, equities and bonds up. The biggest impact is on shorted names: $WMT (Walmart) was up by 6.5%. It seems that bricks and mortar outlets are making a comeback, as high-tech firms start to layoff staff (Amazon, Facebook, Twilo, Twitter).

There was a very slight steeping of the yield curve between the 5 and 30Y maturities (USTs), but barely worth mentioning.

Soapbox

I really don’t care about Qatar, and how it treats LGBTQ++ people. I also don’t care what David Beckham has been paid to do some advertising for the country. I sort of don’t care about gender politics, not because I don’t want people who are homosexual (etc.) to find love and be treated equally in society, but because I just don’t think that this group is the one most in need of equal treatment. I’m not entirely sure who which group is most deserving. The whole business of carving up society into sections, classes, factions (etc.), I think, damages the ability of the democratic process to deliver the best overall outcome for society. The fact that politicians endlessly appeal to these interest groups, while rational, is deeply depressing.