DAILY MORNING CHAI

Morning Briefing - Taking some profits following sharp advance higher The S&P 500 futures are retracing from record territory and trade 28 points, or 0.7%, below fair value at the end of a strong week. The benchmark index is up 2.3% over the prior three days. Intel (INTC 59.89, -2.57, -4.1%) and IBM (IBM 121.20, -10.45, -7.9%) are notable laggards in pre-market action following their earnings reports with shares down 4% and 8%, respectively. Intel exceeded top and bottom-line estimates and issued upbeat Q1 guidance, but recall that shares rose 6.5% yesterday after the results were leaked right before the close. IBM missed revenue estimates. More broadly, the market is taking a breather amid a lack of new catalysts and after having seen most earnings reports this week exceed expectations. Many market observers have cautioned about a potential pullback, though, so the negative bias today has contributed to a sharp uptick in the CBOE Volatility Index (23.30, +1.98, +9.3%) as investo

The shares of bitcoin mining companies on Wednesday got slammed, and are on track to post a third straight decline as prices of the most prominent cryptocurrency and the broader virtual-asset market slumps. At last check, shares of bitcoin miner Riot Blockchain Inc. (RIOT) were down by about 14%, while rival Marathon Patent Group Inc. (MARA) was seeing its shares down 17% in Wednesday midday trading. The three-session slide for both companies comes as bitcoins on CoinDesk were down 7.2% so far this week, and valued at $34,096 on Wednesday. The slump in bitcoins comes as incoming President Joe Biden's nominee for Treasury Secretary, Janet Yellen, during a Senate confirmation hearing on Tuesday suggested curtailing the use of cryptos, which she said are prone to be used for malfeasance. "And I think we really need to examine ways in which we can curtail their use and make sure that money laundering doesn't occur through those channels," Yellen said. Bitcoin miners

The S&P 500 futures trade 28 points, or 0.8%, above fair value to begin the abbreviated trading week and bounce back from last week's decline. Investors are buying the dip while digesting the second day of Q4 bank earnings. Briefly, shares of Bank of America (BAC 32.33, -0.68, -2.1%) and Goldman Sachs (GS 306.96, +6.96, +2.0%) are trending in opposite directions following their results. Bank of America provided a mixed report, missing revenue estimates but beating EPS estimates, while Goldman exceeded top and bottom-line expectations. Separately, Treasury Secretary nominee Janet Yellen is scheduled to speak at her confirmation hearing at 10:00 a.m. ET. Ms. Yellen is expected to say that the U.S. does not want a weak dollar and that it's time to "act big" on fiscal stimulus, according to Bloomberg. Reports also indicate that President-elect Biden's $1.9 trillion stimulus plan will face GOP opposition. Longer-dated Treasuries remain under selling pressure des

The S&P 500 futures trade 18 points, or 0.5%, above fair value following yesterday's record-setting advances for the large-cap indices. The path of least resistance remains to the upside amid a lack of new negative catalysts. In macro-related news, the House passed a bill to increase the $600 stimulus checks to $2000 with a vote of 275-134 (44 Republicans voted in favor), which was expected, but reports indicate that it's still unlikely to pass in the Senate. The market will keep tabs on this situation for any change of heart among Senate Republicans. Today's economic data will be limited to the S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Index for October (Briefing.com consensus 6.9%) at 9:00 a.m. ET. Separately, Boeing's (BA 218.78, +2.69, +1.2%) 737 MAX is scheduled to return to flight for the first time since March 2019 after a lengthy period of ensuring its safety. American Airlines (AAL 16.24, +0.18, +1.1%) is expected to fly the aircraft this morning. U.S. Treasuries

The S&P 500 futures trade 25 points, or 0.7%, above fair value at around the 3720 level after President Trump signed the $900 billion stimulus and omnibus bill that funds the government through Sept. 30. The House will vote today to raise stimulus checks to $2000, but it's not likely to get 60 votes needed to pass in the Senate, which means the stimulus checks will remain at $600 for now. Recall, the stimulus/funding bills were originally passed by Congress last week, but President Trump wavered in signing it because he wanted $2000 stimulus checks. Separately, holiday retail sales excluding automotive and gasoline increased 3.0% yr/yr this expanded holiday season (Oct. 11-Dec. 24) with online sales up 49.0% compared to 2019. No other economic data will be released today. U.S. Treasuries have edged lower, pushing yields higher. The 2-yr yield is up one basis point to 0.13%, and the 10-yr yield is up two basis points to 0.96%. The U.S. Dollar Index is little changed at 90.29.

 The S&P 500 futures trade seven points, or 0.2%, above fair value on this Christmas Eve session, which will end early at 1:00 p.m. ET. The benchmark index is down 0.5% for the week, versus a 1.9% gain in the Russell 2000. Today also marks the start of a calendar effect in the market known as the Santa Claus rally in which stocks tend to rise from the last five trading days of December through the first two trading days of January. As the saying goes, though, past performance is not indicative of future results. Trading volume could be lighter than usual with many market participants checked out for the holiday, and other markets closed entirely, which could lead to some noticeable intraday price action. With that said, intraday dips tend to be bought, as investors don't want to feel excluded from this raging bull market, especially at a seasonally bullish time of the year. In other developments, the UK and EU are reportedly expected to confirm a Brexit deal today, while there