Investors await economic implications of Baltimore port closure
Market activity was generally subdued ahead of the holiday weekend, although volumes were expected to pick up to some degree as pension funds and other institutional investors rebalanced portfolios ahead of the quarter’s end. News flow was also exceptionally light, with the notable exception of the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in the firm’s hometown of Baltimore on Tuesday morning. The collapse cut off shipping access to the Port of Baltimore, one of the nation’s largest ports and its primary port for car and truck shipments. President Joe Biden pledged federal aid to reopen the port would soon be coming, but the broader economic implications of the shutdown remain uncertain, particularly given the long-term diversion of trucking routes while the bridge is rebuilt. The week’s economic calendar was somewhat busier. On Tuesday, the Commerce Department reported that durable goods orders rose 1.4% in February, somewhat more than expected, although part of the increase was due to a revision in January’s steep decline, from 6.2% to 6.9%. Excluding the volatile defense and aircraft segments—a gauge that is considered to more closely reflect business spending plans—orders rose a solid 0.7%, much more than anticipated and partly reversing two months of declines. New home sales fell unexpectedly in February, but the report of the decline came in the wake of previous news of a jump in sales of existing homes.
