Tuesday, July 27, 2010

STOCK MARKET UPDATE ( Updated 27-Jul-10 )

stock vector : Red Bull as a Stock Market "Player". Metaphoric Stock Market Bull

Stocks and Treasuries Remain in Red

Dow +5.75 at 10531.18, Nasdaq -7.98 at 2288.45, S&P-1.59 at 1113.42
[BRIEFING.COM] The broader market has started to lift off of its low, but it has yet to make its way back into positive territory. Despite that upturn, shares of retailers have fallen under increased pressure, such that the group now contends with a 1.6% loss.
Though the stock market remains in the red, Treasuries have been unable to attract any support. As such, the benchmark 10-year Note is down a dozen ticks and the 2-year Note is down a few ticks on its own. Their yields stand at 3.04% and 0.63%, respectively
11:30 ET

Stocks On the Slide

Dow -20.43 at 10505.00, Nasdaq -12.35 at 2284.08, S&P -4.24 at 1110.77
[BRIEFING.COM] Selling has intensified so that the major averages are at new morning lows. The resistance this session comes as some start to wonder whether stocks are overbought in the near term, given that the S&P 500 has climbed for five of the past six sessions and more than 9% from its July low. In doing so, the stock market set a fresh one-month high and broke above its 200-day moving average yesterday.
While this session's selling effort has become a relatively broad-based affair, utilities have managed to attract support. As a result, the sector sports a 0.8% gain.
11:00 ET

Retailers Retreat

Dow +6.66 at 10532.09, Nasdaq -5.42 at 2291.01, S&P -0.59 at 1114.41
[BRIEFING.COM] The stock market is now in negative territory. It had been up nicely in the first few minutes of trade, but sellers quickly stepped in to challenge the move.
Retailers are under some of the most pressure. As a group they are down 1.3%, which has dragged down the broader consumer discretionary sector to a 1.0% loss. However, Under Armour (UA 38.90, +0.68) has managed to hold on to a strong gain following news of its upside earnings surprise and increased 2010 outlook, which now exceeds what Wall Street had forecast for the sports apparel and accessories retailer.
10:30 ET

Natural Gas Sports Gain

Dow +16.05 at 10541.48, Nasdaq -0.78 at 2295.65, S&P +0.95 at 1115.96
[BRIEFING.COM] Precious metals have been hit with some aggressive selling this morning. In turn, gold prices have dropped 1.4% to $1166.80 per ounce and silver has slid 2.8% to $17.70 per ounce.
Oil has also succumbed to some recent selling. The commodity had been up as high as $79.69 per barrel in the early going, but it is now down to $78.35 per barrel with a 0.8% loss.
Natural gas prices have managed to remain in positive territory, though. The commodity was last quoted with a 0.5% gain at $4.64 per MMBtu.
For a measure of the broader commodities space, the CRB Commodity Index is down 0.2%.
10:00 ET

Consumer Confidence Comes Short of Consensus

Dow +35.27 at 10560.70, Nasdaq +5.97 at 2302.40, S&P +4.16 at 1119.17
[BRIEFING.COM] The Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index pulled back to 50.4 in July from the upwardly revised reading of 54.3 that was recorded for the prior month. It had been widely expected that the July reading would come in closer to 51.0, but a generally positive response has helped stocks reclaim some of their morning gains.
Advancing Sectors: Financials (+1.0%), Utilities (+0.6%), Telecom (+0.4%), Tech (+0.3%), Consumer Staples (+0.2%), Health Care (+0.1%)Declining Sectors: Consumer Discretionary (-0.4%), Energy (-0.3%), Materials (-0.1%), Industrials (-0.2%)
09:45 ET

Financials Provide Early Support

Dow +15.29 at 10540.72, Nasdaq +3.86 at 2300.29, S&P +2.32 at 1117.33
[BRIEFING.COM] A fit of selling pressure has undermined the stock market's strong start. Still, the major averages remain in higher ground with modest gains.
Financials are a primary source of strength at the moment. The sector is up 1.1% as diversified financial services firms, diversified banks, and regional banks all benefit from a strong bid. Support for the space comes amid a better-than-expected bottom line from financial services giant UBS (UBS 16.24, +1.09) and regional lender Regions Financial (RF 7.49, +0.40). Meanwhile, Deutsche Bank (DB 68.20, +2.02) posted an increase in second quarter income. Favor for financials has been augmented by confirmation that the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision will ease capital and liquidity requirements.
09:15 ET

Market is Closed

 [BRIEFING.COM] S&P futures vs fair value: +5.70. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +10.50.  Stock futures suggest that trade for Tuesday will see a strong start. Such a move would push the S&P 500 even higher above its 200-day average, which was cleared in the prior session for the first time in a month. In addition to overcoming that hurdle, the tone of trade has been helped by another batch of upbeat earnings, including better-than-expected reports from Dow component DuPont (DD) and UBS (UBS) and strong year-over-year income growth at Deutsche Bank (DB). Favor for financials has been augmented by confirmation that the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision will ease capital and liquidity requirements. However, the euro has come under pressure in recent trade. It had sported a modest gain to trade near new two-month highs, but it is now flat against the greenback. Trade in the commodities pits is a bit mixed this morning. Specifically, oil prices are up 0.5% to $79.40 per barrel, but gold was last priced 0.2% lower at $1181 per ounce. So far, data has been limited to a slightly stronger-than-expected increase in the S&P/CaseShiller 20-City Composite Index of home prices. Coming up at 10:00 AM ET is the latest Consumer Confidence Index. Results from an auction of 10-year Notes are due at 1:00 PM ET.
09:00 ET

Market is Closed

 [BRIEFING.COM] S&P futures vs fair value: +4.40. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +9.80.  Stock futures continue to lead fair value by a healthy margin. There hasn’t been much of a reaction to the latest home price data, though. The S&P/CaseShiller Home Price Index for May hit 146.4, up from the 144.6 that was registered in the prior month. The 20-city composite for May increased 4.6%, which is greater than the 4.0% increase that had been widely expected after a 3.8% increase in the prior month.
08:30 ET

Market is Closed

 [BRIEFING.COM] S&P futures vs fair value: +4.00. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +8.00.  Germany’s DAX is up 0.7% at the moment. Deutsche Bank (DB) is a leader following its latest quarterly report, which featured increased income and a smaller credit loss provision. Banks have also been buoyed by news that the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision eased capital and liquidity guidelines. In France, the CAC has climbed to a 1.3% gain. It is currently led by financial plays BNP Paribas, Societe Generale, Credit Agricole, and AXA (AXA). In similar fashion, British banks HSBC (HBC), Barclays (BCS), and Lloyds Banking Group (LYG) have boosted the FTSE to a 0.8% gain. Action in Asia was somewhat mixed overnight. Japan’s Nikkei slipped to a 0.1% loss as declining issues edged out advancers. Fast Retailing provided price support, but that was offset by Fanuc LTD, Fujifilm, Toyota (TM), and Kyocera (KYO). Mainland China’s Shanghai Composite fell 0.5%. PetroChina (PTR) and Industrial & Commercial Bank were two key sources of weakness. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng staged a 0.6% gain as tech stocks surged 3.1%. HSBC was a primary source of leadership, as was Tencent Holdings.
08:05 ET

Market is Closed

 [BRIEFING.COM] S&P futures vs fair value: +3.80. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +7.30.  The S&P 500 finished the prior session above its 200-day moving average for the first time in one month. An extension of that move looks to be in the making as stock futures take a solid lead over fair value. Early strength comes amid a modest bounce by the euro, which is up 0.3% to trade around two-month highs. Europe’s major bourses are also strong amid upbeat quarterly results from Deutsche Bank (DB) and UBS (UBS) and news that the Basel Committee will ease some of its capital and liquidity guidelines. DuPont (DD), Fluor (FLR), and Teva Pharmaceuticals(TEV) also posted strong reports, while embattled BP (BP) reported a steep loss stemming from its oil spill, announced plans to sell $30 billion in assets over the coming 18 months, and also confirmed that Robert Dudley will take over as CEO when current head Tony Hayward resigns his post in October. Coming up, the S&P/CaseShiller Home Price Index for May is due at 9:00 AM ET. The Consumer Confidence Index for July will follow at 10:00 AM ET. Results from an auction of 2-year Notes are due to be released at 1:00 PM ET.
07:15 ET

Market is Closed

 [BRIEFING.COM] S&P futures vs fair value: +3.50. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +8.00.  
07:14 ET

Market is Closed

[BRIEFING.COM] FTSE...5389.41...+38.20...+0.70%DAX...6230.79...+37.20...+1.00%.
07:14 ET

Market is Closed

[BRIEFING.COM] Nikkei...9496.85...-6.80...-0.10%Hang Seng...20973.39...+133.50...+0.60%.
16:15 ET

S&P 500 Eclipses 200-Day Average Amid Light Volume

Dow +100.81 at 10525.43, Nasdaq +26.96 at 2296.43, S&P +12.35 at 1115.01
[BRIEFING.COM] The S&P 500 settled just above its 200-day moving average after FedEx raised its forecast and new home sales figures for June proved better than expected. Trading volume was light, though.
FedEx (FDX 83.39, +4.43) helped improve the mood of market participants this morning when it added $0.20 to its first quarter earnings per share outlook. The global shipment company now believes that profits for its first fiscal quarter will range from $1.05 to $1.25 per share, which exceeds the consensus call of $1.01 per share. While the broader market showed a positive response to the announcement, gains were much more pronounced among industrial plays (+1.7%) and in the Dow Jones Transportation Index (+2.6%).
A near 24% month-over-month surge in new home sales increased interest in stocks. The stronger-than-expected spike in sales took the annualized rate to 330,000 for June. New home sales had been expected to hit a more modest annualized rate of 310,000 units after they recorded record lows in May. That helped the S&P homebuilder ETF (XHB 15.82, +0.40) outperform.
The positive headlines helped drive stocks higher, but resistance at the S&P 500’s 200-day moving average kept a cap on gains until another round of buying helped the broad market measure settle above the key hurdle for the first time in one month.
Some market watchers will no doubt be quick to point out that participation was modest and that light volume can exaggerate the stock market’s moves – hardly 1 billion shares trading hands on the NYSE. The lack of volume suggests that many investors prefer to remain on the sidelines amid uncertainty over whether stocks will hold recent gains or if the global economy’s recovery effort is strong enough to warrant those gains in the first place.
There weren’t any major earnings announcements for traders to digest this morning, but Genzyme (GENZ 67.38, +4.86) continues to find itself in the center of ongoing takeover chatter.

stock photo : Foreign Currency Exchange Stock Market as Concept

In other news, Tony Hayward, current CEO of embattled BP (BP 38.65, +1.79), will resign his position as company head in October. Speculation on the matter had started to intensify during the weekend.
The euro had a strong session. Specifically, the currency climbed 0.7% against the greenback to settle near $1.30, which puts it within striking distance of its two-month high. Conversely, the Dollar Index dropped 0.5% to set its lowest level since early May.
Advancing Sectors: Industrials (+1.7%), Financials (+1.6%), Telecom (+1.5%), Consumer Discretionary (+1.5%), Health Care (+1.4%), Energy (+1.1%), Utilities (+0.7%), Tech (+0.6%), Materials (+0.5%), Consumer Staples (+0.4%)Declining Sectors: (None)
..Nasdaq 100 +0.8%. ..S&P Midcap 400 +1.8%. ..Russell 2000 +2.2%.

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