| Index | Last | Chg | % Chg |
| DJ Industrials | 13010.14 | 51.7 | 0.40% |
| Nasdaq Comp | 2596.81 | 3.43 | 0.13% |
| S&P 500 | 1439.7 | 6.43 | 0.45% |
| DJ Wilshire 5K | 14505.37 | 42.72 | 0.30% |
| Nasdaq 100 | 2029.94 | 8.8 | 0.44% |
Comments: The above stats don't reveal the movement we saw today. The market gapped higher in the morning and rose until about 11am. Then the downward momentum started until a weak bounce at 1:30. At the 2pm FOMC minutes release the market spiked briefly then headed steeply lower and started bouncing around 2:30. As we headed into the final hour there was a massive rally and all the averages moved significantly higher posting gains on the day (losses were in the cards before the rally).
| Issues | NYSE | Nasdaq | Amex |
| Advancing | 1,633 | 1,237 | 560 |
| Declining | 1,662 | 1,763 | 725 |
| Unchanged | 78 | 125 | 82 |
| Total | 3,373 | 3,125 | 1,367 |
| New 52 Wk High | 40 | 20 | 40 |
| New 52 Wk Lo | 630 | 408 | 172 |
| Total | 1,869,379,950 | 2,640,528,563 | 54,007,180 |
| Advancing | 897,321,650 | 1,182,953,380 | 29,178,105 |
| Declining | 952,440,720 | 1,438,031,588 | 21,818,975 |
| Unchanged | 19,617,580 | 19,543,595 | 3,010,100 |
Comments: Lows continue to dominate. Declining volume exceeding advancing.
| Futures | Last | Change |
| Crude Oil | 98.35 | 3.71 |
| Natural Gas, Jan | 7.839 | -0.308 |
| Gold, Dec. | 803.3 | 25.3 |
Comments: It looks like Oil is making another push for the $100/barrel mark this week. Will it hit it?
From Briefing.com:| Moving the Market |  | Sector Watch |
Freddie Mac (FRE) reports larger-than-expected loss, is considering reducing its Q4 dividend by 50%.
Hewlett-Packard tops expectations, issues future earnings guidance above consensus; Target falls short of Q3 earnings estimate
Fed lowers 2008 GDP forecast
Sizable short-covering rally in final hour | Strong: gold; coal & consumable fuel; steel; integrated gas & oil; oil & gas drilling; oil & gas equipment; dept. stores; construction & engineering; steel; internet software
Weak: thrifts & mortgages; homebuilding; health care facilities; motorcycle manufacturers; gen. merch. stores; industrial REITs; retail REITs; office REITs; diversified REITs; IT consulting |
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Anyone who claimed the trading action leading up to the Thanksgiving Day holiday would be boring has had to quickly change their tune as it has been anything but boring. Tuesday's session made that point abundantly clear.
The major indices opened on an upbeat note thanks to a stellar fourth quarter earnings report and upbeat guidance from Dow component Hewlett-Packard (HPQ 49.56, +0.12), leadership from fellow Dow component ExxonMobil (XOM 87.82, +3.71), which was upgraded from Neutral to Buy at UBS and, believe it or not, a report that housing starts increased 3.0% in October to an annualized rate of 1.229 million units (consensus 1.175 million).
There were some tethers on the rally, though. Specifically, the good news on housing starts was offset by the indication that building permits declined 6.6% to an annualized rate of 1.178 million. Oil prices spiked in conjunction with a weakening dollar and, in the most striking development, Freddie Mac (FRE 26.74, -10.76) plummeted 29% in the wake of a horrendous third quarter earnings report.
The Freddie Mac situation ended up weighing heavily on the market as the mortgage company posted a net loss of $2.02 billion, or $3.29 per share, for the third quarter after writing-down the value of its assets and increasing its provision for loan losses. The added worry for the market was the company's indication that it is seriously considering cutting its fourth quarter dividend by 50% and that it has hired advisors to discuss near-term capital raising needs.
The concern that Freddie Mac won't be purchasing as many mortgages as it has in the past from other lenders sent Countrywide (CFC 10.28, -0.29) into a tailspin that saw its stock scrape below $9.00 per share. Countrywide was eventually compelled to come out and shoot down bankruptcy rumors as being absolutely false.
The release of the minutes from the Oct. 31 FOMC meeting at 2:00 pm ET didn't help matters much when they showed officials discussing the October rate cut as "a close call." In light of the stock market's behavior since then, participants were somewhat taken aback that the officials weren't more resolute in thinking a rate cut was necessary at that time.
This understanding, combined with the update from the Fed that it has lowered its 2008 GDP growth forecast to 1.8%-2.5% from 2.5%-2.75%, drove the market to new lows for the session about 30 minutes after the release. Around the same time, crude futures for January delivery moved to their best levels of the day before closing at $98.03.
The 3.6% gain in oil prices underpinned a 3.2% gain in the energy sector (+3.2%) which was already riding ExxonMobil's coattails.
The market looked headed for another woeful finish, but that fate was averted when the market managed to hold above the day's prior low, an encouraging happening that brought buyers back and forced a short-covering rally that produced a positive finish.
The financials partook in the late rally and ended the day down 1.3% after being down as much as 3.6%.
Everything was caught up in the late move as 9 out of the 10 economic sectors recorded a gain, including the consumer discretionary sector (+0.02%) which was down 1.4% with roughly 40 minutes to go in the day. A disappointing earnings report from Target (TGT 51.69, -2.21) contributed to the sector's early losses.
As stocks recovered the lost ground, the Treasury market gave back its gains. The 10-year note closed down 5 ticks, leaving its yield at 4.09%. |
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