"Earnings have been good, but revenue numbers have been light,"
noted Schaeffer's Senior Technical Strategist Ryan Detrick. "That
reality, coupled with... drum roll, please... more European issues
as Spanish yields spiked to new highs made for a very jittery
market ahead of the weekend." With traders adjusting their
portfolios as July-dated options rolled off the books, the
Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI)
broke its winning streak and swallowed a triple-digit decline .
Keep reading to see what else was on our radar today:
-
Bernie Schaeffer
offers a post-earnings dose of reality on
General Electric (
GE
)
shares.
- Should
you be buying
when everyone is selling?
- How to play the
volatile silver options market
in an affordable way.
And now, a look at the numbers...
The
Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI - 12,822.57)
dropped lower out of the gate, and it was a slow churn for the
entire session. By the close, the blue-chip index was just 12
points off its intraday low of 12,810.35, shedding 120.8 points on
the day, or 0.9%. While the index closed up 0.4% for the week, it
entered negative territory for July. Just three of the 30 blue
chips finished in positive territory -- one of which was General
Electric Company (
GE
), which inched up after reporting earnings this morning. Bank of
America Corp (
BAC
) and Hewlett-Packard Company (
HPQ
) were among the worst performers, both losing more than 2%.
The
S&P 500 Index (SPX - 1,362.66)
was sharply in the red as well, giving back 13.9 points, or 1%.
Elsewhere, the
Nasdaq Composite (COMP - 2,925.30)
went from first to worst, shedding 1.4%, or 40.6 points, and
dipping south of its 80-day moving average. The SPX and COMP turned
in respective weekly gains of 0.4% and 0.6%. Like the Dow, the COMP
slid into the red for July.
The
CBOE Market Volatility Index (VIX - 16.27)
was turned away from an intraday high of 17.05 before ultimately
closing up 0.8 point, or 5.3%. Since early June, the fear barometer
has maintained a pattern of lower highs.
Today's highlight
: "We made it through another expiration Friday," exhaled Detrick.
"These days are usually very busy, and it always feels great when
they're over. At the same time, it was great to see big banks once
again lead us lower. This is a group that overall reported 'good'
earnings, yet most of the names sank. If you are worried about a
market pullback, this over-loved, underperforming group could be
ripe for more losses."
Turning to today's major market stories...
For today's activity in commodities, options, and more, head
to page 2.
Crude futures turned south today, as traders took some profits
off the table following the commodity's seven-session winning
streak. A stronger U.S. currency also weighed on dollar-denominated
oil. By the close, the expiring August contract was down $1.22, or
1.3%, at $91.44 per barrel. On a weekly basis, though, crude jumped
nearly 5%.
Gold futures notched a daily gain, thanks to reports indicating
that Russia's central bank has been buying up bullion. August-dated
gold shrugged off the dollar's advance to end up $2.40, or 0.2%, at
$1,582.80 per ounce. For the week, the precious metal slipped
0.6%.
Levels to watch in trading...
-
Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI - 12,822.57)
- support at 11,500; resistance at 14,000
-
S&P 500 Index (SPX - 1,362.66)
- support at 1,100; resistance at 1,500
-
Nasdaq Composite (COMP - 2,925.30)
- support at 2,400; resistance at 3,400
Click the links for coverage on today's
notable annual highs
and
notable annual lows
.
At the end of every market day, the staff at Schaeffer's
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