The
Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI)
rallied more than 140 points during this morning's highly
anticipated speech by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke before
Congress. However, as the day wore on, things took a downturn and
the lion's share of these gains was pared by the closing bell.
"After yesterday's huge rally, it was nice that we didn't quickly
give back all of those gains," stated Schaeffer's Senior Technical
Strategist Ryan Detrick. "On the other hand, it was a peculiar day
as small caps and tech stocks significantly lagged their big-cap
brothers. Couple this with the financial weakness, and I think it's
safe to say we still have a very jittery market."
Keep reading to see what else was on our radar today:
-
Three contrarian ideas
from the pharmaceuticals sector: AGN, PFE, and PRGO.
- A crack in the safe:
big banking firms could see bigger deficits
.
- Plus, did the
bears get trapped
by the SPX's bounce?
And now, a look at the numbers...
The
Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI - 12,460.96)
weathered a 138-point swing today -- from a session peak of
12,555.26 to a late-session low of 12,416.53 -- to land with a
46.2-point, or 0.4%, gain by the time the dust settled. Sixteen of
the 30 blue-chips closed higher, as United Technologies (
UTX
) led the outperformers with a 2.4% jump. Bank of America (
BAC
) paced the 13 laggards with a 2.9% loss, while Johnson &
Johnson (
JNJ
) remained unchanged.
The
S&P 500 Index (SPX - 1,314.99)
also saw a very up-and-down session, but ultimately inched
fractionally lower by the closing bell. Meanwhile, the
Nasdaq Composite (COMP - 2,831.02)
mirrored the SPX's performance, and settled with a larger
13.7-point, or 0.5%, loss.
The
CBOE Market Volatility Index (VIX - 21.72)
continued its recent decline, notching its fourth down day in a
row. The VIX fell nearly 2% lower and ended well above its session
low of 20.74, and just atop its 32-day moving average.
Today's highlight
: "China got things started with the surprise rate cut this
morning, but Fed. Chairman Ben Bernanke didn't give much of a hint
one way or the other regarding any quantitative easing (QE3) or a
continued Operation Twist -- and by the end of the day we were well
off the highs," said Detrick. "Also, it's worth noting that
financials significantly lagged all day, finishing in the red and
near their lows."
Turning to today's major market stories...
For today's activity in commodities, options, and more, head
to page 2.
Oil futures couldn't keep their three-day streak of wins alive,
and ultimately took a hit today following Federal Reserve Chairman
Ben Bernanke's decision to not take immediate action to stimulate
the economy. But Bernanke did say the central bank is "prepared to
take action" should the economy dry up. By the close, July-dated
crude pulled back 20 cents, or 0.2%, to end at $84.82 a barrel.
Gold futures took a dive today on an
unexpected rate cut in China
and Ben Bernanke's somewhat vague comments about future monetary
stimulus. Gold for August delivery lopped off $46.20, or 2.8%, to
land at $1,588.00 an ounce.
Levels to Watch in Trading
:
- Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI - 12,460.96) - support at
11,500; resistance at 14,000
- S&P 500 Index (SPX - 1,314.99) - support at 1,100;
resistance at 1,500
- Nasdaq Composite (COMP - 2,831.02) - support at 2,400;
resistance at 3,400
For today's notable annual highs and lows,
click here
.
At the end of every market day, the staff at Schaeffer's
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