"Retail sales came out slightly worse-than-expected, and we also
got word that last month's figure was revised lower," observed
Schaeffer's Senior Equity Analyst Joe Bell. "This marks the second
consecutive month of declining retail sales numbers. With looming
uncertainty out of Europe and continued lackluster domestic data,
the market steadily grinded lower today." With that, the
Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI)
plummeted nearly 113 points in the last two hours of trading,
keeping the wishy-washy week on Wall Street alive.
Keep reading to see what else was on our radar today:
- The SPDR S&P 500 Trust ETF (
SPY
) may
quietly be forming a bullish pattern
.
- See
how well the Dow performs
when a Democrat is seeking re-election.
- Fear Factory:
safe-haven bonds
and the
CBOE Market Volatility Index (VIX)
.
And now, a look at the numbers...
The
Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI - 12,496.38)
gave back a large chunk of Tuesday's gains, closing with a loss of
77.4 points, or 0.6%. In the last hour of trading, the Dow was off
nearly 113 points, tagging a session low of 12,453.69 five minutes
ahead of the close before a surge of buying power at the closing
bell. Twenty of the 30 blue chips declined today, as American
Express (
AXP
) and Home Depot (
HD
) paced the laggards with losses of 2.4% apiece. Johnson &
Johnson (
JNJ
) led the seven outperformers with a 2.2% jump, while AT&T (
T
), Coca Cola (KO), and Pfizer (PFE) finished unchanged.
The
S&P 500 Index (SPX - 1,314.88)
also turned in a loss, pulling back 9.3 points, or 0.7%. The
Nasdaq Composite (COMP - 2,818.61)
suffered a similar fate, and lopped off 24.5 points, or 0.9%, by
the closing bell.
The
CBOE Market Volatility Index (VIX - 24.27)
bounced higher today, rising 9.9%, to find a perch south of its
session peak of 24.93.
Today's highlight
: "Jamie Dimon and the JPMorgan entourage
visited Congress earlier today
," said Bell. "I'm not sure we learned anything new, but it was
interesting to watch Dimon answer questions from a group of people
that didn't really know the difference between a hedge and a
wedge."
Turning to today's major market stories...
For today's activity in commodities, options, and more, head
to page 2.
Oil futures turned south today, erasing all of yesterday's gains
on disappointing U.S. retail data. Despite the Energy Information
Administration's (EIA) report that oil stockpiles fell last week,
July-dated crude slipped 70 cents, or 0.8%, to settle at $82.62 a
barrel.
On the contrary, this morning's lackluster economic data, as
well as continuing anxieties out of the euro zone, buoyed gold
futures to a fourth straight session win. By the close, gold for
August delivery added $5.60, or 0.4%, to land at $1,619.40 an
ounce.
Levels to Watch in Trading
:
- Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI - 12,496.38) - support at
11,500; resistance at 14,000
- S&P 500 Index (SPX - 1,314.88) - support at 1,100;
resistance at 1,500
- Nasdaq Composite (COMP - 2,818.61) - 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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