"This morning's initial jobless claims failed to affect the
market," said Schaeffer's Senior Equities Analyst Joe Bell. "The
safety trade was once again today's theme, as consumer staples
outperformed most of the other sectors." The
Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI)
backpedaled roughly 75 points in morning trading, but battled hard
to secure a daily victory.
Click through to see what else was on our radar today:
And now, a look at the numbers...
The
Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI - 13,596.93)
secured a win today, albeit a minor one. The blue-chip barometer
was in the red for most of the session, drifting to an intraday
bottom of 13,503 in the first half hour of trading. By the time the
closing bell sounded, though, the Dow was up 19.0 points, or 0.1%,
to land at another multi-year best. Of the Dow's 30 components,
Kraft Foods Inc (NASDAQ:KFT) led the 17 winning issues with a 1.9%
rise, while Alcoa Inc.'s (
AA
) 2.3% decline paced the 13 underperformers.
The
S&P 500 Index
(SPX - 1,460.26)
cleared breakeven for a brief moment in late-trading, but
ultimately shaved off a fraction of a point on the day. The
Nasdaq Composite (COMP - 3,175.96)
fared no better, wading in the red for the entire session, and
giving up 6.7 points, or 0.2%, by the close.
The
CBOE Market Volatility Index (VIX - 14.07)
turned higher today, but didn't travel too far from where it
started, adding two-tenths of a point, or 1.4%.
Today's highlight
: When asked what the best thing about today's market was, Bell
responded with a succinct observation: "It's over."
"It was another boring, relatively flay day. If that sounds
familiar, it is. Once again, the market fought tooth and nail to
make a minor move."
Turning to today's major market stories...
For today's activity in commodities, options, and more, head
to page 2.
Poorly received domestic and foreign manufacturing data kept
crude futures near breakeven today, as the newly expired futures
contract for October delivery inched lower by 11 cents, or 0.1%, to
settle at $91.87 a barrel. Meanwhile, November-dated crude ticked
higher by 12 cents, or 0.1%, to $92.69 a barrel.
Gold futures didn't move too much either, even though the U.S.
dollar flexed some muscle today. December-dated gold dipped $1.50,
or 0.1%, to end at $1,770.20 an ounce.
Levels to watch in trading...
-
Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI - 13,596.93)
- support at 11,500; resistance at 14,000
-
S&P 500 Index (SPX - 1,460.26)
- support at 1,100; resistance at 1,500
-
Nasdaq Composite (COMP - 3,175.96)
- support at 2,400; resistance at 3,400
At the end of every market day, the staff at Schaeffer's
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