From the word go, the
Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI)
took off and never really looked back, reclaiming all of
yesterday's pullback with a near triple-digit surge. "Wall Street
was abuzz with optimism today on hopes that the Fed will approve
some type of stimulus when they announce their decision about
interest rates tomorrow," observed Schaeffer's Senior Technical
Strategist Ryan Detrick. "This morning's housing data further
confirmed a slowing U.S. economy, and so expectations are very high
for a fresh round of stimulus to be introduced."
Keep reading to see what else was on our radar today:
-
Expectational Analysis
®
: Examining the upside potential for Dillard's (
DDS
).
- Can the PowerShares QQQ Trust (
QQQ
) shed a light on
which way the broad market will travel
?
- The Street readies for the
Federal Open Market Committee's assessment
.
And now, a look at the numbers...
In afternoon trading, the
Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI - 12,837.33)
rocketed some 157 points to a session peak of 12,898.94. But by the
time the dust settled, the Dow pared some of its gains to close
95.5 points, or 0.8%, higher. All but seven of the 30 blue chips
enjoyed upswings, as Bank of America (
BAC
) led the outperforming issues with a 4.5% jump. Hewlett-Packard's
(
HPQ
) 1.1% deficit paced the losing components.
The
S&P 500 Index (SPX - 1,357.98)
notched a fourth consecutive win today, adding 13.2 points, or
roughly 1%. Meanwhile, the
Nasdaq Composite (COMP - 2,929.76)
once again posted the best performance of its peers, rising 34.4
points, or 1.2%.
The
CBOE Market Volatility Index (VIX - 18.38)
found its way to a fractional win today, adding 0.3%, and landing
just below its session peak of 18.62. However, today marked the
VIX's second straight close below 20.
Today's highlight
: "Oracle (
ORCL
) reported solid earnings and this put a bid under tech," said
Detrick. "Small-cap stocks also had a great day. I love to see
small-cap leadership for signs that a rally is healthy. At the same
time, we're finally ready to hear what the Fed has to say." Ryan
added, "Get your popcorn ready because tomorrow should be a fun
ride."
Turning to today's major market stories...
For today's activity in commodities, options, and more, head
to page 2.
Oil futures finished in positive territory today, catching a
lift from the better-than-predicted
Spanish bond auction
and solid housing stats. Ahead of the Fed's announcement tomorrow,
July-dated oil added 76 cents, or 0.9%, to end at $84.03 a
barrel.
Gold futures settled with a second straight loss, as its
safe-haven appeal was overshadowed by Spain's successful debt
auction. But the dollar-denominated commodity's losses were limited
thanks to an ailing greenback. By the close, August-dated gold
sawed off $3.80, or 0.2%, to land at $1,623.20 an ounce.
Levels to Watch in Trading
:
- Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI - 12,837.33) - support at
11,500; resistance at 14,000
- S&P 500 Index (SPX - 1,357.98) - support at 1,100;
resistance at 1,500
- Nasdaq Composite (COMP - 2,929.76) - 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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major events and key market developments. Don't miss this
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