The
Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI)
peeled back today on poor domestic data, drifting into negative
territory for the week. "It was all about the
jobs data disappointing once again
. We all know the headline number was rather poor, but under the
surface there were some slight positives," explained Schaeffer's
Senior Technical Strategist Ryan Detrick. "First off, the average
work week increased. And secondly, earnings jumped. Historically,
these things tend to occur before job growth. So let's not write
off the economy just yet."
Keep reading to see what else was on our radar today:
- Will the looming
earnings season
measure up to
Wall Street expectations
?
- Plus,
Bernie Schaeffer and the trading team
discussed what lies ahead for beleaguered
Bank of America (
BAC
)
.
And now, a look at the numbers...
Just after midday, the
Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI - 12,772.47)
backpedaled nearly 194 points to tag a session low of 12,702.99.
But things weren't much better by the closing bell, as the Dow
ultimately turned in a deficit of 124.2 points, or just roughly 1%.
Twenty-five of the 30 blue chips notched losses, as
Hewlett-Packard's (
HPQ
) 3.5% drop led the parade of underperformers. McDonald's (
MCD
) and Wal-Mart Stores(
WMT
) paced the five winning issues with gains of 0.4% apiece. For the
week, the Dow gave up 0.8%.
The
S&P 500 Index (SPX - 1,354.68)
fared a similar fate, burning off 12.9 points, or 0.9%, for the
day. Meanwhile, the
Nasdaq Composite (COMP - 2,937.33)
also took a dive, slipping 38.8 points, or 1.3% -- the worst
performance of its fellow benchmarks. For the week, the SPX dropped
0.5%, while the COMP scored a 0.08% win.
The
CBOE Market Volatility Index (VIX - 17.10)
fell 2.3% today, landing well below its session peak of 18.25. The
market's fear barometer inched 0.1% higher on the week.
Today's highlight
: "Housing once again held extremely tough. Especially when you
consider there was a slew of housing downgrades this morning,"
remarked Detrick.
Turning to today's major market stories...
For today's activity in commodities, options, and more, head
to page 2.
Oil futures took quite a hit today, flailing on a disappointing
nonfarm payrolls report
and a buoyed dollar. By the close, August-dated crude fell $2.77,
or 3.2%, to settle at $84.45 a barrel. For the week, the commodity
inched 0.6% lower.
Likewise, today's
weak jobs data
and stronger greenback weighed on gold futures. Gold for August
delivery lopped off $30.50, or 1.9%, to close at $1,578.90 an
ounce. The precious metal gave up 1.6% on the week.
Levels to watch in trading...
-
Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI - 12,772.47)
- support at 11,500; resistance at 14,000
-
S&P 500 Index (SPX - 1,354.68)
- support at 1,100; resistance at 1,500
-
Nasdaq Composite (COMP - 2,937.33)
- support at 2,400; resistance at 3,400
Click the links for coverage on today's
notable annual highs
and
notable annual lows
.
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