[Chart courtesy of MarketWatch.com] After a two-day advance, US stock indexes drifted lower today as investors lost risk appetite following the release of mixed economic reports, and European policy makers warned a strong euro could hamper the region’s recovery. On the economic front, applications for weekly jobless benefits dropped to 366,000, down 5,000 from the previous week but above forecasts, …
Equities Rally On Buyout Hopes; Europe Bounces Back On Data
[Chart courtesy of MarketWatch.com] US stocks rebounded Tuesday to recoup much of the previous day’s biggest loss of the year for benchmark indexes as investors found confidence in robust corporate earnings and PC-maker Dell Inc’s decision to go private in the biggest leveraged buyout deal since the financial crisis. Shares found some support in today’s economic data. The Institute for …
Major Market Indexes Lose Face-Off with Gravity; Europe Dives
[Chart courtesy of MarketWatch.com] I did not think it was possible that the markets were actually able to lose a face-off with gravity after their relentless and almost uninterrupted ascent since mid-November. Even the by now well documented afternoon “lift-a-thon” was notably absent, as the major market indexes took their cue from Europe and produced their worst loss of this …
One Man’s Opinion: Do Bond Markets Pose The Biggest Risk?
“If there is something untoward coming at us that people haven’t anticipated, it’s probably going to come from the fixed-income side,” says Michael Aronstein, president of Marketfield Asset Management. That’s where the participation is, that’s where the expectation is the highest and the fear of something disruptive is the lowest, he added. Asked why something disruptive hasn’t happened yet in the fixed-income …
Equity Indexes Retreat, But Notch Strong January; Europe Edges Lower
[Chart courtesy of MarketWatch.com] Equity ETFs finished lower Thursday, ending a blockbuster month on a soft note after a government report showed jobless claims rose, but the Dow Jones Industrial Average still managed to produce the best January rally since 1994. First time claims for unemployment benefits climbed 38,000 to 368,000 last week, the first rise in two weeks, a …
GDP Experiences Shrinkage; Stocks Retreat On Growth Worries; Europe Falls After US Economic Data
[Chart courtesy of MarketWatch.com] US equities finished lower Wednesday, dragging the index averages off five-year highs after the Federal Reserve said economic growth had paused following the release of a government report that showed the US economy contracted in the fourth quarter. The Federal Open Market Committee kept interest rates unchanged at near zero and maintained its aggressive bond-buying program. …