Friends
Traders were able to focus on the plethora of corporate earnings reports today (many from the Dow 30), and for the most part liked what they saw. The earnings season is shaping up to be a bit better than many expected, and if it hadn’t been for the horrific global headlines the past week, stocks might have been rewarded even more than they have.
For the session, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 61 points to close at 17,113. The S&P 500 was up 9 points to finish the day at 1983. Gold was down $7 to trade at $1306 per ounce, while oil was down $.17 to trade at $104.42 per barrel WTI.
On the economic front, the PPI number came in about as expected (not too hot), and the Richmond Fed Manufacturing Index reading was encouraging. On the housing front, existing home sales numbers rose nicely, but the rise in housing prices slowed a bit (don’t tell that to anyone trying to buy a home in The Woodlands these days). So, as the summer rolls on, corporate earnings seem to be ok, and economic activity is decent. No, nothing is really “gangbusters”, but slow and steady improvement is not all that bad for stocks. We just have to keep an eye out and make sure prices of shares don’t get ahead of themselves. So far, unlike last year’s P/E expansion phenomenon, this year’s modest advance in share prices comfortably coincides with the increase in corporate earnings. We’ll see if corporate earnings can keep trader’s attention, or will global events overwhelm the news cycle for the rest of the week?
Have a nice evening everyone.
