Friends
After the announcement of the resignation of Chief Economic Advisor Gary Cohn from the White House, stocks were supposed to plummet today. Well, we did get a 300 plus point Dow selloff in the morning, but as the trading session wore on, buyers appeared and erased much of the earlier in the day losses. I won’t belabor the politics of the Cohen situation, as we are well aware of the “activity” that emanates form this White House, but the President appears to be holding firm on his tariff stance (expected to sign something tomorrow), so it is interesting to see how markets deal with it.
By the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 82 points to finish the day at 24,801. The S&P 500 was down 1 point to close at 2,726. Gold was down $10 to trade at $1,325 per ounce, while oil was down $1.31 to trade at $61.29 per barrel WTI.
The ADP private payroll number was stronger than expected, as job creation continues to be strong. We will get the all-important non-farm payroll number on Friday, but tomorrow the focus will likely be on tariffs and trade. Trying to predict on how stocks will react on a day by day basis with regards to news headlines has become treacherous. Just when you think you have something figured out, Mr. Market will remind you that you don’t.
Have a nice evening everyone.
