Friends
The Fed decision today not to raise interest rates was certainly not a surprise. Stocks rallied for about 10 minutes after the announcement this afternoon, but quickly reversed course and again headed into negative territory. Once again, despite good earnings reports, including a surprisingly good report from Apple after the close yesterday, stocks just can’t seem to find buying support. Once again, we are challenging the February lows.
After a seesaw session, by the close the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 174 points to finish the day at 23,924. The S&P 500 was down 19 points to close at 2,635. Gold was down $1 to trade at $1,305 per ounce, while oil was up $.46 to trade at $67.71 per barrel WTI.
On the employment front, the ADP private payroll number was a little better than expected indicating that job creation continues to be strong. Friday’s non-farm payroll number will be watched closely with expectations being that about 190,000 new jobs were created in April. Today’s FOMC statement leads us to still believe that the Fed will raise rates 2 more times this year, not 3 more hikes like some still predict. Of course, economic data will and should continue to dictate the rate of speed that additional rate hikes take. Let’s see how the rest of the week plays out.
Have a nice evening everyone.
