March 28, 2024

Wall Street Starts Higher

Stock were slightly higher on Tuesday but trading was expected to be volatile as several Federal Reserve officials due to speak may provide clues on how long the Fed intends to maintain stimulus efforts.

The Standard Poor’s 500-stock index gained 0.3 percent, and the Dow Jones industrial average rose 0.2 percent in early trading. The Nasdaq composite rose 0.3 percent.

Intraday swings have increased in the last week as concerns have risen that the Fed may reduce its bond-buying program sooner than expected.

Many investors are also likely to hold off big bets until the nonfarm payrolls report, to be released on Friday, provides an update on the employment situation. The market will also focus on the Fed’s Beige Book of economic conditions in the United States, to be released on Wednesday.

“There is not much to drive direction this morning as we come off a good, solid recovery performance yesterday, coming off that key 1,625 level on the S.P. 500,” said Andre Bakhos, director of market analytics at Lek Securities in New York.

“It’s a bit of a pause now but that could easily change on whatever theme that comes up.”

Three Fed officials — Sarah Bloom Raskin, a Federal Reserve governor; Esther L. George, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City; and Richard W. Fisher, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas — are scheduled to deliver speeches Tuesday.

If the Dow ends higher Tuesday, it will be the 21st consecutive Tuesday for the Dow to gain, the longest winning streak for any day of the week since 1900.

European stocks were slightly higher in thin trading. By early afternoon the FTSE Eurofirst 300 index was 0.5 percent higher.

Overnight, Japan’s Nikkei climbed more than 2 percent, its biggest one-day rise in three weeks, as currency swings amplified moves ahead of Wednesday’s announcement from Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on the third leg of his $1.4 trillion “Abenomics” stimulus strategy.

The latest changes are likely to center on economic reforms but sources told Reuters the government could also include steps urging Japan’s public pension funds to increase their investment in equities and overseas.

Wall Street stocks rallied late on Monday, after disappointing factory data and comments from the president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, Dennis Lockhart, who told Bloomberg Television that the central bank is committed to its record stimulus program.

In corporate news, Zynga, the online game company, announced its biggest round of layoffs and warned of weak bookings for the current quarter. Its shares rose 0.3 percent.

United States regulators proposed designating American International Group, Prudential Financial and GE Capital for heightened oversight in a long-anticipated move aimed at cracking down on risks to markets.

FedEx said on Monday it would permanently retire or will hasten the retirement of 86 aircraft and more than 300 engines as the package delivery company modernizes its fleet. Its shares were 1 percent higher.

Article source: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/05/business/daily-stock-market-activity.html?partner=rss&emc=rss

Market Edges Up, Lifting Dow to 9th Consecutive Gain

The stock market rose slightly Wednesday, but enough to lift the Dow Jones industrial average to its ninth consecutive gain, its longest winning streak in more than 16 years.

The Dow edged up 5.22 points, to 14,455.28, for another nominal record close since March 5, when it surpassed its previous high, set in 2007. The Dow is up 10.3 percent this year.

The Dow’s last nine-day winning streak occurred in May 1996. The following November, in the early days of the technology boom, it gained for 10 days straight.

This year, demand for stocks has been propelled by optimism that the housing market is recovering and that companies have started to hire. Strong company earnings and continuing stimulus from the Federal Reserve also are making stocks more attractive.

Stocks overcame an early loss on Wednesday, having edged lower at the start of trading despite an unexpectedly strong increase in consumer spending last month.

Americans spent at the fastest pace in five months in February, increasing retail spending 1.1 percent compared with January, the Commerce Department reported Wednesday. Economists had forecast a gain of 0.2 percent, according to FactSet.

The failure of the market to pick up directly after the report suggests that the bar has risen for investors as stocks have rallied.

“As the market rises, so do expectations,” said Bill Stone, chief investment strategist at PNC Wealth Management. “So, even if you get good numbers, you don’t necessarily get the market to go up.”

The Standard Poor’s 500-stock index rose 2.04 points, or 0.1 percent, to 1,554.52. The S. P. 500 has gained 9 percent this year and is less than 11 points from its record close of 1,565.15 in October 2007.

The Nasdaq composite index rose 2.80 points, or 0.1 percent, to 3,245.12. It remains well below its record close of more than 5,000, reached at the height of the dot-com boom in 2000.

Stocks of retailers rose after the retail sales report. Kohl’s jumped $1.49, or 3.2 percent, to $48.82 and Best Buy gained 67 cents, or 3.3 percent, to $20.96.

Brian Gendreau, a strategist at the Cetera Financial Group, said that even if markets dipped in coming weeks, the trend of rising company earningswas likely to push stocks higher in the longer term. Companies have reported 7.7 percent earnings growth for the fourth quarter, the third straight quarter of gains, S. P. Capital IQ said.

“Earnings growth has been quite strong. Corporations have found a way to make money,” Mr. Gendreau said. “New products, new markets, cost savings. I don’t believe that is going to stop any time soon.”

Among the stocks on the move, Spectrum Pharmaceuticals plunged $4.64, or 37 percent, to $7.79 after it said sales of its drug Fusilev could fall by more than half this year.

Netflix rose $10.25, or 5.6 percent, to $192.36 after it said that it was adding a feature that would allow subscribers in the United States to automatically swap movie and television show recommendations with their friends on Facebook.

Dole dropped $1.06, or 9 percent, to $10.67 after its fourth-quarter results fell short of analysts’ expectations. Dole cited lower banana prices in North America.

The clothing retailer Express fell 60 cents, or 3.2 percent, to $18.25 after its earnings report disappointed investors. Michael Weiss, the company’s chief and chairman, told analysts that customer traffic was “down noticeably” from last year.

In the bond market, interest rates showed little change. The price of the Treasury’s 10-year note slipped 1/32, to 99 26/32, leaving its yield unchanged at 2.02 percent.

Article source: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/14/business/economy/shares-slip-despite-economic-data.html?partner=rss&emc=rss