Have Prices Been Driven Too High?
The Dec. S&P 500 futures
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pulled back to the -1.28 Volatility Band Zone (877) around 877.50 — also the 50-day moving average on the daily chart.
US stocks fell for the second day
in three, amid concern that the past two weeks’ gains have driven prices higher than
justified by the outlook for corporate profit growth.Â
Stocks extended declines during the afternoon after a West Virginia jury
found Dow Chemical Co.’s
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thousands of asbestos-related deaths and illnesses. Other companies with
potential asbestos liability such as 3M
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The Dec.
Nasdaq 100 futures
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retracement level drawn from the August high to the October low. The support level is
at 957, the 61.8% retracement level. The NDZ2 closed at 968 down 24.50 or 2.47%.
In the Treasuries, the Dec. 10-year note
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advantage of the positive move in the Treasuries. TYZ2 closed at 112.73 up .60.
The Dec. 30-year bond
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In the energies, rumors that Saddam Hussein
is kicking all foreign journalists out of Iraq did not move crude oil on fears
of war drums. Dec. crude oil
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had a narrow trading range and closed at $28.15 a barrel, down .05. Dec.
heating oil
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unleaded gasoline
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Dec. natural gas
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At the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT), Dec.
wheat
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$4.11 3/4 a bushel. Dec. corn
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In the metals, it was another lower day for gold and
silver. Dec. gold
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Dec. silver
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broke above the key .70 cents a pound level, closing at 70.29 a pound, up .80 or
1.15%.