Markets Shine
The major
indexes today spent most of the day in negative territory, only to
surface in the afternoon to close in positive territory for the weekend. The Dow
Jones Industrial Average
(
$INDU |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) closed up 58.89 at 9119.77, after testing
below the 9000 mark. The S&P 500
(
$SPX |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) closed up 1.76 at 1071.38, with
a low of 1053.50. The Nasdaq Composite
(
$COMPQ |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) closed up 7.99 at 1605.30
with a low of 1548.81.
Amidst a host of negative news today,
the markets were able to shine. The U.S. Payroll Employment for September fell
by 199,000 jobs, almost twice what was expected, and the steepest loss in a
decade. The jobless rate was unchanged at 4.9%, just off the widely anticipated
5%. These numbers confirm economic weakness in the U.S., though the impact of
the attack on 9/11 will not appear until next month. The technology sector had a
fresh batch of earnings warnings coupled with several analysts claiming an
excess inventory and weakening demand would continue to thwart revenue. Contrary
to the news, blue-chip tech stocks had some of the strongest rallies for the
day.
Total NYSE up volume was 620,327,040;
total down volume was 678,708,992, modest by this week’s standards. There were
1,569 NYSE advancing issues and 1,530 declining issues. The Put/Call Ratio
peaked at 2.14 and the VIX closed up .26 at 34.66
The Gold and Silver Index
(
$XAU |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating)
led the charge up 1.46 at 57.97, a 2.58% gain; Computer Technology
(
$XCI.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating)
took second place up 13.19 at 640.85, a 2.10% gain.
The Bank Sector
(
BKX.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) was the
biggest loser of the day down 28.24 at 774.52, a 3.51% loss, and Securities
Brokers Dealers was runner up down 10.87 at 393.67, a 2.68% loss.
Sun Microsystems
(
SUNW |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) closed up
0.56 at 9.85. The company said it would lay off 9% of its staff and expects to
see a loss of 5 to 7 cents a share compared to the 4 cent loss analysts were
expecting.
Advanced Micro Devices
(
AMD |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating)
closed down .40 at 8.60. The company announced it expects a loss of 26 to
31 cents a share compared to analysts projections of 12 cents a share.
Starbucks
(
SBUX |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) closed up 1.89
at 16.96. The company stated same-store sales for September rose 1% and expected
to meet earnings forecasts of 46 cents a share.
Gateway
(
GTW |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) closed up .15 at
5.00. The company announced it will cut 25% of its workforce and lowered
guidance for the Fourth Quarter. Poor sales were blamed on weak demand
internationally.
Micromuse
(
MUSE |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) closed up 1.5 at
8.93. It warned that its Fourth Quarter earnings would fall below expectations,
but investors were not rattled.
Have a great weekend,