Today Is Black Friday. Here’s Why That’s Good
Stocks were mixed on light
holiday trading. It was Kid’s Day at the
NYSE, with Sponge Bob ringing the opening bell!
For the week, stocks were up, but the dollar fell
for the 7th straight week.
Today is Black Friday, the biggest shopping day of the year and the official
start of the holiday shopping season. The name comes from the fact that this is
the day that retailers get out of the red and into the black. The ‘original’
Black Friday was Friday October 25,1929–part of the great crash.
The top-selling products on Amazon
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include: UGG classic short boots (must wear without socks), Britny Spears’
Curious fragrance, DuWop Lip Venom and the Halo 2 game. Preppy (Abercrombie
& Fitch
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is out. Purple is the hottest new color.
Among AOL’s top-selling items are: toys, DVDs and
games. Clothing as a gift is making a comeback this year, although consumer
electronics is expected to be the biggest gift category.
The shippers–Fedex
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United Parcel Service
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that December 13 should be their busiest day.
Energy talk: Will high heating costs this winter
adversely affect home lenders? If people are paying more to heat their homes,
they may have problems paying their mortgages.
The Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) said October sales rose +1.5% over
September–and rose 22% over the same period a year ago–but that Q4 would be
flat; Q4 is usually a strong quarter.
Economic data next week includes personal and
construction spending, consumer confidence, ISM and the always-important
employment numbers.
| Dow | +2.37 | 10522.68 |
| S&P 500 | +0.92 | 1182.68 |
| Nasdaq | -0.57 | 2101.97 |
Strong sectors were: Gold
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-0.46%, Natural Gas
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Weak were: Semis
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-0.53%, Airlines
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The dollar was -0.42 at 81.76
Gold was -1.00 to 451.60
Crude Oil was +0.38 at 49.44
660 million on the Nasdaq.
Market breadth was positive.
| NYSE | Issues | |
| Advancing | 2046 | Up Vol 303 |
| Declining | 1009 | Down Vol 120 |
| Ratio | 2.02 | 2.52 |
| Nasdaq |
||
| Advancing | 1751 | Up Vol 407 |
| Declining | 1165 | Down Vol 184 |
| Ratio | 1.50 | 2.21 |
Stocks in the News.
Taser’s
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effects.” This from the Air Force lab that tested the guns. Last month, Taser
said that the study found the guns safe.
The Wall Street Journal reports that US Air
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General Electric
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access $`40 in cash and lease over 30 jets.
Also in The Wall Street Journal, Medco Health Solutions
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make it appear as if they were being filled faster.
UBS raised its price target on Sprint
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Steel stocks got a lift in Asia on news that demand may outstrip supply.
US Steel
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due to a lack of steel.
This Day in History
1922 Archaeologists enter King Tut’s tomb
1941Â FDR establishes modern Thanksgiving Holiday
1962Â First recording session under the name “The Beatles”
Brice Wightman
P.S. A TM member, Ken Martino, is in the hospital. Please keep him in your
thoughts.