Indices
S&P 500 1,495.92 +.65%
DJIA 13,211.88 +.58%
NASDAQ 2,557.84 +1.04%
Russell 2000 828.46 +1.50%
Wilshire 5000 15,066.46 +.78%
Russell 1000 Growth 591.28 +.82%
Russell 1000 Value 859.03 +.60%
Morgan Stanley Consumer 738.13 +.43%
Morgan Stanley Cyclical 1,033.17 +1.24%
Morgan Stanley Technology 601.17 +.84%
Transports 5,086.14 +1.03%
Utilities 527.27 +.52%
MSCI Emerging Markets 123.0 +1.03%
Sentiment/Internals
Total Put/Call .79 -29.46%
NYSE Arms .63 -32.66%
Volatility(VIX) 13.08 -3.18%
ISE Sentiment 122.0 +7.02%
Futures Spot Prices
Crude Oil 63.50 -1.40%
Reformulated Gasoline 222.25 -.99%
Natural Gas 7.72 +.06%
Heating Oil 184.85 -1.83%
Gold 675.40 -.28%
Base Metals 274.82 +.92%
Copper 363.25 -.06%
Economy
10-year US Treasury Yield 4.64% unch.
US Dollar 81.76 +.20%
CRB Index 310.52 -.34%
Leading Sectors
Restaurants +1.79%
HMOs +1.76%
Gaming +1.75%
Lagging Sectors
Foods +.37%
Hospitals +.24%
Oil Tankers -.70%
Evening Review
Detailed Market Summary
Market Gauges
Daily ETF Performance
Style Performance
Market Wrap CNBC Video(bottom right)
S&P 500 Gallery View
Economic Calendar
Timely Economic Charts
GuruFocus.com
PM Market Call
After-hours Movers
Real-time/After-hours Stock Quote
In Play
Afternoon Recommendations
Bank of America:
- Rated (CNET) Buy, target $11.
Afternoon/Evening Headlines
Bloomberg:
- US stocks rallied and the S&P 500 climbed to a six-year high, propelled by earnings that topped analysts’ forecasts at MasterCard Inc.(MA) and Time Warner(TWX).
- The US Energy Dept. has postponed plans to buy as much as 4 million barrels of crude oil for the nation’s emergency reserve until after the peak summer driving season.
- Symantec Corp.(SYMC) said fourth-quarter profit fell 49% as sales growth slackened to its slowest pace since 2000. The shares surged 6% after the earnings topped analysts’ estimates.
- Consuming more than 14 alcoholic drinks a week may be linked to a decrease in brain size, a potential sign of mental decline, according to a study.
- The US asked Arab countries to pres Sunni Muslims in Iraq to stop fighting the Shiite-led government, a senior State Dept. official said today on the eve of an international conference for Iraq.
- The House of Representatives failed to override President Bush’s veto of a war-funding measure that includes a deadline for withdrawal from Iraq, spurring new negotiations to find a compromise.
- JDS Uniphase(JDSU) posted a third-quarter loss because of increased stock-option expenses. The shares fell 8% after the company forecast sales that trailed analysts’ estimates.
Star-Ledger:
- James McGreevey, the New Jersey governor who quit after saying he’d had an affair with a male employee, is taking steps to become an Episcopal priest.
BOTTOM LINE: The Portfolio finished higher today on gains in my Biotech longs, Medical longs, Networking longs and Semi longs. I didn’t trade in the final hour, thus leaving the Portfolio 100% net long. The tone of the market was very positive today as the advance/decline line finished substantially higher, almost every sector rose and volume was above-average. Measures of investor anxiety were about average into the close. Today's overall market action was very bullish. Small caps outperformed substantially, with the Russell 2000 rising 1.5%. With all the talk of how only large-cap multinationals are rising, it is interesting to note that the Morgan Stanley Multinational Index (NFT) is only 4.5% higher year-to-date. The best-performing style this year is mid-cap growth -- Russell Mid-cap Growth Index (RDG) -- which is already 10% higher year-to-date. Moreover, the average stock -- Value Line Geometric Index (VGY) -- is 7.3% higher year-to-date. The NYSE cumulative advance/decline line just hit an all-time high last week. This rally has been very powerful and broad-based. Sugar has continued its collapse since February of last year, falling 54%. At its peak, many were saying the commodity was the "new oil." I suspect oil will eventually become the new sugar. The Goldman Sachs Agricultural Commodity Index is down 8.9%, just since February of this year. Despite today's better-than-expected economic data, the 10-year yield was stable at 4.64%. The Financial Times reported today that China's pollution problem is rapidly worsening on their soaring investments in energy-intensive industries. According to the FT, China now accounts for almost half of the world's flat glass and cement production, more than one-a third of steel output and 28% of global aluminum production. In my opinion, China is building for the sake of building, such as the world's largest mall, to promote the appearance of even more exceptional growth than would otherwise be the case. This is giving a false sense of demand for most of the world's commodities. This is the main reason why I believe long-term interest rates remain exceptionally low. I continue to believe when the manias for emerging markets and commodities end, the mild bout of inflation we have experienced will turn into a mild bout of deflation. The iShares Lehman 20+ Year Treasury Bond (TLT) remains a core long position for me.
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