Stocks Finish Mildly Higher on Positive Economic Data

Indices
S&P 500 1,478.55 +.43%
DJIA 13,363.35 +.44%
NASDAQ 2,614.32 +.32%
Russell 2000 792.92 +.31%
Wilshire 5000 14,863.57 +.40%
Russell 1000 Growth 598.0 +.45%
Russell 1000 Value 825.49 +.37%
Morgan Stanley Consumer 715.36 +.80%
Morgan Stanley Cyclical 1,027.64 +.71%
Morgan Stanley Technology 645.56 +.48%
Transports 4833.73 +.06%
Utilities 493.75 +1.15%
MSCI Emerging Markets 135.41 +1.20%

Sentiment/Internals
Total Put/Call .90 -21.74%
NYSE Arms .92 -42.51%
Volatility(VIX) 23.99 -2.40%
ISE Sentiment 152.0 +46.15%

Futures Spot Prices
Crude Oil 76.39 +.87%
Reformulated Gasoline 197.30 -1.18%
Natural Gas 5.59 -3.57%
Heating Oil 213.75 +1.79%
Gold 705.40 +2.11%
Base Metals 226.94 -2.58%
Copper 330.25 +1.21%

Economy
10-year US Treasury Yield 4.51% +4 basis points
US Dollar 80.46 -.20%
CRB Index 311.76 +.27%

Leading Sectors
Biotech +1.68%
Steel +1.45%
Utilities +1.15%

Lagging Sectors
Homebuilders -.77%
Airlines -1.05%
Tobacco -1.06%

Evening Review
Market Performance Summary
WSJ Data Center
Sector Performance
ETF Performance
Style Performance
Commodity Movers
Market Wrap CNBC Video(bottom right)
S&P 500 Gallery View
Timely Economic Charts
GuruFocus.com
PM Market Call
After-hours Commentary
After-hours Movers
After-hours Stock Quote
In Play

Afternoon Recommendations
RBC:
- Rated (TEL), target $41

Oppenheimer:
- Rated (PRM) Buy, target $20.

Afternoon/Evening Headlines
Bloomberg:
- US stocks resumed their late-summer recovery from a deepening housing slump after retailers’ August sales exceeded estimates and the government said worker efficiency is improving.
- Four regional Fed bank presidents declined to endorse a cut in the benchmark interest rate this month, as policy makers gauge the impact of the credit-market rout on the US economy.
- Apple Inc.(AAPL) CEO Jobs apologized to customers who bought the iPhone before he cut the device’s price by $200 yesterday.

BOTTOM LINE: The Portfolio finished about even today as losses in my Retail longs and Computer longs offset gains in my Medical longs and Biotech longs. I added to my (EEM) short and (IWM)/(QQQQ) hedges in the final hour, thus leaving the Portfolio 75% net long. The tone of the market was slightly positive today as the advance/decline line finished mildly higher, most sectors rose and volume was below average. Measures of investor anxiety were slightly above average into the close. Today's overall market action was mildly bullish. Commodities and biotechs were sources of strength today. Growth stocks again outperformed value. Given some of the Fed's comments today, the market once again displayed resilience. Oil is 0.57 higher, but natural gas dropped another 3.5%. Gold broke higher today, which I believe is more a function of diminishing global credit worries rather than rising inflation concerns. Apple (AAPL) headed into positive territory this afternoon only to be knocked down after news broke of the $100 iPhone rebate to existing customers. While I don't think the rebate was necessary, it likely turned a PR negative into a PR positive. Apple will be perceived as a company that "did the right thing" at a time when that is viewed as unusual by most consumers. I still think the stock moves substantially higher from current levels.