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Only one more sleep before the GOP machine tries to steal another election. I still think that the skinny bisexual black guy will beat the failed pilot war criminal who collaborated with the Viet Cong, but it depends critically on what the Republicans think they can get away with. As Stalin once said, it's not important that people have a vote - it's important who get to COUNT them.
If Obama manages to fend off the chicanery that the old guy's side will throw at him, we will get to play "Guess the assassination date" for four years. Frankly, that's the only interest that any sane individual can have in this ridiculous display of the US public's collective ignorance.
The old guy is a corrupt politician who collaborated with the enemy after being involved in deliberate attempts to bomb civilian infrastructure. He finished fourth-l;ast in his graduating class, blew up five aircraft ... and he's a "hero".
He took cash and gifts from a rip-off artist who ran a dodgy Savings & Loan... but he's the 'campaign reform' guy.
He dumped the wife who waited for him when he was singing for the Cong', and married a beer heiress... but he's the 'values' candidate.
The skinny bisexual black guy is a corrupt politician.
Both of them are mentally defective - they believe that there is a wizard in the sky that listens to them and/or intervenes in the world. That should disqualify them from holding public office, on the basis that they are profoundly deluded. After all, Charles Manson believed that Jeebus (or Jeebus' Dad) told him to do the Tate-laBiance murders... do you want a guy who believes in the same Sky Wizard to be at the helm of the USS Disaster?
Anyhow - they are both prison bitches for Wall Street, so expect more of the same attempts to transfer taxpayer money to the banksters. Nothing ever changes, dearest Reader..
Economic News
ISM survey the weakest since 1982... no surprise (although it was weaker than expectations).
Fed Open Market Operations
The Fed's Open Market Operations desk performed a single repurchase - anotehr 1 Day repurchase totalling $ 25bn, all in Treasury-backed collateral. The repurchase was undertaken at a weighted average rate of 0.415% - 58.5 basis points below Fed Funds.
Headline Indices
The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 5.18 points (0.06%) to 9319.83 points. The index high for the day was 9410.55, which was hit less than half an hour after the opening bell. The session low was 9255.48 - just after 3 p.m. (under an hour before the close).
The Dow has 30 components; today 14 issues rose, with aggregate volume of 449.37m units; 16 issues fell, with aggregate volume of 384.92m units. The total volume traded in the index was 834.29m units.
The main decliners (in percentage terms) were -
- Home Depot (HD) -1.37 (5.8%) to $22.22 on volume of 17.88m shares;
- Disney Corp (DIS) -0.87 (3.4%) to $25.04 on volume of 19.67m shares;
- Merck (MRK) -0.98 (3.2%) to $29.97 on volume of 11.76m shares;
- Intel (INTC) -0.391 (2.4%) to $15.64 on volume of 53.44m shares; and
- General Motors (GM) -0.14 (2.4%) to $5.65 on volume of 23.89m shares.
The S&P500 Index lost 2.45 points (0.25%) to 966.30 points. Of its 500 components, 231 issues rose: advancing volume totalled 1.5bn shares. 257 issues fell, and declining volume was 1.86bn. Total volume traded in the index was 3386.9m units. Within the index,
The main decliners (in percentage terms) were -
- Office Depot (ODP) -0.72 (20%) to $2.88 on volume of 10.56m shares;
- Dynegy Inc. (DYN) -0.49 (13.5%) to $3.15 on volume of 8.87m shares;
- Weatherford International Ltd. (WFT) -1.85 (11%) to $15.03 on volume of 10.33m shares;
- Genl Growth Properties (GGP) -0.41 (9.9%) to $3.73 on volume of 6.94m shares; and
- D.R. Horton (DHI) -0.7 (9.5%) to $6.68 on volume of 10.17m shares.
The Nasdaq Composite advanced +5.38 points (0.31%) to 1726.33 points, and the Nasdaq100 lost 0.03 points (as near to 0% as makes no odds) closing at 1334.75 points..
Total volume traded in the Nasdaq100 index index was 826.82m units. 52 index components rose, and advancing volume was 398.52m shares; 45 issues fell, with declining volume of 414.01m units.
It seems slightly unfair to concentrate on the losing stocks when the index was pretty much unchanged, but that's the way we do things here. The main decliners (in percentage terms) were -
- Wynn Resorts (WYNN) -8.81 (14.6%) to $51.59 on volume of 3.28m shares;
- Sirius Satellite Radio (SIRI) -0.028 (8.3%) to $0.31 on volume of 53.23m shares;
- NII Holdings (NIHD) -2 (7.8%) to $23.76 on volume of 4.15m shares;
- Whole Foods Market (WFMI) -0.7 (6.5%) to $10.02 on volume of 4.61m shares; and
- Costco Wholesale (COST) -3.54 (6.2%) to $53.47 on volume of 8.38m shares.
Volatility
The CBOE Volatility Index lost 6.21 points (10.37%) to 53.68 points..
The CBOE Nasdaq100 Volatility Index lost 4.08 points (6.77%) to 56.22 points..
Breadth and Internals
A total of 3545 issues traded today on the NYSE; today's total volume was 4.51bn shares. A total of 1963 stocks posted gains for the day, and volume in advancing issues totalled 2.18bn shares. Exerting downwards pressure on the market were 1508 losers, which accounted for a total declining volume of 2.3bn shares. 8 stocks made new 1-year highs on the NYSE, while 65 shares plumbed new 52-week depths.
On the Nasdaq 2983 tickers traded today; total Nasdaq volume was 1.77bn shares. A total of 1600 stocks posted gains for the day, with aggregate volume of 900m shares changing hands in the day's winners. The red zone of the Nasdaq exchange comprised 1271 losers, and total declining volume was 850m shares. 13 Nasdaq-listed stocks hit new 52-week highs, while 67 shares dipped to new 1-year lows.
| Major Market Statistics | |||
| Index | Close | Gain(Loss) | % |
| Dow Jones Industrial Average | 9319.83 | -5.18 | -0.06% |
| S&P500 Index | 966.30 | -2.45 | -0.25% |
| Nasdaq Composite | 1726.33 | +5.38 | 0.31% |
| Nasdaq100 | 1334.75 | -0.03 | -0% |
| CBOE Volatility Index | 53.68 | -6.21 | -10.37% |
| CBOE Nasdaq100 Volatility Index | 56.22 | -4.08 | -6.77% |
Dow Darlings
- AT&T (T) +1.04 (3.9%) to $27.81 on volume of 25.7m units
- Verizon (VZ) +1.08 (3.6%) to $30.75 on volume of 14.4m units
- Alcoa (AA) +0.38 (3.3%) to $11.88 on volume of 21.1m units
- Coca-Cola (KO) +1.39 (3.2%) to $45.45 on volume of 9.2m units
- American Express (AXP) +0.82 (3%) to $28.32 on volume of 12.4m units
Dow Duds:
- Home Depot (HD) -1.37 (5.8%) to $22.22 on volume of 17.9m units
- Disney Corp (DIS) -0.87 (3.4%) to $25.04 on volume of 19.7m units
- Merck (MRK) -0.98 (3.2%) to $29.97 on volume of 11.8m units
- Intel (INTC) -0.391 (2.4%) to $15.64 on volume of 53.8m units
- General Motors (GM) -0.14 (2.4%) to $5.65 on volume of 23.9m units
Most Traded Dow stocks:
- Citigroup (C) +0.34 (2.5%) to $13.99 on volume of 70.8m units
- Microsoft (MSFT) +0.29 (1.3%) to $22.62 on volume of 61.5m units
- Bank Of America (BAC) --0.56 (2.3%) to $23.61 on volume of 58.9m units
- General Electric (GE) --0.21 (1.1%) to $19.3 on volume of 56m units
- Intel (INTC) --0.391 (2.4%) to $15.64 on volume of 53.8m units
Precious Metals
Precious metals futures advanced as follows -
| Precious Metals Futures | |||
| Index | Close | Gain(Loss) | % |
| Gold | 722.4 | 4.20 | 0.58 |
| Silver | 9.75 | 0.02 | 0.21 |
| Palladium | 200.85 | 1.30 | 0.65 |
| Platinum | 827 | -4.60 | -0.55 |
The Gold Bugs index (XAU) contains 16 components; the total volume traded in the index was 91.67m units. Within the index, 8 issues rose, with aggregate volume of 44.83m units; 8 issues fell, with aggregate volume of 46.85m units.
Today the index rose by 0.08 points (0.1%) to 81.14 points. Contributing to the advance were -
- RandGold Resources (GOLD) +1.26 (4.1%) to $32.27 on volume of 0.57m shares;
- Agnico Eagle Mines (AEM) +0.97 (3.5%) to $28.62 on volume of 2.63m shares;
- Kinroos Gold (KGC) +0.33 (3.2%) to $10.76 on volume of 7.71m shares;
- Silver Wheaton (SLW) +0.1 (2.8%) to $3.7 on volume of 5.07m shares; and
- Silver Stand Resources (SSRI) +0.17 (2%) to $8.62 on volume of 0.78m shares.
Energy Complex
Energy futures softened - continued USD strength and expectations of a weaker US economy continue to press heavily on the entire Energy complex:
| Energy Futures | |||
| Commodity | Close | Gain(Loss) | % |
| Crude Oil | 64.3 | -3.51 | -5.18 |
| Heating Oil | 1.992 | -0.0922 | -4.42 |
| Natural Gas | 6.84 | 0.057 | 0.84 |
| Gasoline RBOB | 1.4413 | -0.0257 | -1.75 |
| Ethanol | 1.763 | -0.037 | -2.06 |
The Oil Services index (OSX) contains 15 components; the total volume traded in the index was 109.45m units. Within the index, 4 issues rose, with aggregate volume of 20.26m units; 11 issues fell, with aggregate volume of 89.18m units.
Today the index fell by 5.59 points (3.64%) to 147.82 points. The main decliners (in percentage terms) were -
- Weatherford International (WFT) -1.85 (11%) to $15.03 on volume of 10.33m shares;
- Halliburton (HAL) -1.43 (7.2%) to $18.36 on volume of 22.02m shares;
- Smith International (SII) -2.28 (6.6%) to $32.2 on volume of 4.05m shares;
- Transocean Inc (RIG) -4.39 (5.3%) to $77.94 on volume of 6.7m shares; and
- Noble Corp (NE) -1.69 (5.2%) to $30.52 on volume of 4.17m shares.
Currency Futures
Currency futures were mixed - the impending cut in Australian interest rates didn't weigh at all on the Aussie dollar, whereas the recent blatherings by Frog politicians about Euro-zone weakness undermined the Euro's nascent recovery.
It is still the case though, that teh systemic problems in the US economy - persistent massive deficits, debt-funded conflict, unfunded government liabilies and demographic problems - are far worse than those in Europe.
In Europe the only regiona-wide problem is one of integration of new member countries... which will then result in a large, currently agrarian peasant population who will get access to favourable terms for a 'capital deepening' similar to Japan in the 1960s - 1970's). SO if the Franc still existed I would be short with as much leverage as possible, but the Mark and all eastern Euopean currencies would be a screaming buy... so on net the Euro is a buy.
| Currency Futures | |||
| Index | Close | Gain(Loss) | % |
| U.S. Dollar Index | 86.965 | 0.62 | 0.72 |
| Euro FX | 1.2609 | -0.0132 | -1.04 |
| Swiss Franc | 0.8526 | -0.0138 | -1.59 |
| Australian Dollar | 0.6784 | 0.0128 | 1.92 |
| Canadian Dollar | 0.8435 | 0.011 | 1.32 |
| Japanese Yen | 1.0112 | -0.0028 | -0.28 |
| New Zealand Dollar | 0.5909 | 0.008 | 1.37 |
Bellwethers
The nine-stock group that makes up the Rant bellwethers declined on average by 2%. The fallout occurred as follows:
- General Electric (GE) -0.21 (1.08%) to $19.30 on volume of 56m units.
- Citigroup (C) +0.34 (2.49%) to $13.99 on volume of 70.76m units.
- Wal-Mart (WMT) +0.16 (0.29%) to $55.97 on volume of 18.66m units.
- IBM (IBM) -0.29 (0.31%) to $92.68 on volume of 7.63m units.
- Intel (INTC) -0.391 (2.44%) to $15.64 on volume of 53.75m units.
- Cisco Systems (CSCO) -0.57 (3.21%) to $17.20 on volume of 56.51m units.
- Google (GOOG) -12.87 (3.58%) to $346.49 on volume of 5.68m units.
- Fannie Mae (FNM) -0.077 (8.31%) to $0.85 on volume of 14.8m units.
- Freddie Mac (FRE) -0.02 (1.94%) to $1.01 on volume of 15.81m units.
Other Indices of Interest...
The Banks index (BKX) contains 24 components; the total volume traded in the index was 394.94m units. Within the index, 12 issues rose, with aggregate volume of 126.1m units; 11 issues fell, with aggregate volume of 268.84m units.
Today the index rose by 0.37 points (0.63%) to 58.9 points. Contributing to the advance were -
- Zions Bancorp (ZION) +3.22 (8.5%) to $41.01 on volume of 3.31m shares;
- Regions Financial (RF) +0.68 (6.1%) to $11.77 on volume of 6.76m shares;
- Fifth Third Bancorp (FITB) +0.65 (6%) to $11.5 on volume of 6.59m shares;
- Keycorp (KEY) +0.35 (2.8%) to $12.76 on volume of 5.98m shares; and
- PNC Financial (PNC) +1.7 (2.5%) to $68.37 on volume of 3.55m shares.
The Semiconductor index (SOX) contains 18 components; the total volume traded in the index was 202.14m units. Within the index, 7 issues rose, with aggregate volume of 51.77m units; 10 issues fell, with aggregate volume of 139.48m units.
Today the index fell by 2.37 points (0.99%) to 237.1 points. The main decliners (in percentage terms) were -
- Marvell Technology (MRVL) -0.26 (3.7%) to $6.7 on volume of 9.36m shares;
- Xilinx (XLNX) -0.66 (3.6%) to $17.62 on volume of 8.03m shares;
- Altera (ALTR) -0.59 (3.4%) to $16.76 on volume of 7.4m shares;
- Texas Instruments (TXN) -0.65 (3.3%) to $18.91 on volume of 14.37m shares; and
- Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM) -0.21 (2.5%) to $8.05 on volume of 18.67m shares.
The ChildKiller ("Defence") index (DFX) contains 17 components; the total volume traded in the index was 85.76m units. Within the index, 8 issues rose, with aggregate volume of 15.52m units; 8 issues fell, with aggregate volume of 70.19m units.
Today the index fell by 0.31 points (0.11%) to 282.82 points. The main decliners (in percentage terms) were -
- Embraer Empresa (ERJ) -0.91 (4.3%) to $20.01 on volume of 0.95m shares;
- Raytheon (RTN) -1.43 (2.8%) to $49.68 on volume of 3.4m shares;
- United Technologies (UTX) -0.71 (1.3%) to $54.25 on volume of 4.09m shares;
- Lockheed Martin (LMT) -1.07 (1.3%) to $83.98 on volume of 2.4m shares; and
- Teledyne Tech (TDY) -0.54 (1.2%) to $45.03 on volume of 0.22m shares.
