Markets
Friday turrned out to be a good day for the stock markets. On Friday 13th the Dow and S&P 500 snapped a six-day losing streak.
With the day’s rally, the Dow and S&P 500 had small gains for the week.
The Dow surged 200 points on friday .The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq also ended close to session highs.
DJIA CHART
FOREX
Having worked so hard to finally overtake resistance that had capped gains, you would think the dollar would think the buck would gain strngth to face the coming headwinds. However, Friday ended with a large loss for the index. The immediate reversal we saw with the dollar is perhaps a little more surprising given the initial upswing has strong support with slide in risk trends. If you were looking for fundamental hints this week, as guidance for where we will go heading forward, you may be disappointed.
The Chinese Q2 GDP figures printed below expected with a 7.6 percent annual pace of expansion. This was the weakest pace in 3 years. However, was not enough to stir concern. In the US, JPMorgan started the ball rolling for the US earnings season with a view into the closely-monitored financial market. A massive $4.4 billion loss via the CIO debacle did not hamper adjusted earnings. These numbers placated the markets. The earnings season continues next week with Bank of America, Citigroup, Apple, Goldman Sachs and Google. Though it is difficult to see any, fundamental event as a catalyst to drive risk appetite forward, Fed Chairman Bernanke’s monetary policy report could carry the possibility of an announcement of intentions for further stimulus. Markets are still holding out hope. The ycan also be dissapointed.
USD Chart
COMMODITIES
Enger prices rose on supply side threats. Crude gained $1.02 to finish at $87.10. Gasoline was up .01 to close at $2.8161 per gallon; Heating oil was by 1.49 cents to close at $2.7882 and Natural gas was unchanged, at $2.874. Gold rose $21.10 to end at $1586.10.
Gasoline Chart
EQUTIES
JPMorgan Chase jumped after the financial giant beat expectations, despite the $4.4 billion loss from the “London Whale” trading debacle. The bank showed a profit of nearly $5 billion. Wells Fargo posted higher earnings on strong mortgage banking income as customers continue to refinance their homes at lower rates. Lexmark fell sharply to lead the S&P 500 laggards after the printer maker cut its Q2 outlook, citing impact from exchange rates and weak demand in Europe. Barclays lowered its price target on the company to $21 from $24. Rival printer makers Xerox and HP also fell.