YAHOO [BRIEFING.COM]: Better-than-expected earnings and a lack of
negative headlines fueled strong gains that were supported by broad-based
buying and short covering. Though stocks surrendered a chunk of their gains
late in the session, they still registered new closing highs for 2009.
A positive tone governed action for the entire session, due largely
to a flood of upside earnings surprises from an array of industry players.
What's more, the gains that followed came in the face of ongoing calls for a
pullback from market pundits, which has encouraged
short sellers to bet that the stock market's recent run will falter. However,
stocks continue to be supported by those looking to put idle money into play.
Though the benchmark index was unable to cross the psychologically
significant 1000 mark, the Nasdaq
broke above 2000 for the first time since early October. Both indices finished
off of their session highs, but they still managed to close at their best
levels of the year.
All 10 major sectors in the S&P 500 logged gains, which ranged
from energy's 0.1% gain to the materials sector's 3.0% gain.
Dow Chemical (DOW
21.51, +1.24) provided leadership to the materials sector. The company reported
better-than-expected earnings for its latest quarter.
Materials stocks were also supported by higher commodity prices,
though. A sharp rise in commodities gave the CRB Commodity Index a 3.9% gain,
which is its best single-session percentage gain since March.
Oil was a primary driver behind the CRB's
advance. Oil prices rebounded 5.8% to settle at $67.00 per barrel after
dropping nearly 6% in the previous session.
Higher oil prices and positive earnings surprises from Noble (NBL 59.93, +3.27) and Apache (APA 82.29, +4.37) helped
garner support for the energy sector as Exxon
Mobil (XOM 70.64, -0.79) faltered after missing the consensus
earnings estimate.
Some of the best gains this session came from within the financial
sector, which finished almost 2.7% higher. Multi-line insurers along with life
and health insurers spiked a respective 5.2% and 4.6% after
Visa (V
67.05, +0.27) and MasterCard
(MA 194.17, +5.62) both reported upside earnings results of their own and also
provided support to the financial sector.
The session's upbeat tone was generally bolstered by news that the
four-week moving average for initial jobless claims fell to its lowest level in
months, even though weekly claims climbed more than expected. Continuing claims
declined more than expected for another straight week. Continuing claims now
stand at levels not seen since April, but many economists caution that the
labor market remains far from good.
The advance second quarter GDP announcement is due tomorrow morning
and will dominate financial headlines. The current consensus calls for an
annualized decline of 1.5% following the 5.5% annualized decline registered in
the first quarter. The report is due at 8:30 AM ET.DJ30 +83.74 NASDAQ +16.54
NQ100 +0.6% R2K +1.7% SP400 +1.3% SP500 +11.45 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec
1810/2.52 bln/822 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 2409/1.35 bln/649