Tuesday, December 2, 2014

US Markets Strong Again


U.S. stocks rose on Tuesday, with the Dow striking another peak, as investors cheered better-than-expected November sales from Ford Motor, General Motor, and Fiat Chrysler.  Remember me pimping Ford a couple of months ago?  Well, I bought it.  Hope you did as well.
U.S. automobile sales rose 4.6 percent in November to 1.3 million, Autodata reported, with the auto sales rate coming to 17.2 million last month in the strongest pace for the month since 2003.
The auto sales "indicate the economy's momentum remains on track, and is moving along, basically on all fronts," said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Rockwell Global Capital.
Stocks maintained gains after the Commerce Department reported construction spending rose 1.1 percent in October.
BP climbed on unconfirmed talk of a takeover bid for the U.K. energy company from Royal Dutch Shell; RadioShack fell as the electronics retailer rejected claims it had breached covenants on a term loan from Harbinger Group unit Salus Capital Partners.
Apple fell, extending losses that followed its largest single-day decline since September.
Energy costs were on the retreat again, with crude futures for January delivery falling $2.12, or 3.1 percent, to $66.88 a barrel.
At or near session highs, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 102.75 points, or 0.6 percent, to 17,879.55, with Chevron and Exxon Mobil lately leading blue-chip gains that extended to 21 of 30 components.
The S&P 500 advanced 13.11 points, or 0.6 percent, to 2,066.55, with energy pacing sector gains and telecommunications the sole laggard of its 10 major industries.
The Nasdaq gained 28.46 points, or 0.6 percent, to 4,755.81.
For every share falling, two rose on the New York Stock Exchange, where 813 million shares traded. Composite volume neared 3.7 billion.
The CBOE Volatility Index, one measure of investor uncertainty, fell 10.1 percent to 12.85.
The yield on the 10 year Treasury note used to figure mortgage rates and other consumer loans added 6 basis points to 2.2923 percent.
The U.S. dollar rose against the currencies of major U.S. trading partners and dollar-denominated commodities including oil and gold fell, with the gold futures contract for February down $18.70, or 1.5 percent, to $1,199.40 an ounce.
The European Central Bank is slated to meet on its monetary policy later in the week in Frankfort, with investors waiting to see whether the ECB opts to purchase government bonds in widening its effort to stimulate the euro-zone economy.

No comments:

Post a Comment