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Can rally might go on?
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Stocks wrapped up their first week of the fourth quarter by touching record highs, and the potential for profits to beat reduced expectations as results start coming in this week may keep the rally alive.The Dow and the S&P 500 surged to all-time intraday highs on Friday after a solid employment report rekindled optimism about the U.S. economy and corporate profits. The S&P 500 also closed at a record high.
Friday's record run-up cemented the market's recovery from a late summer sell-off, when a credit squeeze and mounting housing market losses drove investors away from equities.
Even so, third-quarter earnings probably will top investor concerns in the coming week.
Alcoa Inc, the world's biggest aluminum maker, takes its traditional spot as the first major company -- and the first Dow component -- to report, with results after the close of trading on Tuesday.
Other companies reporting in the week include Costco Wholesale Corp ,Monsanto Co Pepsico Inc and Safeway Inc.
From my point of view, the bar is quite low right now. It's not difficult to beat them.The economy added more jobs in September than economists had expected, while an earlier estimate of job losses in August was revised to a gain, quashing fears of recession. If the mood continues we can continue to be in positive territory for the week.I also expect for Fed minutes to see the coming days.
DOW UP ALMOST 13 PERCENT FOR YEAR
During Friday's rally, the Dow Jones industrial average climbed to a record intraday high at 14,124.54 while the Standard & Poor's 500 hit an all-time high at 1,561.91.
The S&P 500 finished Friday's trading at a record 1,557.59.
The Nasdaq Composite Index also surged on Friday, rising 1.71 percent to close at 2,780.32. Earlier, the Nasdaq advanced to 2,784.93 -- its highest level since January 2001.
And on Monday, October 1, the Dow ended at a record 14,087.55 -- its 33rd record close for 2007.
For the week, the Dow rose 1.2 percent, the S&P 500 jumped 2 percent and the Nasdaq added 2.9 percent.So far this year, the Dow is up 12.9 percent, while the S&P 500 is up 9.8 percent, and the Nasdaq is up 15.1 percent.
Market interest rates should be watched for signs that the Federal Reserve's half-percentage-point cut last month in the fed funds rate target to 4.75 percent is filtering into the overall economy.
A HOLIDAY, FED MINUTES AND PPI
The schedule of economic data is a little thinner than usual, in part due to the Columbus Day holiday on Monday, when government offices will be closed. The bond market will be closed on Monday, but it will be a regular trading day for stocks.
On Tuesday, minutes of the Federal Reserve's policy meeting on September 18 will be released. At that meeting, the Fed decided to cut interest rates half a percentage point. Investors will study the data for any clues about a follow-up rate cut.
Wednesday brings data on wholesale inventories and the federal budget.
August trade data is due on Thursday. In a Reuters survey of economists, the median forecast calls for a deficit of $59.0 billion in goods and services trade, little changed from July.
Friday's data includes a report on the U.S. Producer Price Index in September. The median forecast is for a rise of 0.4 percent overall, and a rise of 0.2 percent, excluding food and energy.
Data on September retail sales is also due on Friday. The consensus forecast is for a rise of 0.2 percent. Excluding autos, the forecast calls for a rise of 0.3 percent.
Also on Friday, the first reading on consumer sentiment in October comes out in a report from the Reuters/University of Michigan Survey of Consumers. The consensus forecast is for a preliminary October reading of 84.0 in the consumer sentiment index, up from 83.4 in September. |
| Tarih
: 09.10.2007 |
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© 2006 Mert TOKER All Rights Reserved. |
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