Day Traders Diary
8/10/10
U.S. stocks opened lower after data illustrated slowing growth in China and the United States. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 84 points to 10,614. The S&P 500 Index declined 9 points to 1,118. The Nasdaq Composite fell 25 points to 2,280. Nothing really looks good here as the averages moved lower after the open. In the tech sector Intel is down 3% on a downgrade. Salesforce.com is down 2% on a downgrade. Cisco is lower ahead of earnings tomorrow even though it was upgraded. Texas Instruments is down 2% on an upgrade. Like I said, it's a tough morning. Akamai is one of the few techs higher on an upgrade. Some investors will stay on the sidelines ahead of the Federal Reserve's policy statement this afternoon. The financials are weak as well. American Express is lower on an upgrade. Bond insurer, MBIA is one of the few financials higher after beating earnings estimates by over $6. The analysts missed this one by a wide margin. In the retail space Scotts Miracle Gro is up 2% after beating earnings estimates. Fossil is jumping 7% after beating earnings estimates. Whole Foods is lower on an upgrade. Amerigon is down 2% on an upgrade. Best Buy is down 4% on a downgrade. At 10 o'clock, better than expected inventory data did little to help the averages. The Dow remained down triple digits while the Nasdaq declined 36 points. Through the morning and into the afternoon the averages improved a little, but not much. Everyone is awaiting the Fed announcement, hoping for some good news. At 2:15, the Fed gave the markets some encouragement with acknowledgement of an economic slowdown and steps to curb the downturn with more purchases of Treasuries to help the economy out. That good news sent the averages all the way back to the unchanged level, before selling off once again, but only to the tune of 24 points. In the last hour the averages remained in the red. The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished down 54 points to end at 10,644, well off a session low of 10,551. Out of the Dow's 30 components, 21 fell, including a 4% drop in shares of Intel. The S&P 500 index dropped 6 points to 1,121, weighed down most by the technology sector, which fell 1.2%. The Nasdaq Composite lost 28 point to close at 2,277.All comments contained herein are for informational purposes only, and should not be considered as a solicitation to buy or sell any security. The firm does not guarantee the accuracy or completeness of the information or make any warranties regarding results from it's usage.