Market Commentary for April 27, 2007


Traders made some nice gains today, going both long and short. Into the afternoon, volume slowed up as many traders took off to get out and enjoy the spring time weather, in the North East. At the closing bell, here is how the major indices ended the session: the DOW (Dow Jones Industrial Average) moved higher by 15.44 points to end the session at 13,120.94; the NYSE (New York Stock Exchange) posted a loss today again to shed 10.13 points to end at 9,705.36; the NASDAQ posted a gain of 2.75 points today for a close at 2,557.21; the S&P 500 moved lower by 0.18 points to end at 1,494.07 and the RUSSELL 2000 moved lower by 4.10 points to close at 829.70. The FTSE All-World Index ex-US (top Large/Mid Cap aggregate from over 2,700 stocks from the FTSE Global Equity Index Series (GEIS) which covers 90% of the worlds investable market capitalization) moved lower by 0.16 to close at 255.31 and the FTSE RAFI 1000 closed lower by 9.00 at 6,266.88.

Economic data released for the day:

Employment Cost Index: Broadest measure of labor cost, the ECI is a measure of total employee compensation costs including wages, salaries and benefits. For first quarter 2007, Quarter over Quarter change came in at 0.8% compared to consensus of 1.0% and Year over Year change came in at 3.5%.

GDP (advance): Gross Domestic Product (GDP) encompasses every sector of the economy and is the broadest measure of aggregate economic activity. U.S. first quarter Employment Cost Index rose by 0.8% compared to consensus of an increase by 0.9%; U.S. first quarter Private Sector Benefits post record drop of 0.3%; U.S. first quarter Employment Cost Index rose by 3.5% from a year ago; U.S. GDP rose by 1.3% rate in first quarter compared to consensus of an increase by 1.8%; Real Final Sales rose by 1.6% in first quarter; PCE Price Index rose by 3.4% in first quarter; Domestic Purchases Price Index rose by 3.6% rate in first quarter and Chain-Weighted Price Index rose by 4.0% rate in first quarter.

Consumer Sentiment: 500 households are surveyed by The University of Michigan’s Consumer Survey Center, on their financial conditions and attitudes about the economy. The strength of consumer spending is directly related to consumer sentiment. University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment released today: 12-Month Inflation Forecast rose by 3.3% compared to March at an increase by 3.0%; 5-Year Inflation Forecast rose by 3.1% compared to March at an increase by 2.9%; End-April Expectations came in at 75.9 compared to March reading at 78.7; End-April Current Index came in at 104.6 compared to March reading at 103.5; April Sentiment came in at 87.1 compared to March reading at 88.4 and Preliminary April Sentiment was 85.3.

Commodities Markets

The trend was higher across the board today for the Energy sector: Light crude moved higher by $1.39 today to close at $66.45 a barrel; Heating Oil moved higher by $0.02 to close at $1.91 a gallon; Natural Gas closed higher by $0.26 at $7.86 per million BTU and Unleaded Gas closed higher by $0.04 today at $2.33 a gallon.

Metals Market ended the session mostly higher across the board today: Gold moved higher by $3.80 to close at $682.50 an ounce; Silver moved higher today by $0.12 to end the session at $13.58 an ounce; Platinum moved heavily lower again today by $10.60 to close at $1,293.00 an ounce and Copper ended the day higher by $0.02 today to end at $3.53 per pound.

On the Livestock and Meat Markets, the trend was mixed across the board today: Lean Hogs moved lower today by 0.60 today to close at 74.58; Pork Bellies ended the day lower by 2.20 to close at 100.95; Live Cattle moved higher by 0.58 to end the day at 93.28 and Feeder Cattle ended the day higher by 0.50 to close at 111.48.

Other Commodities: Corn fell today with a loss of 2.75 points to end at 372.50 and Soybeans posted a gain today by 3.0 to close at 738.00.

Bonds were mixed across the board today: 2 year bond closed higher by 1/32 at 99 22/32; 5 year bond closed lower by 2/32 at 99 19/32; 10 year bond closed higher by 1/32 at 99 14/32 and the 30 year bond closed with no change at 97 29/32.

The end of day results for the CBOT (Chicago Board of Trade) which is comprised of the total Exchange Volume for Futures and Options (EVFO) including Electronic, Open Auction and Cash Exchange ended the day at 3,328,812; Open Interest for Futures moved higher by 76,124 points to close at 9,935,640; the Open Interest for Options moved higher by 74,133 points to close at 6,912,571 and the Open Interest for OTC closed with no change at 4,383 for a total Open Interest of 16,852,594 for a total gain on the day by 150,257.

The e-mini Dow ended the session higher by 1 (one) at 13170. The total Dow Exchange Volume for the day came in at 117,161 which are comprised of Electronic, Open Auction and Cash Exchange. Traders should review workshops available at the CBOT (Chicago Board of Trade) Educational in-person seminars schedules available on CBOT (Chicago Board of Trade) website.

On the NYSE today, advancers came in at 1,381; decliners totaled 1,810; unchanged came in at 162; new highs came in at 231 and new lows came in at 19. New York Stock Exchange movers for the day today: Cummins Incorporated (CMI) rallied higher after announcing earnings, on the Big Board today by 11.80% for a gain on the day by 10.15 points but closed on a down tick at $96.14; Omnicare Incorporated (OCR) plummeted lower today by a whopping 15.54% for a loss of 6.42 points to end the trading session at $34.90; MEMC Electronic Materials Incorporated (WFR) fell sharply lower today by 14.31%, a loss of 9.61 points to close the session on a down tick at $57.88 and CommScope Incorporated (CTV) climbed higher by 3.40 points to end the day at $48.85.

On the NASDAQ today, decliners totaled 1,836; unchanged came in at 156, new highs came in at 132 and new lows came in at 53. Gainers and losers for the day on the NASDAQ: Baidu.com Incorporated (BIDU) rallied higher on earnings by 13.81% for a gain of 15.10 points, a nice day trading stock with a trading day range of over 9 points, to end the day trading at $124.47; Varian Semiconductor Equipment Associates Incorporated (VSEA) plowed higher on the trading session by 21.93% to tack on 12.50 points for a closing price on the day at $69.50; YRC Worldwide Incorporated (YRCW) fell by 3.97 points for a closing price at $41.77; Deckers Outdoor Corporation (DECK) gained 4.02 points for a closing price on the trading day at $76.80 and Avid Technology Incorporated (AVID) fell sharply by 12.11% for a loss on the day of 4.68 points to close at $33.98.

Thanks for reading
Millennium-Traders