Daily Market Commentary 1558


Overall, the session was mixed with the Bulls and Bears each holding their own in different areas of the markets. At the end of the trading day, here is how the major indices ended the session: the DOW
(Dow Jones Industrial Average) moved lower today by 52.39 points to end the session at 12686.02; the NYSE (New York Stock Exchange) moved lower by 0.47 points to end at 9433.06; the NASDAQ moved higher by 6.52 points to close at 2524.94; the S&P 500 moved lower by 1.25 points to end at 1456.38 and the RUSSELL 2000 moved higher by 2.11 points to close at 829.44. 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 higher by 0.10 to close at 247.44 and the FTSE RAFI 1000 moved lower by 11.60 to end at 6122.73 for the day.

Kansas City Fed Manufacturing Index came in at 18 for the month of February versus January reading of 5.

Dow Jones-Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi-UFJ (DJ-BTMU) Business Barometer was down 0.2% for the week of February 10th.

U.S. Commercial Real Estate Index came in at a Historic High for the fourth quarter.

Economic data released for the day:

Jobless Claims: A weekly compilation of new unemployment claims to show the number of individuals who filed for unemployment insurance for the first time. The condition of the labor market is determined by an increase of the number of claims which suggests a deteriorating labor market. U.S. Jobless Claims fell by 27K to 332K for week of February 17th compared to survey of a drop by 35K and Week of February 10th Continuing Claims fell by 45K to 2,509,000.

Help Wanted Index: From 51 major newspapers across the country, the Help Wanted Index is a monthly index of the number of lines of help-wanted advertising. The index indicates the strength or weakness in the labor market. U.S. Conference Board January Help-Wanted Index came in at 32 versus December regarding 34.

EIA Petroleum Status Report: EIA (Energy Information Administration) provides weekly petroleum inventories in the United States whether they are produced here or abroad. Prices for petroleum products are determined by the level of inventories. Department of Energy reports today that U.S. Crude Oil Stockpiles rose by 3.7 Million Barrels for the week compared to expectations of an increase of 700,000; U.S. Gasoline Stockpiles fell by 3.1 Million Barrels in the week compared to expectations of an increase by 100,000; U.S. Distillate Stockpiles fell by 5 Million Barrels in the week compared to expectations of a drop by 2.8 Million Barrels and U.S. Refineries Ran at a capacity of 85.2% compared to expectations of an increase by 86.8%.

EIA Natural Gas Report: Weekly information provided by the EIA (Energy Information Administration) on natural gas stock piles in underground storage in the United States and three regions of the country. Prices for natural gas products are determined by the level of inventories. Department of Energy reports today for the week of February 17th, U.S. Natural Gas Stockpiles fell by 223 Bcf.

On the commodities markets, the trend was higher across the board again today for the Energy sector: Light crude moved higher by $0.88 to close at $60.95 a barrel; Heating Oil closed higher today by $0.04, same as yesterday, to end at $1.72 a gallon; Natural Gas moved higher by $0.07 to end the day at $7.78 per million BTU and Unleaded Gas closed higher by $0.05 today to end the session at $1.75 a gallon.

Metals Market ended the session mostly lower across the board today: Gold moved lower by $1.00 to close at $683.00 an ounce; Silver closed lower by $0.02 at $14.25 an ounce; Platinum moved lower today by $3.20 to close at $1,230.00 an ounce and Copper ended the day higher by $0.11 to close at $2.78 per pound.

On the Livestock and Meat Markets, the trend was mixed across the board today: Lean Hogs closed higher by 0.05 to close at 67.03 Pork Bellies ended the day higher by 0.50 to close at 105.00; Live Cattle closed lower by 0.18 to end the day at 96.23 and Feeder Cattle ended the day lower by 0.80 to close at 99.23.

Other Commodities: Corn moved substantially higher again today by 8.50 points to end at 447.50 and Soybeans moved higher today by 2.50 to close at 800.50.

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 4,594,877. Open Interest for Futures moved higher by 72,973 to close at 9,436,343 and the Open Interest for Options moved higher by 113,593 to close at 8,636,600 for a total Open Interest of 18,074,297 for a total gain on the day by 186,566.

Bonds were lower across the board again today: 2 year bond closed lower by 2/32 at 99 25/32; 5 year bond closed lower by 6/32 at 100 3/32; 10 year bond closed lower by 10/32 at 99 5/32 and the 30 year bond closed sharply lower by 19/32 at 98 19/32.

The mini Dow ended the session with a loss today of 47 to close at 12711. The total Dow Exchange Volume for the day came in at 103,480 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.

New York Stock Exchange movers for the day: Chicago Mercantile Exchange Holdings (CME) plummeted sharply today by 17.27 points to shed 3.04% for a closing price at $550.00; The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (SMG) fell sharply by 9.45 points to give up 16.57% of its value for a closing price of $47.59; Analog Devices Incorporated (ADI) moved higher by 10.44% to tack on a gain of 3.48 points to close at $36.80; Ritchie Brothers Auctioneers (RBA) fell 3.57 points to end the day at $57.74 and LandAmerica Financial Group Incorporated (LFG) gained a nice 4.97 points to end the session at $69.72.

On the NASDAQ today, advancers came in at 1,651; decliners totaled 1,340; unchanged came in at 187; new highs came in at 192 and new lows came in at 16. Gainers and losers for the day on the NASDAQ: Whole Foods Market Incorporated (WFMI) climbed higher by 13.76% to tack on 6.29 points for a close of $51.99; Huron Consulting Group Incorporated (HURN) moved higher by 4.31 points to end at $60.35; K-Swiss Incorporated (KSWS) fell by 4.02 points to shed 12.00% to close at $29.47; Hardinge Incorporated (HDNG) made a nice run by 4.29 points to gain 22.52% for a closing price of $23.34 and

Medis Technologies Limited (MDTL) climbed higher by 2.11 points for a gain of 12.86% to end the session at $18.52.

Thanks for reading.
Millennium-Traders