Intraday Market Update
02:17:48 PM EDT | 11/05/2010
+151,000 New Jobs in October
By James Brown | The market is poised to close a very strong week near its highs. The lack of profit taking on Friday might be attributed to a bullish jobs report this morning. The stronger jobs number is fueling a bounce in the dollar. Lately dollar strength has been bearish for the market and commodities but not today.

Intraday Market Update
02:31:46 PM EDT | 11/04/2010
QE2 Ignites Global Rally
By Scott Hawes | Global equity markets and asset classes across the board are rallying in the wake of yesterday's QE announcement from the US Federal Reserve.

Intraday Market Update
01:56:43 PM EDT | 11/03/2010
Market Awaits FOMC Announcement
By Scott Hawes | Equities are under a bit pressure after the GOP won the House in mid-term elections yesterday, and ahead of the QE2 announcement by the FOMC this afternoon at 2:15 PM EST.

Intraday Market Update
02:46:39 PM EDT | 11/02/2010
Stocks Rally Toward Six-Month Highs
By James Brown | Happy election day! The markets are in a positive mood. The midterm elections will be over tonight and will remove a level of uncertainty. Plus, market participants are expecting the Federal Reserve to announce a new quantitative easing program tomorrow.

Intraday Market Update
01:47:42 PM EDT | 11/01/2010
Strong Manufacturing Data Boosts Equities
By Scott Hawes | US equities gapped higher at the open this morning after strong manufacturing data from around the globe helped futures gain ground in the overnight session.

Intraday Market Update
01:42:07 PM EDT | 10/29/2010
Equities Recover From Overnight Losses
By Scott Hawes | Equity futures overcame weakness in the pre-market and are oscillating near the flat line, despite the lowest consumer sentiment reading in nearly a year...

Intraday Market Update
02:16:11 PM EDT | 10/28/2010
Equities Erase Early Gains
By Scott Hawes | Equities gapped higher at the open this morning but immediately rolled over into the red, despite a sharp decline in the US Dollar and an unexpected drop in initial jobless claims.

Intraday Market Update
02:23:23 PM EDT | 10/27/2010
A Lot of QE2, or A Little?
By Scott Hawes | Global equity markets and commodities are under pressure on the heels of strength in the US Dollar...

Intraday Market Update
02:19:19 PM EDT | 10/26/2010
Equities Head to Breakeven After Initial Drop
By Scott Hawes | US equities opened lower this morning after a mixed bag of earnings reports, but the weakness was short lived after a better than expected reading on consumer confidence...

Intraday Market Update
02:23:50 PM EDT | 10/25/2010
Equities Gap Higher To New Highs
By Scott Hawes | US equities are posting solid gains and have broken to multi month highs after decent home sales data and a better than expected October Dallas Fed manufacturing survey.

Intraday Market Update
02:10:28 PM EDT | 10/22/2010
Sideways Drift
By Scott Hawes | Equities are drifting sideways near breakeven in a painfully slow trading session with no economic data to report.

Intraday Market Update
02:57:19 PM EDT | 10/21/2010
Pop and Drop
By Scott Hawes | US equities gapped higher at the open after a slew of positive earnings reports from major US corporations.

Intraday Market Update
01:55:26 PM EDT | 10/20/2010
Risk Off, Risk On
By Scott Hawes | US equities have essentially erased yesterday's entire loss as traders shift their focus back to expectations of a second round of quantitative easing by the Federal Reserve.

Intraday Market Update
02:19:44 PM EDT | 10/19/2010
China and NY Fed Deliver Blow To Equities
By Scott Hawes | Sentiment took another blow after the Peoples Bank of China surprised investors by raising its one year lending and deposit rate by +25 basis points.

Intraday Market Update
02:33:58 PM EDT | 10/18/2010
US Equities Approach Last Week's Highs
By Scott Hawes | US equities have overcome early weakness and have fought back to post modest gains as traders ignored an unexpected drop in September industrial production that was released in the pre-market.

Intraday Market Update
02:11:48 PM EDT | 10/15/2010
Stocks Tumble Sideways Through Competing Headlines
By James Brown | Volatility rose this morning as stocks ricocheted back and forth between bullish and bearish headlines. A small parade of economic data was nearly overshadowed by comments from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and earnings reports from Google and General Electric. Unfortunately an unexpected decline in consumer sentiment...

Intraday Market Update
02:16:30 PM EDT | 10/14/2010
Stocks Slip, Banks Lead the Way
By James Brown | After surging to new five-month highs on Wednesday the market has taken a moment to pause. Investors have chosen to focus on the banks and this country's foreclosure mess sending financial stocks sharply lower on Thursday. In economic news the weekly jobless claims numbers were higher than expected while the PPI came in above expectations...

Intraday Market Update
01:53:33 PM EDT | 10/13/2010
Equities Breakout Higher
By Scott Hawes | US equities are flying high after solid gains in overseas markets and strong earnings results from Dow members JP Morgan and Intel, while an earnings beat from CSX is helping boost the transportation sector and overall market sentiment.

Intraday Market Update
00:00:27 PM EDT | 10/12/2010
Equities Drop But Recover
By Scott Hawes | Equity markets around the globe have experienced selling pressure on Tuesday after reports indicated that the People's Bank of China is temporarily raising its reserve requirement for six large commercial banks.

Intraday Market Update
02:15:46 PM EDT | 10/11/2010
Equities Continue Drifting Higher
By Scott Hawes | US equities are posting slight gains on lackluster volumes as US bond markets and banks are closed for the Columbus Day federal holiday.

Intraday Market Update
01:46:52 PM EDT | 10/08/2010
Traders Cheer Job Losses
By Scott Hawes | Traders are cheering a worse than expected employment report which virtually guarantees another round of stimulus by the Federal Reserve.

Intraday Market Update
02:04:17 PM EDT | 10/07/2010
Equities Gap Higher But Reverse Course
By Scott Hawes | Traders were enthusiastic in the pre-market this morning after a better than expected initial jobless claims report helped stocks and commodities add to recent gains while the US Dollar's slide continued.

Intraday Market Update
02:11:21 PM EDT | 10/06/2010
Technology Stocks Post Steep Losses
By Scott Hawes | US equities are oscillating between positive and negative territory, but so far have overcome disappointing employment reports...

Intraday Market Update
11:34:45 AM EDT | 10/05/2010
Equities Posting Sharp Gains
By Scott Hawes | US equities erased yesterday's losses with a gap higher at the open and are posting sharp gains after the Bank of Japan surprised the markets...

Intraday Market Update
01:11:36 PM EDT | 10/04/2010
US Equities Fall to Last Week's Lows
By Scott Hawes | As the first full week of trading in October begins US equities are under solid pressure on the heels of a weak session in Europe.

Intraday Market Update
02:34:03 PM EDT | 10/01/2010
Equities Recover From Lows, Again
By Scott Hawes | US equities got a boost in the pre-market after better than expected readings on personal income and spending and positive manufacturing data out of China.

Intraday Market Update
01:30:13 PM EDT | 09/30/2010
Equites Surged +1%, But Turn Negative
By Scott Hawes | After equities gapped higher at the open and surged to +1% gains in the first 30 minutes of trading, stocks have taken nosedive into the red.

Intraday Market Update
01:36:38 PM EDT | 09/29/2010
Equities Consolidate Near Monthly Highs
By Scott Hawes | After an early morning dip US equities are well off of their lows and are oscillating between positive and negative territory as the news flows are light and there is little economic data to report.

Intraday Market Update
02:13:12 PM EDT | 09/28/2010
Stocks Erase Early -1% Loss
By Scott Hawes | US equities are in positive territory after erasing a -1% loss in early trading on the back of a mixed report on home prices...

Intraday Market Update
00:16:52 PM EDT | 09/27/2010
Equities Consolidate Friday's Gains
By Scott Hawes | US equities are lower as they digest Friday's steep advance and await economic data due out later this week.

Intraday Market Update
11:57:13 AM EDT | 09/24/2010
US Equities Fly High
By Scott Hawes | US Equities are back to their weekly highs after gapping nearly +1% higher at the open this morning.

Intraday Market Update
02:05:47 PM EDT | 09/23/2010
Equities Take a Dive, But Come Back to the Surface
By Scott Hawes | US equities gapped nearly -1% lower this morning after weak PMI data out of Europe and a surprise increase in US weekly jobless claims. However, an upbeat housing report and...

Intraday Market Update
01:19:38 PM EDT | 09/22/2010
Equities Take A Post FOMC Breather
By Scott Hawes | Equities in the US and throughout Europe are under solid pressure as the market digests yesterday's FOMC announcement.

Intraday Market Update
01:53:55 PM EDT | 09/21/2010
Equities Post Modest Losses Ahead of FOMC
By Scott Hawes | US equities are posting modest losses but are holding their ground after yesterday's big advance...

Intraday Market Update
01:34:32 PM EDT | 09/20/2010
S&P 500 Prints Fresh 4-month Highs
By Scott Hawes | Enthusiasm is rampant on Monday as global equities posted solid gains, while the S&P 500 is breaking out to fresh 4-month highs...

Intraday Market Update
02:17:00 PM EDT | 09/17/2010
The Standoff Between Bulls & Bears Continues
By Scott Hawes | Enthusiasm was upbeat in the pre-market this morning as the S&P 500 gapped higher at the open after positive earnings reports from Research In Motion and Oracle after the bell yesterday.

Intraday Market Update
01:57:06 PM EDT | 09/16/2010
Equities Remain In Weekly Range
By Scott Hawes | In a relatively quiet session so far US Equities are under pressure, but are still trading within this week's sideways range.

Intraday Market Update
02:09:35 PM EDT | 09/15/2010
US Equities Recover, Again
By Scott Hawes | Mixed US economic data and weakness in European equities translated to an opening dip in US equities but they have recovered, again.

Intraday Market Update
01:53:12 PM EDT | 09/14/2010
Equities Struggle To Hold Gains
By Scott Hawes | US equities took a hit in early trading despite a better than expected retail sales report and a strong earnings beat from Best Buy, but the selling was short lived...

Intraday Market Update
02:10:25 PM EDT | 09/13/2010
The Rally Continues
By Scott Hawes | Equities around the globe have surged higher on Monday following a plethora of favorable Chinese data and the finalization of new banking sector capital rules out of Basel III.

Intraday Market Update
01:44:12 PM EDT | 09/10/2010
Light Volume Keeps Equities Afloat
By Scott Hawes | Light volume and the lack of news helped push US equities higher this morning but they have come off of their best levels and are now bouncing near the flat line.

Intraday Market Update
01:32:44 PM EDT | 09/09/2010
Equities Advance But Struggle At Resistance
By Scott Hawes | Global equity advances in Asia and Europe overnight set a positive tone in the US pre-market this morning, and a better than expected...

Intraday Market Update
01:58:05 PM EDT | 09/08/2010
Equities Recover After Yesterday's Sell-off
By Scott Hawes | US equities have erased most of yesterday's losses as Europe's recurring sovereign debt issues have cooled off after a successful bond auction in Portugal.

Intraday Market Update
00:39:37 PM EDT | 09/07/2010
US Equities Take a Breather
By Scott Hawes | US equities are under pressure as traders return from the long holiday weekend following last week's rip higher in the major indexes.

Intraday Market Update
02:04:36 PM EDT | 09/03/2010
Equities Extend the Rally
By Scott Hawes | US markets will be closed on Monday which is keeping traders on their toes after mixed economic data was released this morning.

Intraday Market Update
01:16:26 PM EDT | 09/02/2010
Equities Drift Higher
By Scott Hawes | Global equities extended gains on Thursday on the heels of more favorable economic data after yesterday's +30 point rip higher in S&P 500.

Intraday Market Update
02:13:21 PM EDT | 09/01/2010
Equities Soar Higher on Economic Data
By Scott Hawes | US and global equities soar higher after a plethora of favorable economic reports from around the globe.

Intraday Market Update
01:53:15 PM EDT | 08/31/2010
Equities Recover From Another Test of SPX 1,040
By Scott Hawes | The S&P 500 was down -8 points shortly after the bell as the index tested the important 1,040 level for 3rd time in 5 days.

Intraday Market Update
01:10:48 PM EDT | 08/30/2010
Equities Hit a Wall After Friday's Rip Higher
By Scott Hawes | US equities are under pressure on Monday after Friday's +25 point rally off of the lows in the S&P 500.

Intraday Market Update
02:41:37 PM EDT | 08/27/2010
Equities Skyrocket After Early Sell-off
By Scott Hawes | US equities got a boost in the pre-market after the downward revision to Q2 GDP was smaller than expected, but the enthusiasm...

Intraday Market Update
01:39:16 PM EDT | 08/26/2010
Mixed Data Sends Equities to Breakeven
By Scott Hawes | US equities are near breakeven on the heels of better, and worse, than expected economic data. In the pre-market futures got a lift when the weekly initial jobless claims fell for the first time in a month. But after the bell...

Intraday Market Update
01:58:57 PM EDT | 08/25/2010
US Equities Recover After Poor Data
By Scott Hawes | US Equities extended yesterday's losses after a poor July durable goods report in the pre-market this morning, and the selling gained momentum after US new home sales fell to their lowest level on record. But the selling was short lived as buyers stepped in when the S&P 500 tagged 1,040.

Intraday Market Update
02:19:58 PM EDT | 08/24/2010
Existing Home Sales Worst In 15 Years
By Scott Hawes | The S&P 500 futures gapped -12 points lower this morning on the heels of weak markets overseas and after US existing home sales in July fell to their worst level in 15 years.

Intraday Market Update
02:05:31 PM EDT | 08/23/2010
Equities Falter After Early Gains
By Scott Hawes | A slew of M&A news over the weekend helped lift equities higher in early trading but stocks quickly rolled over just after the bell and are now struggling to hold onto gains.

Intraday Market Update
02:49:00 PM EDT | 08/20/2010
Quiet, Option-Expiration Friday
By James Brown | Stocks continued to slip lower on this quiet, low-volume, option-expiration Friday. Yesterday's disappointing initial jobless claims and Philly Fed report has sapped any strength from the global markets. Investors are worried the slowing economic growth in the U.S. could encumber the global recovery efforts.

Intraday Market Update
02:15:03 PM EDT | 08/19/2010
Weekly Jobless Claims Hit 500,000, Phill Fed Turns Negative
By James Brown | Stocks are seeing a broad-based sell-off as investors react to very disappointing economic data. News that Intel was buying McAfee for nearly $8 billion was completely overshadowed by a rise in weekly jobless claims and a terrible report on manufacturing from the Philadelphia Reserve Bank. Markets were also digesting the latest Leading Indicators data, the semi-annual report from the Congressional Budget Office, and...

Intraday Market Update
02:08:38 PM EDT | 08/18/2010
Equities Recover From Early Sell-off
By Scott Hawes | US equities have recovered from early losses and are back in the green after mixed earnings reports with a cautious tone, and ahead of Friday's OPEX.

Intraday Market Update
02:14:27 PM EDT | 08/17/2010
Economic Data and Earnings Lift Equities
By Scott Hawes | Decent economic data and good earnings reports from Wal-Mart and Home Depot are helping lift equities higher today.

Intraday Market Update
01:49:22 PM EDT | 08/16/2010
Equities Recover From Gap Down
By Scott Hawes | US equities have rebounded from early morning pressure and are in positive territory despite more disappointing economic news from around the globe.

Intraday Market Update
02:28:26 PM EDT | 08/13/2010
"Less Bad" Economic Data Keeps Stocks Afloat
By Scott Hawes | US equities are near the flat line today despite "less bad" economic data. The preliminary August consumer sentiment report showed a slight increase over July, while retail sales posted its first gain in three months...

Intraday Market Update
01:18:40 PM EDT | 08/12/2010
Equities Recover From Big Gap Lower
By Scott Hawes | The S&P 500 gapped -15 points lower but quickly reversed +10 points paring a large portion of the early losses.

Intraday Market Update
01:53:47 PM EDT | 08/11/2010
Equities Gap Lower and Keep Going
By Scott Hawes | There is a global sell off brewing across most asset classes after the FOMC downgraded their economic view yesterday and decided to maintain its bloated balance sheet.

Intraday Market Update
01:56:49 PM EDT | 08/10/2010
Equities Gap Lower After Intel Downgrades
By Scott Hawes | The S&P 500 futures took a dive in the overnight session on the heels of a slowing import growth report out of China, an unexpected drop in US Q2 non-farm productivity, and another monthly deterioration in US small business confidence.

Intraday Market Update
02:13:53 PM EDT | 08/09/2010
Stocks Hold Ground Ahead of FOMC Announcement
By Scott Hawes | After Friday afternoon's recovery equities are holding their ground amid mixed corporate news, and as traders await tomorrow's FOMC monetary policy announcement.

Intraday Market Update
01:41:43 PM EDT | 08/06/2010
Job Losses Double Expectations
By James Brown | The highly anticipated July nonfarm payrolls report was a huge disappointment. Job losses were double what the market was expecting. Stocks immediately spiked lower on the news. The U.S. dollar plunged and money rushed back into the safety of U.S. treasuries.

Intraday Market Update
02:38:52 PM EDT | 08/05/2010
Same-Store Sales & Jobless Claims Disappoint
By James Brown | The U.S. stock market is seeing a widespread decline as investors react to sluggish same-store sales figures and a disappointing look at weekly initial jobless claims. All of the major averages are in negative territory but stocks are off their worst levels of the session.

Intraday Market Update
11:12:44 AM EDT | 08/04/2010
Equities Near Breakeven After Positive Data
By Scott Hawes | A better than expected ADP employment report provoked enthusiasm about private sector job growth ahead of Friday's non-farm payroll report.

Intraday Market Update
02:22:26 PM EDT | 08/03/2010
Equities Recover from Early Losses
By Scott Hawes | US equities opened lower and quickly lost ground in early trading, however, the selling was short lived as the market rebounded to go briefly unchanged by noon, despite disappointing economic data.

Intraday Market Update
02:13:54 PM EDT | 08/02/2010
Manufacturing Data Lifts Equities Worldwide
By Scott Hawes | US equities are posting steep gains after a string of strong manufacturing reports from around the globe, including a better than expected US ISM manufacturing report.

Intraday Market Update
01:59:11 PM EDT | 07/30/2010
Traders Confused Over Economic Data
By Scott Hawes | Equities gapped lower at the open this morning after a disappointing first glance at Q2 GDP but have overcome early pressure, bouncing hard to close the gap.

Intraday Market Update
02:07:12 PM EDT | 07/29/2010
Stocks Go On Roller Coaster Ride
By Scott Hawes | Enthusiasm was rampant in the pre-market as the weekly jobless claims report was in-line with estimates and mostly positive earnings reports helped boost sentiment.

Intraday Market Update
01:41:48 PM EDT | 07/28/2010
The Rally Shifts Gears as Durable Goods Disappoint
By Scott Hawes | An unexpected decline in durable goods orders this morning has caused the recent earnings driven rally to shift gears into reverse.

Intraday Market Update
01:43:17 PM EDT | 07/27/2010
Equities Gap Higher And Quickly Sell Off
By Scott Hawes | More positive earnings and raised guidance from DuPont helped lift equities in the pre-market, but a worse than expected July consumer confidence reading sparked broad based selling in early trading.

Intraday Market Update
11:59:35 AM EDT | 07/26/2010
Equities Advance After Better Than Expected Home Sales Data
By Scott Hawes | After last week's solid advances US equities opened relatively flat this morning but then climbed higher after a stronger than expected housing report and positive guidance from FedEx.

Intraday Market Update
02:08:10 PM EDT | 07/23/2010
Markets Fly After European Bank Stress Tests
By Scott Hawes | US Equities have tacked on gains after yesterday morning's spring board higher as the market digests the results of the European Bank stress tests.

Intraday Market Update
02:06:55 PM EDT | 07/22/2010
Earnings and Data from Europe Spark +2.50% Gains
By Scott Hawes | US Equities erased all of yesterday afternoon's declines in the overnight session as favorable economic data out of Europe boosted investor sentiment.

Intraday Market Update
01:21:06 PM EDT | 07/21/2010
Stocks Consolidate Prior to Bernanke's Testimony at Noon
By Scott Hawes | Equities gapped higher after solid earnings reports from Morgan Stanley and Wells Fargo before the bell this morning but have since given up their gains in mid-day trading.

Intraday Market Update
01:35:56 PM EDT | 07/20/2010
Equities Close Big Gap Lower
By Scott Hawes | A larger than expected drop in housing starts exacerbated an opening gap lower in the major indexes but equities have shown resiliency and are well off of their lows.

Intraday Market Update
01:35:29 PM EDT | 07/19/2010
Equities Consolidate After Friday's Sell Off
By Scott Hawes | After Friday's big sell off equities bounced but it didn't last long after a disappointing homebuilder report indicated the weakest conditions since April 2009.

Intraday Market Update
01:56:31 PM EDT | 07/16/2010
Equities Go Cliff Diving
By Scott Hawes | Equities gapped modestly lower this morning but then stepped off of a cliff as the S&P 500 lost more than -20 points in the first 30 minutes of trading and the selling has not stopped.

Intraday Market Update
02:16:10 PM EDT | 07/15/2010
Stocks Hanging Tough For Now After Terrible Data
By Scott Hawes | Equities sold off early this morning but are hanging tough after terrible US economic data that confirms US growth is slowing and prices are eroding, which is also stoking the deflation argument.

Intraday Market Update
02:11:53 PM EDT | 07/14/2010
Stocks Sell-off After FOMC Minutes Released
By Scott Hawes | US equities are selling off after trending higher this morning.

Intraday Market Update
02:14:16 PM EDT | 07/13/2010
S&P 500 Trades Up To Its 50-day SMA
By Scott Hawes | Strong quarterly earnings results from Alcoa and CSX are greasing US equities higher today while expectations remain elevated for a positive June quarterly earnings cycle.

Intraday Market Update
00:51:10 PM EDT | 07/12/2010
Equities Tread Water Ahead of Earnings
By Scott Hawes | Monday's trading session is following in the footprints of Friday, at least in terms of volume. Total NYSE volume on Friday was the lightest of the year and it is even lighter so far today.

Intraday Market Update
03:07:51 PM EDT | 07/09/2010
Anemic Volume Ahead of Earnings
By Scott Hawes | US equities have traded in a relatively narrow 9 point range since yesterday afternoon's strong close.

Intraday Market Update
02:00:38 PM EDT | 07/08/2010
Equities Consolidate After Mixed Data
By Scott Hawes | US equities gapped open higher this morning but quickly closed the gap as traders try to decipher through a mixed bag of economic data.

Intraday Market Update
01:59:33 PM EDT | 07/07/2010
Oversold Bounce Gains Steam
By Scott Hawes | The news and economic calendar is light again today which is helping US equities from getting knocked down.

Intraday Market Update
01:58:42 PM EDT | 07/06/2010
Equities Give Back Early Gains
By Scott Hawes | US equity markets gapped higher at the open after solid gains in Asia and Europe, however, the gains have vanished.

Intraday Market Update
03:19:34 PM EDT | 07/02/2010
SPX Death Cross!
By Scott Hawes | The jobs report was mixed but a much larger than expected drop in May factory orders has the bulls on the run.

Intraday Market Update
01:58:53 PM EDT | 07/01/2010
Equities Recover From Lows
By Scott Hawes | The S&P 500 futures took a -10 point nosedive in overnight trading after China reported a larger than expected drop in their PMI Manufacturing Index.

Intraday Market Update
01:36:48 PM EDT | 06/30/2010
Equities Consolidate Sideways
By Scott Hawes | US equities are drifting higher but trading in a fairly tight range as investors digest mixed US economic data. The ADP Employment Report for June was a big miss...

Intraday Market Update
01:47:03 PM EDT | 06/29/2010
Equities Collapse After Consumer Confidence Data
By Scott Hawes | Equity markets throughout the world were sharply lower on Tuesday which pressured US futures overnight. China's Shanghai Composite sold off -4.27%, while all major markets in Europe were off more than -3%.

Intraday Market Update
01:41:57 PM EDT | 06/28/2010
Range Bound Ahead of Friday's Employment Report
By Scott Hawes | The S&P 500 sold off -6 points in early trading before bouncing back +11 points and into positive territory late this morning, despite a miss in the Dallas national manufacturing index and unenthusiastic May consumer spending data.

Intraday Market Update
02:33:56 PM EDT | 06/25/2010
Stocks Bounce From Oversold Conditions
By Scott Hawes | US equities opened slightly higher this morning but quickly turned lower extending yesterday's decline, but have since bounced +15 points.

Intraday Market Update
02:07:11 PM EDT | 06/24/2010
Equities Bounce Off Morning Lows
By Scott Hawes | US equities slid in the overnight futures market and printed new lows in early trading that have not been seen since June 10th...

Intraday Market Update
01:23:55 PM EDT | 06/23/2010
New Home Sales Plunge to Record Lows
By Scott Hawes | A record plunge in new homes sales is exacerbating yesterday's terrible existing home sales report.

Intraday Market Update
01:57:49 PM EDT | 06/22/2010
Existing Home Sales Sparks Selling Again
By Scott Hawes | The bounce in the market at the end of trading yesterday continued in early trading, but the strength was sold into after another disappointing existing home sales report.

Intraday Market Update
01:55:11 PM EDT | 06/21/2010
Equities Pop, The Drop on China Currency News
By Scott Hawes | Overnight the S&P 500 futures gained +12 within minutes of opening at 6:00 PM EST on the news that China plans to gradually let the yuan appreciate against the US dollar.

Intraday Market Update
02:19:06 PM EDT | 06/18/2010
Quiet OPEX, But China Hits New 52-week Low
By Scott Hawes | In China, the Shanghai Composite lost -1.84% (a new 52-week low) on the heels of cautious comments regarding the country's future growth by the World Bank as well as a PBoC adviser.

Intraday Market Update
01:59:38 PM EDT | 06/17/2010
Equities Shake Off Bad Data Heading Into OPEX
By Scott Hawes | After initially shedding -6 points from Wednesday's closing print the S&P 500 futures proceeded to bounce +14 points overnight, reaching a high of 1,117.50 just before the 8:30 AM jobless claims report.

Intraday Market Update
01:55:31 PM EDT | 06/16/2010
Stocks Pare Early Losses
By Scott Hawes | After two prior days of higher opens the S&P 500 futures were under pressure this morning after a mixed bag of US economic data that provided ammo to both bulls and bears.

Intraday Market Update
01:58:38 PM EDT | 06/15/2010
US Equities Erase Yesterday's Late Sell-off
By Scott Hawes | Equities are surging higher despite a large profit miss by retailer Best Buy and worse than expected economic data from the NAHB Housing Index and the Empire State Manufacturing Index.

Intraday Market Update
01:55:40 PM EDT | 06/14/2010
Greek Bonds Downgraded to Junk Status
By Scott Hawes | US Equities gapped open higher this morning following strength in the Asian and European markets.

Intraday Market Update
00:27:42 PM EDT | 06/11/2010
Mixed Economic Data Confuses Equities
By Scott Hawes | In the pre-market this morning disappointing US May retail sales numbers sent the S&P 500 futures about -10 points lower as consumers paused their spending spree in May.

Intraday Market Update
02:05:50 PM EDT | 06/10/2010
Economic Data Lifts Stocks
By Scott Hawes | Yesterday afternoon's sell off was erased this morning as strong economic data out of Asia is bringing risk appetite back to the table.

Intraday Market Update
01:58:04 PM EDT | 06/09/2010
Equities Get a Boost on Data from China
By Scott Hawes | The markets got a boost on data from China as a senior government official stated that China's May exports would be up +50% over last year's levels.

Intraday Market Update
02:01:01 PM EDT | 06/08/2010
The SPX is Whipsawing in a 17 Point Range
By Scott Hawes | The line in the sand for the bulls to defend on the SPX is 1,040.

Intraday Market Update
02:03:24 PM EDT | 06/07/2010
Equities Are Little Changed From Friday's Close
By Scott Hawes | With little US economic data or corporate earnings on the schedule early this week attention has turned to the European debt situation yet again.

Intraday Market Update
02:00:27 PM EDT | 06/04/2010
Terrible Employment Report Sends Equities Sharply Lower
By Scott Hawes | The highly anticipated May US employment report was a huge disappointment this morning.

Intraday Market Update
01:53:10 PM EDT | 06/03/2010
Economic Reports Spark Selling in Equities
By Scott Hawes | After opening in positive territory this morning and surging right up to its 200-day SMA at 1106, the S&P 500 sold off -14 points reaching a low near 1,092.

Intraday Market Update
01:17:58 PM EDT | 06/02/2010
Stocks Rebound as the Selling Stops in Oil Services
By Scott Hawes | Equities have stabilized as the fierce selling in the oil services names has subsided, at least for now.

Intraday Market Update
01:55:59 PM EDT | 06/01/2010
Economic Data Lifts Stocks Off of Opening Lows
By Scott Hawes | Traders returned to work after the three day holiday weekend to a hurricane of worries sweeping through the market...

Intraday Market Update
11:39:35 AM EDT | 05/28/2010
Tepid Economic Reports Pressure Markets
By Scott Hawes | US markets are under pressure today following mixed economic reports.

Intraday Market Update
02:12:28 PM EDT | 05/27/2010
China's Comments Give Markets a Turbo Boost
By Scott Hawes | China's comments overnight sprinkled the markets with confidence this morning despite a worse than expected GDP revision and jobless claims report.

Intraday Market Update
02:33:36 PM EDT | 05/26/2010
Does One Day Make a Difference?
By Scott Hawes | Yesterday afternoon's rally in the US equity markets continued marching onward before the bell today and in early trading.

Intraday Market Update
02:08:35 PM EDT | 05/25/2010
Geopolitical Tensions Accelerate Sell Off
By Scott Hawes | Global equity markets and commodities are under pressure as they deal with geopolitical tensions throughout the world.

Intraday Market Update
02:02:44 PM EDT | 05/24/2010
Supply of Homes for Sale Jumps +11.5%
By Scott Hawes | In the pre-market the S&P 500 futures were off -14 points to 1,070, erasing the majority of the +16 point rally during the last 30 minutes of trading on Friday afternoon.

Intraday Market Update
10:45:23 AM EDT | 05/21/2010
Markets Bounce Back After Lower Open
By Scott Hawes | The S&P 500 futures were strong overnight reaching a high of 1,180. But then immediately sold off -30 points and dipping below flash crash levels...

Intraday Market Update
02:00:53 PM EDT | 05/20/2010
Global Equities Continue Descent
By Scott Hawes | The inability of European leaders to agree on policy is adding to speculation that the euro currency could fail.

Intraday Market Update
02:28:54 PM EDT | 05/19/2010
Inflation is Not an Immediate Concern
By Scott Hawes | The German move to ban naked short selling of euro-denominated government bonds and 10 leading financial institutions has added to risk aversion by investors.

Intraday Market Update
02:14:28 PM EDT | 05/18/2010
The Bulls Are Running Out of Gas
By Scott Hawes | After gapping higher at the open by +10 points and trading up to 1,148, the S&P 500 quickly sold off by more than -23 points...

Intraday Market Update
02:23:59 PM EDT | 05/17/2010
Euro Continues to Make New Lows
By Scott Hawes | The euro has traded to new four year lows against the US dollar as the warnings from European leaders continue to surface that their $1 trillion emergency loan package for debt ridden governments..

Intraday Market Update
02:31:37 PM EDT | 05/14/2010
Crude Oil May Be Leading Us Lower
By Scott Hawes | The insolvency worries about Europe may have subsided, but they have now turned into worries that their fiscal austerity measures will slow down economic growth.

Intraday Market Update
02:12:51 PM EDT | 05/13/2010
Cisco Weighs on the NASDAQ
By Scott Hawes | Cisco is weighing on the Nasdaq today despite beating consensus earnings estimates and reporting their best quarter ever.

Intraday Market Update
02:40:59 PM EDT | 05/12/2010
No News Is Good News
By Scott Hawes | The lack of news appears to be bringing the appetite for risk back to the table.

Intraday Market Update
02:17:22 PM EDT | 05/11/2010
US Equities Erase Early Gains
By Scott Hawes | US equity markets had a significant gap at the open again this morning, only this time it was lower.

Intraday Market Update
02:08:10 PM EDT | 05/10/2010
Global Markets Surge After $1 Trillion Bailout of Euro Zone
By Scott Hawes | Markets across the world surged higher overnight after global policymakers revealed an emergency aid package worth about $1 trillion...

Intraday Market Update
02:10:57 PM EDT | 05/07/2010
290,000 New Jobs Fails To Move the Market
By James Brown | The highly anticipated jobs report came in much better than expected but the news took a back seat to yesterday's alarming volatility. People are still asking, "what happened on Thursday?" to cause a nearly 1,000 point decline in the Dow Jones Industrial average. Volatility remains front and center with the DJIA sinking...

Intraday Market Update
01:47:17 PM EDT | 05/06/2010
The Bulls Run For Cover
By Scott Hawes | The markets were again under pressure this morning after mediocre reports of same store sales, jobless claims, and hysteria in Europe.

Intraday Market Update
02:21:31 PM EDT | 05/05/2010
The Selling Continues, For Now
By Scott Hawes | The US indices were under pressure in the pre-market and early trading but have since pared most of the losses.

Intraday Market Update
02:27:41 PM EDT | 05/04/2010
Fears of European Debt Contagion Trump US Markets
By Scott Hawes | On Monday the markets cheered an aid package for Greece worth 110 billion Euros that was, in principal, supposedly agreed to over the weekend. A day later fears of the European debt contagion...

Intraday Market Update
01:50:23 PM EDT | 05/03/2010
Stocks Regain Friday's Losses
By Scott Hawes | Stocks in the US have regained most of their losses from Friday on the heels of the strongest ISM Manufacturing Index reading since June 2004 at 60.4.

Intraday Market Update
00:43:28 PM EDT | 04/30/2010
Goldman Sachs Being Probed By US Attorney's Office
By Scott Hawes | Shares of Goldman Sachs are off by -9% in mid-day trading after the Wall Street Journal reported the US attorney's office in Manhattan is undertaking a preliminary criminal probe...

Intraday Market Update
02:15:22 PM EDT | 04/29/2010
Traders Pile Back Into Stocks
By Scott Hawes | Stocks continue their bounce off of Tuesday and Wednesday lows as risk aversion has subsided due to a general feeling that an expanded EU/IMF aid package for Greece is imminent.

Intraday Market Update
01:42:47 PM EDT | 04/28/2010
Stocks Bounce Back After Spain Downgrade
By Scott Hawes | All things considered stocks are bouncing back nicely today after yesterday's sharp declines, even though the turmoil in Europe continues...

Intraday Market Update
02:16:34 PM EDT | 04/27/2010
S&P Cuts Greek Debt Rating to Junk
By Scott Hawes | The pre-markets were weak this morning but bounced back at the open. But just when the major indices were about to turn positive S&P Ratings Services cut their ratings on Greek debt to junk and also cut Portugal's ratings two notches...

Intraday Market Update
01:58:38 PM EDT | 04/26/2010
Lack of Conviction Ahead of this Week's FOMC Announcement.
By Scott Hawes | Equities are finding little momentum on Monday as the there is a lack of conviction ahead of the FOMC announcement on Wednesday. Stocks are trading in a narrow range and oscillating between positive and negative territory.

Intraday Market Update
01:56:28 PM EDT | 04/23/2010
Good Economic Reports Keeps Stocks Afloat
By Scott Hawes | The equity markets are mixed in trading today as a favorable durable goods report and a jump in new home sales are being offset by evolving uncertainty in Greece and negative reactions to earnings reports.

Intraday Market Update
01:31:00 PM EDT | 04/22/2010
The Whipsaws Continue
By Scott Hawes | Stocks were under pressure this morning after mixed earnings reports and continued tension in Europe toward Greece's sovereign debt problems.

Intraday Market Update
01:50:57 PM EDT | 04/21/2010
Stocks are Coiling Back and Forth
By Scott Hawes | The pre-markets were weak this morning but stocks bounced back at the open, briefly pushing prices above yesterday's highs. However, the selling kicked in at about 10:00 AM EDT...

Intraday Market Update
02:02:12 PM EDT | 04/20/2010
Earnings Are Keeping Markets Buoyant
By Scott Hawes | Stocks gapped up higher this morning as a flurry of good earnings are keeping the markets buoyant. Dow members Goldman Sachs, IBM, Johnson & Johnson, and Coca-Cola all reported earnings that beat analyst estimates, however, all four of these stocks are lower...

Intraday Market Update
01:48:29 PM EDT | 04/19/2010
The Goldman Hangover
By Scott Hawes | The major US indices overcame early pressure in the pre-markets after Citigroup posted its first profit in eight quarters and a positive economic report of leading indicators, but have since retreated. The S&P 500, NASDAQ and Russell 2000 have all made new intra-day lows...

Intraday Market Update
02:18:25 PM EDT | 04/16/2010
SEC Charges Goldman Sachs with Fraud, Consumer Sentiment Weak
By Scott Hawes | At about 10:40 AM eastern the SEC announced that it charged Goldman Sachs with fraud related to the trading of sub-prime mortgage backed securities (MBS). The markets began tanking on the news sending the bank heavy S&P 500 down...

Intraday Market Update
01:47:15 PM EDT | 04/15/2010
Mixed Data and Technical Levels Keep Stocks in Check
By Scott Hawes | Stocks were under pressure early this morning after higher than expected weekly jobless claims data, but the losses were erased after a very strong April Empire State Manufacturing survey...

Intraday Market Update
02:08:34 PM EDT | 04/14/2010
Earnings and Economic Data Spark Stocks
By Scott Hawes | Stocks are sharply higher in mid-session trading on the heels of a trio of very strong earnings reports, coupled with stronger than forecasted retail sales and subdued inflation.

Intraday Market Update
01:52:56 PM EDT | 04/13/2010
Stocks Are Teetering in Positive and Negative Territory
By Scott Hawes | The equity markets were under pressure this morning on the heels of Alcoa's disappointing Q1 top line revenue results, which kicked off earnings season on a sour note

Intraday Market Update
02:06:49 PM EDT | 04/12/2010
DJIA is Trading Above 11,000
By Scott Hawes | With no U.S. economic data on the docket today, the disclosure of firmer details of Europe's standby Greece bailout package is supporting sentiment, along with a bunch of merger related news. Greece got a promise of as much as...

Intraday Market Update
01:30:29 PM EDT | 04/09/2010
Stocks Boosted By Better Than Expected Wholesale Inventories
By Scott Hawes | In a real shocker this morning Fitch cut Greece's credit ratings by two notches (from BBB+ to BBB-) and signaled further downgrades are possible, citing the intensification of fiscal challenges for the country in response to more adverse prospects for economic growth and increased interest costs.

Intraday Market Update
01:28:58 PM EDT | 04/08/2010
Same Store Sales Strong, Jobless Claims Weak
By Scott Hawes | The pre-markets headed lower this morning on follow through weakness from Europe and Asia, and on the heels of a larger than expected jump of 18,000 initial jobless claims to 460,000 from 442,000 (revised 3,000 higher) in the prior week. This sent the S&P 500 lower at the open by about -7 points...

Intraday Market Update
02:01:40 PM EDT | 04/07/2010
Greece and Greenspan
By Scott Hawes | Risk aversion appears to be the order the day as U.S. stocks are under pressure and European stocks closed lower. The S&P 500 retreated about -9 points from its intraday high of 1,191.80 yesterday - the highest levels seen since September 2008 - before bouncing back to 1,188 in early afternoon trading. Continued chatter in Europe about Greece's debt problems...

Intraday Market Update
02:32:24 PM EDT | 04/06/2010
Russell Rallies Past 700, Greek Bonds Continue to Sink
By James Brown | Stocks rallied off their morning lows and the market is currently trading near its high for the session. Yet gains are mild. Among the major averages the small cap index is showing the most strength with the Russell 2000 hitting levels not seen since September 2008 around the 700 mark. Sadly the debt crisis in Greece is still an issue in spite of the "solution" hammered out in late March. If the weakness in the Greek bond market is any indication then investors are...

Intraday Market Update
00:32:16 PM EDT | 04/05/2010
Stock Market Hits New 52-week Highs
By James Brown | The rally resumed on Monday with the stock market hitting new 52-week highs. Instead of selling the news investors are buying Friday's jobs report that came in less than expected. Positive pending home sales and a better than expected ISM services number this morning helped fuel the bullish mood.

Intraday Market Update
01:22:17 PM EDT | 04/01/2010
Stocks Spring Into the Second Quarter
By James Brown | Stock markets around the world are off to a strong start for the second quarter. Manufacturing data in Asia, Europe and the U.S. is fueling the rally and building investor confidence that the economic rebound is gaining traction. The ISM report this morning rose to its fastest pace in five years. The combination of rising manufacturing and a dip in the U.S. dollar is also...

Intraday Market Update
02:17:19 PM EDT | 03/31/2010
ADP Employment Disappoints, Stocks To End Q1 with Gains
By James Brown | Investors continue to sit on their hands as they wait for the first quarter to end. The stock market has recovered from its morning lows but the indices are hovering near unchanged and look poised to close the quarter on a quiet note. The S&P 500 will end the quarter up 5%...

Intraday Market Update
02:05:14 PM EDT | 03/30/2010
Consumer Confidence and Home Prices Improve
By James Brown | Stocks are going nowhere fast as investors run out the clock with the first quarter ending tomorrow. Volume has been very light and with stocks drifting sideways it reinforces the idea that money managers are just sitting on the hands waiting for the quarter to end. The sell-off in treasuries is pushing yields higher and if this continues...

Intraday Market Update
01:31:16 PM EDT | 03/29/2010
Moscow Subway Blast Fails to Derail Stocks
By James Brown | Monday is shaping up to be a positive day for global markets in spite of a deadly suicide bombing in Moscow on Sunday. In the U.S. stocks were bouncing from Friday's close and while gains are mild the strength is very widespread. The consumer spending report came in positive for the fifth month in a row. Meanwhile euro strength is pushing the dollar lower and fueling a rally in commodities.

Intraday Market Update
01:55:40 PM EDT | 03/26/2010
Q4 GDP, Consumer Sentiment, and Exploding Korean Ships!
By James Brown | Stocks are retreating from their morning highs. Financial media is suggesting that investors are selling the news that a South Korean navy ship has been sunk off the western coast of North Korean. Odds are it's just a convenient excuse to take some money off the table with stocks at overbought levels. Investors are also digesting the latest consumer sentiment numbers and the Q4 GDP revision. Meanwhile strength in the euro is driving the dollar lower

Intraday Market Update
02:01:16 PM EDT | 03/25/2010
Stocks Surge On Potential Bailout for Greece
By James Brown | The March rally continues as major U.S. indices rise to new 52-week highs. Better than expected weekly jobless claims and a possible solution to the Greece debt problem helped propel stocks higher. Plus positive comments out of Best Buy and Qualcomm helped fuel bullish investor sentiment. Strength in Europe lifted the euro, which dragged on the dollar.

Intraday Market Update
01:36:44 PM EDT | 03/24/2010
New Homes Sales at New Lows, Portugal Downgraded.
By James Brown | The market rally paused on Wednesday as investors digested the latest round of news coming from Europe and economic data in the U.S. New home sales continue to slip while durable goods came in better than expected. Across the Atlantic traders were spooked by a credit downgrade for the country of Portugal. This sent the euro currency to a new 10-month low against the dollar.

Intraday Market Update
02:17:46 PM EDT | 03/23/2010
Stocks Shrug Off Sliding Home Sales
By James Brown | The stock market continues to climb. The S&P 500 index is inching closer to its 52-week highs from last week near the 1170 level. Traders are finally taking some money off the table in healthcare stocks with the HMO index off 0.8%. European markets turned hopeful again on a possible solution for Greece. Meanwhile commodities are ignoring dollar strength...

Intraday Market Update
02:18:18 PM EDT | 03/22/2010
Stocks Rally On Healthcare Vote and Weaker Dollar
By James Brown | The stock market has rebounded off its early morning lows with losses turning into widespread gains. Investors are reacting to the healthcare vote on Sunday and they seemed relieved that it's over. Democrats managed to pull ahead with a victory on the most transformative piece of healthcare legislation in the last forty years. Meanwhile U.S. dollar weakness tried...

Intraday Market Update
02:13:21 PM EDT | 03/19/2010
Greece & India Send Stocks Slipping
By James Brown | The major market indices are off their recent highs as investors hit the sell button on this quadruple-witching Friday of futures and options expiration. The Dow Jones Industrial Average has snapped an eight-day winning streak while small caps are underperforming with the Russell 2000 index off 1.3%. Investors are once again worried that the Greece debt problem is heating up. Elsewhere a surprise rate hike in India raises new concerns over the recovery...

Intraday Market Update
01:42:38 PM EDT | 03/18/2010
Economic Data Benign. Yet Stocks Stall.
By James Brown | Stocks are suffering a little post-Patrick's Day hangover. Markets around the world settled in negative territory. Most of the economic data out this morning was benign but investors are still worried about Greece. This sent the euro lower and boosted the dollar. Crude oil is down 1.1% near $81.98 a barrel. Gold futures are up almost $3.00 to $1,126.90 an ounce.

Intraday Market Update
02:20:55 PM EDT | 03/17/2010
Stocks Turn Green on St. Patrick's Day
By James Brown | Stocks are in a green mood this St. Patrick's day. Markets are higher around the world following the Fed's announcement yesterday. The PPI index this morning reinforced the idea that inflation is not a current threat. The dollar weakness is fueling gains across the commodity spectrum.

Intraday Market Update
00:27:45 PM EDT | 03/16/2010
Rally Resumes Ahead of the Fed
By James Brown | The S&P 500 index has hit new 52-week highs as the market slowly melts higher. Investors are not waiting on the FOMC decision later this afternoon. No one expects the Federal Reserve to alter rates, currently in a range of 0.0-0.25%, so the focus will be on the Fed's statement due out around 2:15 p.m. EDT. Meanwhile the markets in Europe are bouncing as investors react...

Intraday Market Update
00:40:56 PM EDT | 03/15/2010
Investors In A Cautious Mood
By James Brown | Stocks are suffering some Monday morning blahs. Better than expected economic data in the U.S. was not enough to offset a cautious mood by investors and widespread declines across most of the major world markets. Traders are in a wait-and-see mode for the Federal Reserve meeting tomorrow...

Intraday Market Update
02:14:10 PM EDT | 03/12/2010
Sentiment Slips, Retail Sales Inch Higher
By James Brown | Stocks are churning sideways on Friday thanks to mixed economic data. Investors are in a wait and see mode. Better than expected retail sales offset weaker than expected consumer sentiment. Meanwhile the U.S. dollar continues to drift but offered no relief for commodities, which ticked lower...

Intraday Market Update
01:53:09 PM EDT | 03/11/2010
Stocks Shrug Off Rising Inflation in China
By James Brown | Rising inflation in China spooked the market this morning but stocks are rebounding off their worst levels of the session. Investors are also digesting the latest trade numbers in the U.S. and the weekly initial jobless claims. The U.S. dollar is still drifting sideways in a narrow range. Crude oil is off about 11 cents near $81.98 a barrel.

Intraday Market Update
01:48:20 PM EDT | 03/10/2010
Trying To Keep The Rally Alive
By James Brown | The tone of the market is bullish but gains for the major averages are pretty small. The Dow Industrials are fractionally lower. The S&P 500 is struggling with resistance near 1150 as expected. Meanwhile the NASDAQ composite and the Russell 2000 are trading at new 52-week highs. The U.S. dollar is drifting sideways. The early morning strength in crude oil has reversed.

Intraday Market Update
00:56:39 PM EDT | 03/09/2010
Game On! The Rally Resumes.
By James Brown | Stocks continue to drift higher as traders bought the morning dip. The overall news flow is relatively quiet. A bounce in the U.S. dollar is not having much impact on commodities. Crude oil is off about 11 cents near $81.75 a barrel. Gold futures are trading near unchanged around $1,123 an ounce.

Intraday Market Update
02:05:25 PM EDT | 03/08/2010
The Rally Pauses on Monday
By James Brown | Monday is shaping up to be a quiet session. The rally has paused to catch its breath after last week's sprint higher. The U.S. dollar is trading close to unchanged with little affect on commodities. Crude oil is near $81.40 a barrel while gold futures are just under $1,125 an ounce.

Intraday Market Update
02:16:57 PM EDT | 03/05/2010
Houston, We Have Liftoff
By Jim Brown | The February Nonfarm Payroll report showed that the U.S. lost 36,000 jobs compared to recent estimates of 50,000-75,000 job losses. Most of the job losses were in construction and most were due to the three snowstorms that blanketed the northeast. The unemployment rate was unchanged at 9.7% and most analysts expected it to rise by several tenths. Household employment increased for the second month.

Intraday Market Update
02:02:45 PM EDT | 03/04/2010
Bulls Confused But Still Buying Dips
By Jim Brown | After a rocky start to trading and a sharp drop at the open the markets have recovered to trade in the green once again. The opening dip was bought and the indexes are on the verge of moving higher after a couple hours of consolidation.

Intraday Market Update
00:52:46 PM EDT | 03/03/2010
Positive Economics Boost Market
By Jim Brown | The Challenger Employment report was good news for the market this morning and suggests Friday's payroll report will not be bad. The Challenger report showed that job cuts fell to their lowest level since July 2006. Employers announced layoffs that affected 42,090 workers. This was down from 71,482 in January.

Intraday Market Update
02:15:03 PM EDT | 03/02/2010
New Breakouts Across the Board
By Jim Brown | The dollar rallied overnight to 81.25 pushing oil and commodities lower in overnight trading. That reversed early this morning with the dollar index falling to 80.48 by midday and pushing commodities higher. Gold gained +19 to 1138 while oil rebounded to gain +1.86 to 80.55. That level has been resistance for more than a week and the EIA inventory report is due out tomorrow. Expectations are for a +1.5 million barrel increase and the fifth straight weekly gain.

Intraday Market Update
01:07:56 PM EDT | 03/01/2010
Asian Gains Lead U.S. Markets Higher
By Jim Brown | Overnight gains in Asian markets pushed our futures higher by more than 7 points at 4:AM. China's lower manufacturing output released today was actually a relief for global investors because it meant there was less chance of China taking additional measures to slow their economy.

Intraday Market Update
02:34:02 PM EDT | 02/26/2010
GDP & ISM Stronger, Consumer Sentiment & Home Sales Weaker
By James Brown | Friday is shaping up to be a quiet session but for the most part stocks are in positive territory. Stronger GDP and ISM data overshadowed unexpected declines in consumer sentiment and existing home sales. Meanwhile strength in the euro pushed the dollar lower and that's fueling gains across most of the commodity sector.

Intraday Market Update
01:13:49 PM EDT | 02/25/2010
Jobless Claims Rise, Euro Falls Again
By James Brown | Nervous investors hit the "sell" button this morning and stocks spiked lower at the open on worries over the economic recovery. Another disappointing weekly jobless number, a mixed durable goods report, and escalating concerns over Greece all helped push markets lower. Meanwhile Ben Bernanke continues day two of his testimony before Congress and President Obama is currently hosting his debate over healthcare.

Intraday Market Update
01:13:49 PM EDT | 02/25/2010
Jobless Claims Rise, Euro Falls Again
By James Brown | Nervous investors hit the "sell" button this morning and stocks spiked lower at the open on worries over the economic recovery. Another disappointing weekly jobless number, a mixed durable goods report, and escalating concerns over Greece all helped push markets lower. Meanwhile Ben Bernanke continues day two of his testimony before Congress and President Obama is currently hosting his debate over healthcare.

Intraday Market Update
01:40:15 PM EDT | 02/24/2010
Bernanke Testifies, New Home Sales Plunge
By James Brown | The U.S. markets are rebounding after a volatile morning. Investors are reacting to Fed Chairman Bernanke's testimony and a record low reading on new home sales. Bernanke said the Fed will need to keep rates low to keep the economic rebound afloat. That pushed the dollar lower and gave commodities a boost. Yet it's not helping gold prices...

Intraday Market Update
01:27:23 PM EDT | 02/23/2010
Consumer Confidence Crashes, Stocks Rollover
By James Brown | Home price data and earnings results this morning were all better than expected. Yet stocks are rolling over under a very disappointing consumer confidence report. Consumers' outlook on current conditions has fallen to a 27-year low. Meanwhile retailers remain cautious on their outlook for sales growth. Overall investors seem a little nervous ahead of Federal Reserve Ben Bernanke's testimony later this week.

Intraday Market Update
02:23:47 PM EDT | 02/22/2010
M&A News, Earnings, and a New Healthcare Plan
By James Brown | Stocks are quietly trading sideways on Monday. Investors are not sure how to react to the various news stories crossing the wires. Bullish M&A activity was offset by lackluster earnings news and a new push by the White House on healthcare. The dollar is inching lower while commodities are mixed. Crude oil is up 28 cents to $80 a barrel.

Intraday Market Update
00:58:53 PM EDT | 02/19/2010
CPI Data Helps Stocks Recover From Intraday Lows
By James Brown | Stocks did indeed spike lower this morning as investors reacted to the surprise move by the Federal Reserve last night but the weakness was short lived. Traders bought the dip and stocks are back in positive territory. The U.S. market is on track to post gains every day this week. The S&P 500 index is currently pushing past technical resistance at its 50-dma near 1,108.

Intraday Market Update
00:24:08 PM EDT | 02/18/2010
Stocks React to Philly Fed, PPI, and Jobless Claim Data
By James Brown | Stocks are still inching higher as investors digest earnings from the world's largest retailer. Adding to the bullish tone was a stronger Philly Fed survey. Unfortunately the LEI data was losing steam, the PPI is rising, and weekly jobless claims were disappointing. The dollar's bounce is not having much affect on oil today but gains in the metals are mild.

Intraday Market Update
01:48:02 PM EDT | 02/17/2010
Earnings and Economic Data Keep The Bounce Alive
By James Brown | Positive earnings news fueled gains around the globe. Better than expected economic data in the U.S. was welcome news. Yet the dollar's bounce is putting the brakes on the commodity bounce. Stocks appear to be losing steam as we move deeper into the session with the S&P 500 up less than five points at 1,097. Crude oil futures are up about $0.25 after yesterday's big gain. Gold futures are trading fractionally lower, down less than a $1.00 at $1,118.90 an ounce.

Intraday Market Update
02:03:22 PM EDT | 02/16/2010
Earnings, Economic Data, and Euro Lift the Market
By James Brown | The market's rebound continues right on schedule. British bank Barclays reported stronger earnings giving the financial sector a boost. The economic data out of New York was better than expected. Euro strength and dollar weakness is giving commodities a big boost.

Intraday Market Update
00:45:43 PM EDT | 02/12/2010
China, Eurozone, and Consumer Sentiment All Disappoint
By James Brown | Investors were shocked by news that China was raising bank reserve requirements again for the second time in a month. Combine this news with disappointing GDP data for the eurozone and a decline on U.S. consumer sentiment and it's no surprise to see stocks trading lower. The European GDP news sent the euro lower, the dollar higher, and commodities reversing lower again.

Intraday Market Update
02:17:58 PM EDT | 02/11/2010
Relief Rally on Resolution for Greece Debt
By James Brown | The U.S. market is seeing a relief rally on hopes for a resolution to the Greek debt problem. Oddly enough the European markets sold off on the exact same news. Euro strength produced dollar weakness, which is lifting commodities. Crude oil is up 1.1% near $75.35 a barrel. Gold futures are up $17 to $1,093 an ounce.

Intraday Market Update
01:19:35 PM EDT | 02/10/2010
Stocks Pare Morning Losses
By James Brown | Wednesday is shaping up to be another quiet session on Wall Street as the east coast is buried under a blizzard of snow. Stocks initially sank on Bernanke's comments about removing stimulus from the system. This boosted the U.S. dollar and commodity-related issues sank...

Intraday Market Update
02:19:21 PM EDT | 02/09/2010
Stocks Rebound on Hopes for Greek Bailout
By James Brown | The U.S. market is bouncing on rumors that the Germany and the EU is preparing an aid package for Greece. This news boosted the oversold euro, which sent the dollar lower. Dollar weakness is feeding a widespread bounce in commodities. Crude oil is up 2.4% near $73.65 a barrel. Gold futures are up another $10 to $1,076 an ounce.

Intraday Market Update
01:19:39 PM EDT | 02/08/2010
Monday Morning Blahs Have Stocks Drifting Sideways
By James Brown | Monday is turning out to be a pretty quiet day on Wall Street. There were some earnings reports this morning and some positive analyst comments giving stocks a minor boost. Investors still seem nervous over the European debt issues. A pull back in the U.S. dollar is giving commodities a bounce. Crude oil is up 84 cents near $72 a barrel. Gold futures are up more than $16 to $1,069 an ounce.

Intraday Market Update
01:41:05 PM EDT | 02/05/2010
Global Markets Continue Slide, DJIA Breaks Under 10,000
By James Brown | The global sell-off continues as investors run for the weekend hoping to forget about market losses for a few hours during the Superbowl on Sunday. The official jobs report data this morning was disappointing but the loss in jobs was softened by a downtick in the unemployment rate, which fell to a five-month low. With global markets in turmoil money is seeking safety in the dollar, which is pushing commodities lower

Intraday Market Update
01:12:11 PM EDT | 02/04/2010
Stocks Sink Under European Debt Worries
By James Brown | European default worries have sparked another wave of selling pressure across the global markets. A disappointing weekly jobless claim number further sapped investor confidence. Legal woes for Bank of America made headlines. The dollar's strength is crushing the commodities. Crude oil is down almost 5% near $73.25 a barrel. Gold futures are down more than 4% (-$46.40) to $1,065 an ounce.

Intraday Market Update
01:12:11 PM EDT | 02/04/2010
Stocks Sink Under European Debt Worries
By James Brown | European default worries have sparked another wave of selling pressure across the global markets. A disappointing weekly jobless claim number further sapped investor confidence. Legal woes for Bank of America made headlines. The dollar's strength is crushing the commodities. Crude oil is down almost 5% near $73.25 a barrel. Gold futures are down more than 4% (-$46.40) to $1,065 an ounce.

Intraday Market Update
01:55:21 PM EDT | 02/03/2010
ISM Services Disappoint. ADP Employment Improves
By James Brown | Stocks are trading in negative territory as investors react to a disappointing ISM services number. The ADP jobs report came in better than expected, which should bode well for Friday's jobs report. Meanwhile dollar strength is weighing on the commodities. Corporate earnings this morning have also been a disappointment for the market.

Intraday Market Update
02:11:25 PM EDT | 02/02/2010
The Bounce Continues on Earnings News
By James Brown | Stocks continue their oversold bounce thanks to positive pending home sales numbers and a better than expected earnings report from D.R.Horton. Car-maker Ford (F) was making headlines with a 43% jump in car sales. The dollar's retreat is giving commodities another boost for the second day in a row. In other news Punxsatawney Phil, the most famous groundhog in the world, saw his shadow this morning forecasting six more weeks of winter.

Intraday Market Update
02:21:31 PM EDT | 02/01/2010
ISM Improves, Stocks See Oversold Bounce
By James Brown | Stocks are bouncing from oversold levels. A stronger ISM report is offsetting poor construction spending data. A pull back in the U.S. dollar is boosting commodities. Energy stocks are seeing a strong rebound after a terrible January decline. Semiconductors are also showing relative strength with a 2.7% bounce in the SOX index. Crude oil is up 2% to $74.70 a barrel. Gold futures are up 1.9% to $1,105 an ounce.

Intraday Market Update
02:35:30 PM EDT | 01/29/2010
Stocks Struggle In Spite of +5.7% GDP and Chicago PMI Improvement
By James Brown | The stock market continues to struggle in spite of better than expected economic data and impressive earnings numbers. The GDP came in a +5.7% and the Chicago PMI hit is highest levels since 2005. Yet investors are not impressed. Strength in the dollar is pressuring commodities. The UUP dollar ETF is crossing up over its simple 200-dma. Crude oil is down 25 cents near $73.40 a barrel. Gold is down $2 near $1,082 an ounce.

Intraday Market Update
01:54:44 PM EDT | 01/28/2010
S&P 500 Breaks Support, Durable Goods & Jobless Claims Disappoint
By James Brown | Evidently investors were not impressed with the State of the Union address last night. Maybe the market decline is due to the disappointing durable goods orders or rising jobless claims. Or maybe it's the disappointing earnings results from QCOM. Most likely it's a combination of factors that has stocks accelerating lower. The S&P 500 has now broken support near the 1,085 level.

Intraday Market Update
02:41:13 PM EDT | 01/27/2010
Fed Leaves Rates Unchanged. AAPL introduces the iPad.
By James Brown | The markets seemed nervous ahead of the FOMC decision this afternoon with stocks slowly slipping to new relative lows. The new home sales report was a disaster. Tim Geithner is getting grilled before congress. Apple Inc. finally unveils their new tablet PC. Dollar strength (not much) is putting pressure on commodities with crude oil down 1.7% near $73.40 a barrel. Gold futures are down $12 near $1,087 an ounce.

Intraday Market Update
01:55:31 PM EDT | 01/26/2010
Consumer Confidence Improves, Stocks Bounce
By James Brown | The U.S. markets are bouncing off their lows of the session. Traders bought the decline this morning near the Friday lows and it's forming a very short-term technical bottom suggesting this bounce has further to go. Of course everything could change if the Fed or President Obama says something negative on Wednesday. Overall stocks are in a positive mood thanks to rising consumer confidence numbers.

Intraday Market Update
02:37:54 PM EDT | 01/25/2010
Confirmation Fears Cool, Existing Home Sales Plunge
By James Brown | The U.S. markets are seeing a very minor oversold bounce after last week's plunge. The political saber rattling over Ben Bernanke's confirmation has cooled and it looks like the Fed chairman will be reconfirmed. U.S. existing home sales for December were a big disappointment and creates doubt over the strength of the recovery. The dollar is flat, which is giving commodities a chance to bounce from last week's decline.

Intraday Market Update
03:05:59 PM EDT | 01/22/2010
Worst Two-Day Drop in Six Months
By James Brown | Stocks around the world continue to sink. The S&P 500's intraday bounce on Friday has failed and stocks are hitting new relative lows with the index headed for the 1,100 level. The same factors that pushed stocks lower yesterday remain in force. Obama's new proposed regulations for the banking industry, fears that China could be ready to raise interest rates in an attempt to slow down their economy, and general profit taking...

Intraday Market Update
02:42:17 PM EDT | 01/21/2010
Obama's Bank Rules and China Worries Send Stocks Lower
By James Brown | The sell-off continues. Stocks plunge again for the "worst" day of this new year. The S&P 500 and the NASDAQ composite briefly traded in negative territory for the year. Once again investors are worried about China tightening its monetary policy and applying the brakes to its economy. Meanwhile Wall Street was spooked by harsh words and new regulations proposed by President Obama this morning, which sent some of the big name financials plummeting lower. Adding fuel to the fire today was a disappointing Philly Fed survey and worse than expected weekly jobless claims.

Intraday Market Update
02:42:17 PM EDT | 01/21/2010
Obama's Bank Rules and China Worries Send Stocks Lower
By James Brown | The sell-off continues. Stocks plunge again for the "worst" day of this new year. The S&P 500 and the NASDAQ composite briefly traded in negative territory for the year. Once again investors are worried about China tightening its monetary policy and applying the brakes to its economy. Meanwhile Wall Street was spooked by harsh words and new regulations proposed by President Obama this morning, which sent some of the big name financials plummeting lower. Adding fuel to the fire today was a disappointing Philly Fed survey and worse than expected weekly jobless claims.

Intraday Market Update
02:28:43 PM EDT | 01/20/2010
Bank Earnings Disappoint, China Spooks The Market
By James Brown | The major U.S. stock market averages are down 1.5% or more making this the worst trading day of the year! It's the biggest decline since November 2009. Yet for all the wailing and gnashing of teeth stocks have only fallen to the bottom of their recent trading range. It was a big day for bank earnings and while the results were mixed investors took a pessimistic view of the results. The real story today seems to be China.

Intraday Market Update
03:08:46 PM EDT | 01/19/2010
Stocks Rally on Senate Race & Upgrades
By James Brown | It looks like the stock market bulls came back from their three-day weekend rested and ready to run. There are a lot of stories out today but the biggest driving factor for the market's rally seems to be the special election in Massachusetts to fill Senator Kennedy's seat. Polls are currently showing Republican Scott Brown ahead of Democrat Martha Coakley...

Intraday Market Update
01:58:40 PM EDT | 01/15/2010
Investors Take Profits Ahead of Long Weekend
By James Brown | The U.S. markets are closed this coming Monday and investors are taking profits ahead of the long weekend. Traders were disappointed by JPM's sharp increase in loan loss reserves and cautious comments from CEO Jamie Dimon. Economic data out this morning was mixed with improving manufacturing data offset by negative consumer sentiment numbers. Investors were also selling the news in shares of Intel following last night's earnings report. There appears to be a flight to safety with a rally in bonds and the U.S. dollar.

Intraday Market Update
02:22:06 PM EDT | 01/14/2010
Minor Gains Ahead of Intel's Earnings
By James Brown | The major indices are seeing relatively minor gains in a quiet session as investors wait for Intel's earnings report tonight. Investors digested a handful of economic data while President Obama voiced his desire to tax the biggest banks. The dollar's decline was fueling a small bounce for commodities yet energy and mining stocks are lower on the session.

Intraday Market Update
02:33:57 PM EDT | 01/13/2010
Traders Buy The Dip. S&P Over 1140, NASDAQ Above 2300.
By James Brown | The market rally continues. Tuesday was the first decline of the year for the S&P 500. Traders bought the dip but there was some uncertainty this morning. Investors had a lot of stories to sift through. Google might leave China. Bankers were questioned in Washington. Oil inventories and mortgage application data was released. Yesterday afternoon the capital of Haiti suffered the worst earthquake in 100 years.

Intraday Market Update
02:23:53 PM EDT | 01/12/2010
China Tightens, Alcoa Plunges, Stocks Reverse
By James Brown | Stocks are trading near their lows for the session as the market suffers a widespread decline. China made headlines with an unexpected move to tighten monetary policy. Combined with a disappointing earnings report from Alcoa (AA) last night and investors used it as a cue to sell. A dip in the dollar offered no boost to commodities.

Intraday Market Update
02:23:53 PM EDT | 01/12/2010
China Tightens, Alcoa Plunges, Stocks Reverse
By James Brown | Stocks are trading near their lows for the session as the market suffers a widespread decline. China made headlines with an unexpected move to tighten monetary policy. Combined with a disappointing earnings report from Alcoa (AA) last night and investors used it as a cue to sell. A dip in the dollar offered no boost to commodities.

Intraday Market Update
02:21:31 PM EDT | 01/11/2010
Early Morning Gains Reverse. Investors Wait for Alcoa.
By James Brown | Stocks rallied early this morning on very strong import and export numbers from China this weekend. Yet the market is paring its gains as investors wait for Dow-component Alcoa (AA) to launch earnings season when it reports after the closing bell tonight. Wall Street expects AA to report a profit of 6 cents per share. The average analyst price target for AA is $16. Alcoa hit new 52-week highs this morning at $17.60. Meanwhile...

Intraday Market Update
11:41:13 AM EDT | 01/08/2010
December Lost 85,000 Jobs
By James Brown | The stock market is off to a rocky session after a very disappointing jobs report but bulls are not giving up without a fight. Most of the major indices are rebounding from their intraday lows. The NASDAQ composite is showing relative strength with a gain and the Dow Transportation index is shooting higher with a 1.3% rally...

Intraday Market Update
02:33:16 PM EDT | 01/07/2010
Retail Sales & Initial Claims Fail To Move the Market
By James Brown | The stock market is bouncing off its morning lows but gains are mild and stocks are mostly drifting sideways. Better retail sales data and initial weekly jobless claims are not having an impact as the world waits for tomorrow's jobs report. The U.S. dollar is seeing a minor bounce and commodities are producing a minor decline.

Intraday Market Update
02:48:45 PM EDT | 01/06/2010
ISM Services and ADP Employment Reports Fail to Impress
By James Brown | Wednesday is shaping up to be a quiet session for stocks. The ISM services report and ADP data were not enough to shake investors' focus on Friday's jobs report. Meanwhile a decline in the dollar is giving commodities a boost. A volatile overnight session in crude oil has turned into a rally. While gold futures are surging over $20 to $1,139 an ounce. The GLD gold ETF is breaking out past technical resistance with a 1.7% gain.

Intraday Market Update
02:48:45 PM EDT | 01/06/2010
ISM Services and ADP Employment Reports Fail to Impress
By James Brown | Wednesday is shaping up to be a quiet session for stocks. The ISM services report and ADP data were not enough to shake investors' focus on Friday's jobs report. Meanwhile a decline in the dollar is giving commodities a boost. A volatile overnight session in crude oil has turned into a rally. While gold futures are surging over $20 to $1,139 an ounce. The GLD gold ETF is breaking out past technical resistance with a 1.7% gain.

Intraday Market Update
02:47:28 PM EDT | 01/05/2010
Major Averages Retreat on Lousy Home Sales Data
By James Brown | Stocks have given up their early gains as traders take profits on mixed economic data out today. Improving factory orders were overshadowed by a lousy pending home sales report for November. A bounce in the dollar is taking a bite out of the commodity strength at least here in the U.S. Crude oil futures are up about 10 cents near $81.62 a barrel.

Intraday Market Update
02:37:05 PM EDT | 01/04/2010
A Strong Start to 2010
By James Brown | Stocks are off to a strong start for the year. The major U.S. indices are hitting new 52-week highs on positive economic data both here in the U.S. and in China. A decline in the U.S. dollar is fueling gains in commodity-related stocks. Crude oil is breaking out past $80. Overall it's a widespread rally with the RLX retail sector the only index not in positive territory.

Intraday Market Update
01:53:35 PM EDT | 12/31/2009
Markets Poised to Close 2009 on a (small) Down Note
By James Brown | Stocks look set to end 2009 on a down note although losses in the NASDAQ and Russell 2000 are mild today. The Dow Industrials is the worst performer among the big indices. Take your pick on why stocks are down. It could be last minute profit taking, worries that the economy is improving too fast and the Fed will be forced to raise rates, or the surprising news that the Institute for Supply Management has already revised the Chicago PMI data lower and the report just came out yesterday!

Intraday Market Update
01:57:03 PM EDT | 12/30/2009
Stocks Retreat Into Yearend
By James Brown | Stocks are seeing a little profit taking but for the most part the market continues to churn sideways as we approach the end of 2009. Investors ignored better than expected Chicago ISM numbers. The Treasury auctioned off another $32 billion in seven-year notes. An early bounce in the dollar put pressure on metals. Yet oil was up in spite of bearish oil inventory data. Meanwhile parts of Times Square were shut down and...

Intraday Market Update
01:57:03 PM EDT | 12/30/2009
Stocks Retreat Into Yearend
By James Brown | Stocks are seeing a little profit taking but for the most part the market continues to churn sideways as we approach the end of 2009. Investors ignored better than expected Chicago ISM numbers. The Treasury auctioned off another $32 billion in seven-year notes. An early bounce in the dollar put pressure on metals. Yet oil was up in spite of bearish oil inventory data. Meanwhile parts of Times Square were shut down and...

Intraday Market Update
02:47:57 PM EDT | 12/29/2009
Stocks Meander Sideways
By James Brown | The U.S. stock market is quietly drifting sideways since no one wants to rock the boat before the year ends. A bounce in the dollar is putting pressure on commodities although copper hit new highs overnight. Crude oil is nearly unchanged on the session near $78.80 a barrel while gold futures are down more than $8 to $1,099 an ounce.

Intraday Market Update
02:10:12 PM EDT | 12/28/2009
Stock Market Loses Some Steam
By James Brown | Stronger retail sales helped send the market higher this morning but the early strength has faded. It's turning into a quiet session. The major market averages are up but they are trading sideways in a narrow range. Several sectors are seeing profit taking. A weaker dollar is fueling another bounce in commodities. Crude oil is up 1% to $78.87 a barrel. Gold futures are up almost $4 to $1,108 an ounce...

Intraday Market Update
00:16:04 PM EDT | 12/24/2009
Santa Claus Rally On Wall Street
By James Brown | All of the major U.S. indices are up and hitting new 2009 highs as the Christmas rally continues to sweep across the market. Investors were digesting durable goods orders, lower jobless claims and the first Senate Christmas Eve vote in 114 years. The U.S. dollar retreated giving commodities a push. Crude oil is up above $77 a barrel while gold futures are trading back above $1,100 an ounce.

Intraday Market Update
01:05:23 PM EDT | 12/23/2009
NASDAQ & Russell 2000 Hit New 2009 Highs
By James Brown | New home sales figures were a big disappointment this morning but stocks are off their worst levels of the session. The NASDAQ is extending its gains and hitting new 2009 highs. The S&P 500 is flirting with a new high. The most bullish development today is the small cap Russell 2000 index breaking out past resistance and hitting new 2009 highs...

Intraday Market Update
01:46:37 PM EDT | 12/22/2009
Christmas Rally Continues
By James Brown | Stocks are in rally mode this Christmas week. No one wants to sell so it's putting a floor under prices. Investors shrugged off a disappointing GDP number and applauded stronger home sales. Technology stocks are leading the way with the NASDAQ Composite soaring to new 52-week highs. The U.S. dollar is bouncing...

Intraday Market Update
01:39:28 PM EDT | 12/21/2009
NASDAQ Jumps, M&A News Powers the Bulls
By James Brown | Has the Christmas rally begun? The NASDAQ composite is breaking out to new 2009 highs and the Dow Industrials are up triple digits after two components (AA and INTC) were upgraded this morning. It was merger and acquisition news that really set the tone. SNY is buying CHTT and BUCY is buying the mining division from TEX. Overall the...

Intraday Market Update
02:19:30 PM EDT | 12/18/2009
December Option Expiration Friday Has Been Quiet
By James Brown | Today has been a relatively mild session for stocks. There was some early excitement in oil on news that Iranian soldiers had seized an Iraqi oil field. That sent money flowing into safety trades like the U.S. dollar and U.S. bonds but the early strength in both has started to reverse. The NASDAQ is out performing thanks to big gains for ORCL and RIMM after both companies reported stronger earnings results last night.

Intraday Market Update
02:15:36 PM EDT | 12/17/2009
Bernanke, Dollar, FDX Roil the Market
By James Brown | Stocks are down as investors react to a rise in jobless claims, a battle over Ben Bernanke's confirmation, and an earnings warning from FedEx (FDX). In Europe concerns are still running high over Greece's credit rating. Money is flowing into save havens like U.S. bonds and the dollar. The dollar's strength, thanks to a weak euro, is pushing commodities lower. Crude oil is off 1.1% near $71.81 a barrel. Gold futures are down almost $28 to $1,108 an ounce...

Intraday Market Update
01:55:28 PM EDT | 12/16/2009
Rally Stalls As Traders Wait for Fed
By James Brown | Stocks are up on the session and the NASDAQ composite managed to tag a new 2009 high but markets are off their best levels of the day as investors wait for the FOMC decision. A decline in the U.S. dollar is fueling a bounce in commodities with crude oil up two days in a row (+3.1% today) and gold futures up $13 to $1,136.00 an ounce.

Intraday Market Update
02:13:29 PM EDT | 12/15/2009
Lots of Headlines, Not a lot of Movement
By James Brown | Once again stocks have stalled at the top of their trading range. Investors are reacting to a mix of economic data. The NY Empire State economic index came in much worse than expected. Wholesale inflation numbers were higher. BBY's earnings were strong. WFC has announced it will pay back the TARP funds. All together there are lots of headlines but not a lot of movement in the market...

Intraday Market Update
03:04:24 PM EDT | 12/14/2009
Dubai Bailout, Citigroup Replays TARP, XOM buys XTO
By James Brown | Markets are up across the globe on a parade of good news. A $10 billion bailout for Dubai really ignited the rebound on Monday. News that Citigroup is paying back the TARP only added to the bounce in banks. Plus, some major M&A news in the energy sector has traders wondering who's next to be acquired. Yet in spite of all the bullish headlines the major indices can't seem to breakout through the top of their trading range...

Intraday Market Update
02:40:39 PM EDT | 12/11/2009
Retail Sales & Consumer Sentiment Improve
By James Brown | The stock market is bouncing from their midday lows. The overall tone is bullish thanks to better than expected retail sales figures and improving consumer sentiment. Positive economic data out of China also helped buoy some commodity stocks. At the same time a rise in the U.S. dollar is pushing the actual commodities lower with both oil and gold in the red today...

Intraday Market Update
02:06:10 PM EDT | 12/10/2009
Major Indices Rally But Small Caps Struggle To Keep Pace
By James Brown | Stocks rallied this morning in spite of a bounce in the U.S. dollar. Investors cheered a stronger export number and smaller deficit figures for October. The market managed to shrug off a slightly disappointing weekly initial jobless claims number that came in higher than expected at 474,000. RealtyTrac also offered some positive data on the foreclosure front. Foreclosures fell 8% in November but they remain extremely elevated at more than 300,000 new foreclosure filings for the month...

Intraday Market Update
02:07:40 PM EDT | 12/09/2009
Stocks Rollover Midday
By James Brown | Stocks rebounded from their morning lows but bulls have run out of gas and the market is back at its lows for the session. News that Standard & Poor's had cut their outlook on the country of Spain to negative helped set a cautious tone. Earlier the dollar was edging lower and normally a weaker dollar is bullish for commodities but not today. Both oil and gold are down on the session.

Intraday Market Update
02:36:23 PM EDT | 12/08/2009
Stocks Decline Across the Globe
By James Brown | Stocks are retreating around the globe on lackluster economic data in Europe and disappointing corporate news here in the U.S. Another bounce in the U.S. dollar continues to fuel a sell-off in commodities. Crude oil is down for the fifth day in a row with a 1.2% drop and a move under $73.00 a barrel. Gold is also plunging again for its third decline in a row with a $21 drop to $1,143 an ounce...

Intraday Market Update
01:23:17 PM EDT | 12/07/2009
The Market Drifts Aimlessly
By James Brown | Monday is shaping up to be a very quiet day on Wall Street. The major indices are drifting sideways in a very narrow range as investors search for a new catalyst. There was hope that Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke might share something new while he spoke to the Economic Club of Washington. The early morning strength in the U.S. dollar is fading and has now turned negative...

Intraday Market Update
01:23:17 PM EDT | 12/07/2009
The Market Drifts Aimlessly
By James Brown | Monday is shaping up to be a very quiet day on Wall Street. The major indices are drifting sideways in a very narrow range as investors search for a new catalyst. There was hope that Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke might share something new while he spoke to the Economic Club of Washington. The early morning strength in the U.S. dollar is fading and has now turned negative...

Intraday Market Update
02:09:03 PM EDT | 12/04/2009
Stocks Turn Volatile on Stronger Jobs Report
By James Brown | The market has been waiting desperately for the jobs report and this morning's data was much better than expected. It was almost too strong! Economists were looking for a loss of 125,000 jobs in November. The Labor Department announced a loss of 11,000. This report was so strong it sparked new concerns that the Federal Reserve would be forced to raise rates a lot sooner than expected...

Intraday Market Update
02:14:20 PM EDT | 12/03/2009
Stocks Wait for Jobs Report
By James Brown | The major stock market averages are flirting with positive territory but the trend is sideways as investors wait for tomorrow's jobs report. Economists are expecting Friday's jobs number to come in at -130,000 for November compared to -190,000 in October. A few optimistic analysts out there are hoping for a number under -100,000. While we wait for tomorrow's report there were a lot of news stories out today with the ISM Services number, productivity, November same-store sales, weekly jobless claims, and last night's announcement from Bank of America...

Intraday Market Update
01:48:17 PM EDT | 12/02/2009
Stocks Hover Near Highs on ADP Data
By James Brown | Wednesday is shaping up to be a relatively quiet session for the market. Stocks initially traded higher and the S&P 500 hit a new 2009 high intraday. Investors seem to be waiting for Friday's non-farm payrolls report after seeing today's ADP number come in slightly worse than expected. A bounce in the dollar is not having much affect on the metals while oil is down on a jump in its weekly inventory number...

Intraday Market Update
01:52:29 PM EDT | 12/01/2009
Stocks Rally Into December. Commodities Up on Dollar Weakness.
By James Brown | The S&P 500 and the Dow Industrials have risen toward their 2009 highs following a worldwide rally in stocks. The falling dollar rising commodity trade is back and gold futures hit new all-time highs near $1,200 an ounce. Concerns are cooling fast on last week's Dubai World news, which fueled big gains overseas. Positive economic data here in the U.S. is adding to the bullish tone...

Intraday Market Update
01:42:59 PM EDT | 11/30/2009
Cyber Monday Blues
By James Brown | The stock market's early bounce is fading but thus far the selling pressure has been mild. Investors are still nervous about the risk of Dubai defaulting on its debt but most tend to think the larger, richer nations in the U.A.E. will help bail out the struggling emirate. A bigger concern right now is a potential disappointment in consumer spending over the Black Friday weekend...

Intraday Market Update
01:02:05 PM EDT | 11/27/2009
Stocks Gap Down on Dubai News
By James Brown | The markets plunged lower Friday morning as investors reacted to news that Dubai World has asked debtors to wait six months on debt payments while the company restructures. The major indices gapped open lower with the Dow Industrials off more than 200 points but stocks have been bouncing off their lows the entire day. Unfortunately this is a low-volume post-holiday session and the U.S. markets are set to close early within the hour. Monday will be the real test when fund managers return to work. Do they buy this dip or sell the breakdown?

Intraday Market Update
01:53:10 PM EDT | 11/25/2009
Stocks Drift Higher on Positive Data
By James Brown | Stocks were bouncing higher around the globe on Wednesday. The small parade of economic data out this morning was generally positive. Stronger than expected consumer spending, consumer sentiment, new home sales, and a drop in initial jobless claims all contributed to the bullish tone on Wall Street. A new relative low in the dollar is boosting commodities. Gold futures have hit a new all-time high near $1,190 an ounce...

Intraday Market Update
01:54:48 PM EDT | 11/24/2009
Stocks Slip on GDP Revision
By James Brown | Profit taking on Tuesday was a worldwide event. News that the U.S. GDP revision was worse than expected undermined the markets. The Conference Board's reading on consumer confidence came in slightly above expectations. Lack of follow through on yesterday's stock market rally certainly didn't inspire any investor confidence. Meanwhile a bounce in the U.S. dollar is pulling commodities lower...

Intraday Market Update
01:19:30 PM EDT | 11/23/2009
Stocks Surge on Dollar Weakness and Housing Strength
By James Brown | The recent trend of strong Monday rallies continues. Today's stampede higher is fueled by another decline in the dollar and some unexpected strength in existing home sales. The dollar weakness is fueling some strong gains in commodities. Gold futures hit a new all-time high at $1,174.00 an ounce this morning...

Intraday Market Update
01:46:25 PM EDT | 11/20/2009
Dollar Strength Continues to Weigh On Stocks
By James Brown | Global markets were once again dripping in red ink. The dollar's strength pushed commodity-related stocks lower even though oil is only down about 0.5% and gold has managed to post a small gain today. Disappointing earnings reports from Dell and homebuilder D.R. Horton also weighed on sentiment. Plus, sobering comments from ECB President Trichet helped push stocks lower...

Intraday Market Update
02:09:07 PM EDT | 11/19/2009
Stocks Accelerate Lower as the Dollar Bounces
By James Brown | Global markets pulled back sharply on Thursday. Commodity names suffered the most thanks to a bounce in the U.S. dollar. Crude oil was off more than 2.4%, which pushed the energy sector to similar declines. Gold is managing to ignore any dollar strength today but the mining stocks are lower. Semiconductor stocks were some of the worst performers...

Intraday Market Update
02:10:05 PM EDT | 11/18/2009
Housing Starts Tumble, CPI Inches Higher
By James Brown | Stocks are slowly drifting lower as investors digest mixed economic data this morning. The CPI came in a little bit higher than expected while new housing starts and building permits plunged in October. A decline in the U.S. dollar is fueling a little strength in some of the commodities but commodity-related stocks are not seeing any follow through higher. Crude oil is relatively flat around $79 a barrel. Gold futures hit a new all-time high at $1,151 an ounce this morning but have since pared their gains.

Intraday Market Update
02:10:52 PM EDT | 11/17/2009
Market Rally Pauses on Dollar Bounce
By James Brown | Global markets were in party mode yesterday but the rally has paused thanks to a bounce in the U.S. dollar. Commodity and resource-related stocks were the worst performers even though commodity futures aren't moving that much. Oil is up less than 0.5% around $79.30 a barrel. Gold futures are off less than $2.00 at $1,137.40 an ounce

Intraday Market Update
02:59:34 PM EDT | 11/16/2009
Stocks Advance Across the Globe, S&P 500 above 1,100
By James Brown | Stocks are in breakout mode with a worldwide rally on Monday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 are hitting new 2009 highs on improving retail sales numbers and a falling dollar. Investors ignored comments from Ben Bernanke this morning about the need for a stronger dollar. The currency continues to slide lower and that's fueling a rally in commodities...

Intraday Market Update
01:52:55 PM EDT | 11/13/2009
Stocks Bounce But Remain Under Resistance
By James Brown | The U.S. stock market continues to rise with major indices nearing recent resistance. Investors are ignoring worse than expected trade deficit numbers and consumer sentiment data. Instead bulls are celebrating better than expected earnings news. Meanwhile a drop in the U.S. dollar is boosting commodities...

Intraday Market Update
02:12:49 PM EDT | 11/12/2009
Rally Looks Tired As S&P 500 Battles the 1100 Level
By James Brown | Stocks were generally flat to down on Thursday as investors sift through a flood of news. Last night's merger news between Hewlett-Packard and 3Coms sparked some enthusiasm for technology. Wal-Mart reported earnings this morning. The bond market held a $16 billion auction of 30-year notes. Weekly jobless numbers came in at 502,000 compared to an upwardly revised 514,000 the week before. The U.S. dollar is bouncing again...

Intraday Market Update
02:21:23 PM EDT | 11/11/2009
S&P 500 Hits New Intraday Highs
By James Brown | The S&P 500 index spiked to a new 2009 high over the 1,100 level but the market was unable to hold its highs. Overall stocks are enjoying another widespread rally. Comments from a few Federal Reserve officials about keeping interest rates low helped push the U.S. dollar to a new 15-month low.

Intraday Market Update
01:59:01 PM EDT | 11/10/2009
Bulls Pause to Catch Their Breath
By James Brown | The rally in stocks stalled after the S&P 500 index managed a six-day streak of gains. The index almost hit resistance at the 1,100 level this morning. Overall profit taking has been rather mild. It seems that buyers have stopped to catch their breath and not so much a rise in selling pressure. A minor bounce in the U.S. dollar off 15-month lows is fueling a little bit of a pull back in commodities.

Intraday Market Update
02:17:02 PM EDT | 11/09/2009
Stocks Scream Higher on Dollar's Plunge
By James Brown | Monday was a relatively slow news day but that didn't stop the bulls from running the table. Markets were higher around the world as investors reacted to positive comments from the G20 on Saturday. The Group of 20's finance ministers said they would keep their stimulus programs active and keep interest rates low until the recovery was firmly in place....

Intraday Market Update
02:27:01 PM EDT | 11/06/2009
Unemployment Hits 10.2%, Gold Hits $1,100 an Ounce.
By James Brown | The stock market stumbled around this morning as investors digested the October non-farm payrolls jobs report. The official unemployment rate rose to 10.2%, which is the highest level since 1983. The government also said that inventory levels continue to fall. President Obama signed a new $24 billion stimulus bill that extends the new homebuyer tax credit and extends unemployment benefits again. Commodities were mixed...

Intraday Market Update
01:28:22 PM EDT | 11/05/2009
Post-FOMC Selloff Reverses
By Keene Little | Traders had some second thoughts about yesterday's post-FOMC selloff and apparently thought better of it all, resulting in a nice rally today. Wednesday's highs have been exceeded although as of noon we've got a little bit of a mixed picture.

Intraday Market Update
01:58:11 PM EDT | 11/04/2009
Stocks Gain on Worldwide Rebound
By James Brown | Markets across the world were bouncing higher on Wednesday. Economic data released today was better but not quite as good as expected. Investors are waiting for the Federal Reserve's decision on interest rates due out around 2:15 p.m. this afternoon.

Intraday Market Update
02:33:58 PM EDT | 11/03/2009
Buffett Buys BNI, Factory Orders Inch Higher
By James Brown | The stock market churns sideways as traders remain indecisive. Positive economic data combined with merger and acquisition news was not enough to shake off a Morgan Stanley's downgrade of the semiconductor sector and a generally sour mood for the financials...

Intraday Market Update
01:15:45 PM EDT | 11/02/2009
Manufacturing ISM Stronger But Early Market Gains Are Fading
By James Brown | The stock market rallied on stronger economic data this morning. Positive readings in the ISM manufacturing index, pending home sales and construction spending all helped alleviate some fears that the economic recovery may be unsustainable. Unfortunately the positive mood is fading as stocks erase early gains...

Intraday Market Update
02:29:44 PM EDT | 10/30/2009
Markets Spooked by Consumer Sentiment & Spending
By James Brown | The stock market's GDP-inspired rally met with a ghoulish demise. Traders were scared by negative economic data centered on the consumer. October is the yearend for many funds that could be trying to lock in gains after two strong quarters. The U.S. dollar has reversed again and today's rally in the currency is putting pressure on commodities...

Intraday Market Update
03:02:23 PM EDT | 10/29/2009
GDP Jumps, U.S. Recession (Unofficially) Over
By James Brown | The preliminary look at third-quarter U.S. GDP came in better than expected. The news sent the dollar and bond market lower while fueling gains for stocks and commodities. Crude oil is up 3.5% and back above $80.00 a barrel. Gold futures have risen $17 to $1,047.50 an ounce. The stock market was short-term oversold and this news has produced a very widespread bounce...

Intraday Market Update
00:22:01 PM EDT | 10/28/2009
Down Day for Stocks Across the Globe
By James Brown | A worse than expected report on new home sales fueled fears that the economic recovery may not be as robust as investors have hoped. Stock markets around the world were sinking. Major indices in the U.S. like the S&P 500 and the NASDAQ composite were flirting with a breakdown under technical support at their 50-day moving average...

Intraday Market Update
02:39:12 PM EDT | 10/27/2009
Consumer Confidence Crumbles, Home Values Inch Higher
By James Brown | Stocks lost their footing again as investors sold the morning bounce. Traders were digesting some mixed economic news. Consumer confidence suffered while home values appear to be improving. The DJIA is out performing its peers thanks in part to IBM, who raised their stock buy back program. Meanwhile the U.S. dollar is rebounding for the third day in a row...

Intraday Market Update
01:57:00 PM EDT | 10/26/2009
Dollar's Rise Fuels Market Weakness
By James Brown | The stock market is producing some excitement in spite it being a relatively quiet news day. The early morning rally has reversed into negative territory and many are blaming in on a rise in the U.S. dollar. The dollar's rise has certainly sparked some profit taking in the commodity sector. Meanwhile concerns over Bank of America is dragging financials lower...

Intraday Market Update
02:48:14 PM EDT | 10/23/2009
End of Week Profit Taking. Better Earnings Are Not Enough.
By James Brown | A big jump in home sales and much better than expected earnings from Amazon.com, Broadcom, and Microsoft were not enough to push the market higher. Negative comments out of the railroad sector rekindled worries about the pace of the economic recovery. Meanwhile Britain's GDP shocked economists when it failed to turn positive in the third quarter.

Intraday Market Update
02:42:38 PM EDT | 10/22/2009
Still Buying The Dip
By James Brown | Traders are still buying the dip with the fiscal yearend for many funds quickly approaching on October 30th. There was some follow through this morning from Wednesday's sharp, afternoon sell-off but the markets are bouncing off their lows of the day. The major U.S. averages are back in positive territory thanks to another round of positive earnings announcements...

Intraday Market Update
02:42:38 PM EDT | 10/22/2009
Still Buying The Dip
By James Brown | Traders are still buying the dip with the fiscal yearend for many funds quickly approaching on October 30th. There was some follow through this morning from Wednesday's sharp, afternoon sell-off but the markets are bouncing off their lows of the day. The major U.S. averages are back in positive territory thanks to another round of positive earnings announcements...

Intraday Market Update
02:09:11 PM EDT | 10/21/2009
A Parade of Positive Earnings Fuels New Intraday Highs
By James Brown | Stocks are back in rally mode after a wave of positive earnings news from the technology and banking sectors. A bearish reversal in the U.S. dollar has pushed the currency to new lows for the year. This dollar weakness is fueling big gains for oil and that's translating into bigger gains for energy stocks...

Intraday Market Update
02:38:29 PM EDT | 10/20/2009
Housing Permits Fall, PPI Declines, Stocks Stall.
By James Brown | Housing permit data disappoints the street renewing concerns that the lagging real estate market will weigh on the economy. Inflation is still hiding as the PPI data falls more than expected...

Intraday Market Update
03:01:40 PM EDT | 10/19/2009
S&P 500 Tags the 1,100 mark, Stocks in Breakout Mode
By James Brown | Investors are feeling fearless on the 22nd anniversary of the "Black Monday" stock market crash of October 1987. Positive earnings results have continued to set a bullish tone and markets are in breakout mode across the globe...

Intraday Market Update
01:46:02 PM EDT | 10/16/2009
BAC & GE Spark Sell-off, Yet Markets Are Paring Losses
By James Brown | The stock market has finally hit some profit taking after an almost non-stop two-week rally. Disappointing earnings results from Bank of America (BAC) and General Electric (GE) overshadowed positive reports from Google (GOOG) and IBM last night. Worse than expected consumer sentiment data also throws some cold water on the rally...

Intraday Market Update
02:19:52 PM EDT | 10/15/2009
Citigroup & Goldman Sachs Beat Estimates, Traders Sell the News
By James Brown | The stock market is suffering a mild hangover after yesterday's rally. Yet it looks like the bulls might be able to shrug it off and actually push stocks back into positive territory before the closing bell. Economic data out this morning was positive but investor focus remains on earnings results. After JPM's stellar report yesterday the results from Citigroup and Goldman Sachs didn't quite match up and traders sold the news...

Intraday Market Update
02:03:27 PM EDT | 10/14/2009
Intel and JP Morgan Power the Market Higher
By Keene Little | The market got a big start to the day thanks to INTC's earnings report last night and JP Morgan's pre-market earnings report. Both were deemed very good and that's all the shorts needed to abandon ship, which they did with abandon.

Intraday Market Update
02:17:39 PM EDT | 10/13/2009
Rally Stalls Under Resistance As Investors Await Earnings
By James Brown | Investors were disappointed with the earnings report from Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) this morning but the market has recovered from its lows of the session. Some M&A news in the tech sector has buoyed the NASDAQ. The banks are struggling a bit after a high-profile downgrade. Gold futures are hitting new all-time highs as the dollar hits new 14-month lows...

Intraday Market Update
02:38:07 PM EDT | 10/12/2009
Stocks Higher As Investors Look Ahead to Earnings
By James Brown | The stock market continues to climb in what is shaping up to be a quiet Monday session. The bond market is closed for Columbus Day and trading volumes are light for the stock market. The bulls don't seem to care. The S&P 500 is testing its 2009 highs near 1,080. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is hitting new 52-week highs above the 9,900 level...

Intraday Market Update
01:52:13 PM EDT | 10/09/2009
Stocks Rally for Fifth Day
By James Brown | The stock market is poised to end the week on a positive note but momentum is starting to fade a little. Investors were cautious after some comments from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke made last night. A bounce in the dollar has sparked some profit taking in commodities, which have been market leaders most of the week...

Intraday Market Update
02:30:13 PM EDT | 10/08/2009
Alcoa, Retail Sales, & Jobless Numbers Fuel the Rally
By James Brown | The stock market continues to rally producing one of its best weekly gains in months. Better than expected earnings from Dow-component Alcoa (AA) last night helped set the positive tone. Retail sales came in better than expected. The initial jobless claims improved. The U.S. dollar is slipping lower again, which is keeping the rally alive in commodities...

Intraday Market Update
01:10:27 PM EDT | 10/07/2009
A Quiet Session as Investors Look to Earnings
By James Brown | Wednesday's session has been a relatively quiet news day. Stocks saw some profit taking after the two-day bounce but even now traders are buying the dip and stocks are recovering from their lows. The tone of the market seems to be one of waiting for earnings season. Dow-component Alcoa (AA) is due to kick off earnings season tonight after the closing bell...

Intraday Market Update
11:39:24 AM EDT | 10/06/2009
Dollar Dives Sending Stocks Higher
By James Brown | The market's widespread bounce from Monday continues. At the moment there is not one sector index in negative territory. The lead story is the drop in the U.S. dollar and news that secret meetings were held to stop trading oil in dollars. This is fueling a big rally in commodities. Gold futures have soared to new all-time highs...

Intraday Market Update
01:55:33 PM EDT | 10/05/2009
ISM Services Index Improves, Stocks Rebound
By James Brown | Stocks are poised to end a four-day decline with an oversold bounce from two-week lows on Monday. Better than expected ISM Services data and an upgrade for the big banks from Goldman Sachs helped fuel the rise. A drop in the dollar is fueling a widespread rally for commodities...

Intraday Market Update
01:58:43 PM EDT | 10/02/2009
Minus 263,000 Jobs, Yet Stocks Rebound Off Their Lows
By James Brown | Worse than expected results in the non-farm payrolls report capped a week of disappointing economic data. Factory orders reversed back into negative territory. In spite of the negative news stocks are off their worst levels of the session as traders buy the pull back...

Intraday Market Update
01:52:24 PM EDT | 10/01/2009
Data Disappoints Again, Fourth Quarter Opens Down
By James Brown | Stock markets were in widespread decline around the world offering a sour start to the fourth quarter. Disappointing economic data continues to dominate the headlines with the ISM data overshadowing improvements in consumer spending and pending home sales....

Intraday Market Update
01:45:17 PM EDT | 09/30/2009
Chicago PMI Disappoints Yet Stocks Recover
By James Brown | Stocks produced a bumpy ride to close out the third quarter of 2009. Investors reacted to a parade of economic data. A positive revision for the final Q2 GDP numbers was overshadowed by an unexpected decline in the Chicago PMI and the ADP employment report. Commodities are bouncing as the dollar's bounce rolls over. The S&P 500 index is on track to end the third quarter with a 15% gain...

Intraday Market Update
01:58:54 PM EDT | 09/29/2009
Consumer Confidence Slips But Stocks Recover
By James Brown | A disappointing consumer confidence number sent stocks tumbling lower but the markets are recovering. The Case-Shiller home values data came in better than expected. Commodities are mixed as the U.S. dollar continues to bounce. Overall the trend is still up as we near the end of September and money managers finish some last minute window dressing...

Intraday Market Update
02:14:44 PM EDT | 09/28/2009
M&A News Fuels Widespread Rebound
By James Brown | Stocks surged with a widespread bounce on Monday thanks to a rash of merger and acquisition news. A few high-profile upgrades were contributing to the bullish tone. The market strength could also be part of some last minute end of quarter window dressing by fund managers...

Intraday Market Update
02:29:45 PM EDT | 09/25/2009
Durable Goods, New Homes Sales & Iran
By James Brown | Disappointing durable goods orders and lackluster new home sales figures added further fuel to the market's sell-off. News that Iran has been building a secret nuclear fuel plant only fanned the flames for traders to take profits ahead of the weekend. Last night's negative earnings report from Research In Motion (RIMM) produced a 17% plunge in the stock, which weighed heavily on the tech sector and investor sentiment...

Intraday Market Update
02:17:04 PM EDT | 09/24/2009
Existing Home Sales Stumble, Stocks Sink
By James Brown | Stocks slide for the second day in a row. The media is pointing fingers at a lousy read on existing home sales data but it could just be an excuse to take profits in an overbought market. Weekly jobless claims improved. The G20 economic summit began in Pittsburgh today. Meanwhile the U.S. dollar is bouncing...

Intraday Market Update
02:20:39 PM EDT | 09/23/2009
Fed Keeps Rates Unchanged, Stocks Edge Higher
By James Brown | Stock market bulls were pressing their advantage as the investors wait for the FOMC decision due out around 2:15 p.m. this afternoon. Elsewhere the Treasury department held a record-setting $40 billion auction for five-year notes. The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) reported that applications were up...

Intraday Market Update
02:21:22 PM EDT | 09/22/2009
Stocks Drift Higher
By James Brown | The market is trading higher again in what has turned out to be a generally widespread rally. Most of the major indices are nearing their recent September highs but the NASDAQ has managed to hit new highs for the year. Overall it's been another quiet news day. Investors are looking toward the end of the two-day FOMC meeting tomorrow and the beginning of the G20 economic summit on Thursday...

Intraday Market Update
02:14:59 PM EDT | 09/21/2009
A Mild Monday As Stocks Slowly Slip
By James Brown | Stocks are mostly lower this Monday but investors were quick to buy this dip. The major indices have pared their losses and the NASDAQ is back in positive territory. Bullish economic data and DELL's M&A news helped set a more positive tone...

Intraday Market Update
02:17:20 PM EDT | 09/18/2009
A Quiet Quadruple-Witching Friday
By James Brown | Friday has turned out to be another quiet news day. Traders are focused on option expiration. The major stock indices are posting gains but a few sectors are seeing some profit taking. Financials, oil, airlines, and mining stocks are some of the worst performers today but losses have been relatively mild...

Intraday Market Update
02:34:24 PM EDT | 09/17/2009
Stocks Slip Despite Positive Economic Data
By James Brown | The market is seeing a mild pull back sparked by profit taking on earnings reports from Oracle (ORCL) and FedEx (FDX). The parade of positive economic data continues with the Philly Fed manufacturing index, housing starts, and jobless claims...

Intraday Market Update
02:25:32 PM EDT | 09/16/2009
Markets Extend Their Gains, Dollar Falls, Commodities Rally
By James Brown | Another round of positive economic data out this morning helped fuel a widespread global rally. Enthusiasm for an end to the worst recession since the 1930s was led by the banking stocks. Another drop in the U.S. dollar pushed commodity and oil-related stocks higher. Crude oil is up over $1.00 and approaching $72 a barrel. Gold futures were up more than $13 and nearing $1,020 an ounce...

Intraday Market Update
02:50:24 PM EDT | 09/15/2009
Recession Technically Over
By James Brown | According to Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke the worst recession since the 1930s is technically over. The comment came from the Q&A session after Bernanke spoke at the Brookings Institute. Bernanke went on to say that while the U.S. economy would probably show growth this quarter it won't feel like the recession is over because unemployment will remain high and will probably...

Intraday Market Update
02:24:19 PM EDT | 09/14/2009
Stocks Rebound From Morning Lows, Obama Speaks to Wall Street
By James Brown | Monday is turning out to be a rather lackluster session. Traders are still buying the dips and the major averages have erased most of their morning losses. Making headlines today is Obama's speech to Wall Street and a brewing trade disagreement between the U.S. and China over tires. Meanwhile the U.S. dollar is bouncing from one-year lows, which is putting pressure on commodities...

Intraday Market Update
01:58:44 PM EDT | 09/11/2009
Consumer Confidence Improves Yet Bulls Out of Breath
By James Brown | The bulls appear to be out of breath after a five-day winning streak but stocks are starting to rebound off the intraday lows. Buyers might still be able to lift markets to six in a row. There was plenty of positive news today. U.S. consumer confidence came in better than expected. China released positive economic data. FedEx (FDX) raised their earnings guidance...

Intraday Market Update
01:53:45 PM EDT | 09/10/2009
Stocks March Toward New 2009 Highs
By James Brown | The stock market continues to tread higher with the S&P 500 inching closer to potential resistance at its August highs. Currently the S&P 500 is poised to mark its fifth gain in a row, a feat not seen since November 2008. A little improvement in the weekly jobless claims and some positive comments from Proctor & Gamble (PG) helped set the mood this morning. The Treasury Department is poised to auction another $12 billion in 30-year notes this afternoon

Intraday Market Update
01:12:49 PM EDT | 09/09/2009
Stocks Up, Nearing Their August Highs
By James Brown | The path of least resistance is up. Stocks were climbing even as investors remained somewhat cautious waiting for the Federal Reserve's Beige book report due out this afternoon. Investors were also looking for any news out of the OPEC meeting and the AAPL event today...

Intraday Market Update
02:15:11 PM EDT | 09/08/2009
Stocks Trim Early Gains
By James Brown | The stock market's morning strength is fading lower into the afternoon. Overall global markets were up. More M&A news is fueling some investor confidence. The market digested another 3-year auction by the Treasury Department with a strong bid-to-cover ratio. Commodities have been stronger thanks to a weaker dollar...

Intraday Market Update
02:19:47 PM EDT | 09/04/2009
Job Losses Decline But Unemployment at 9.7%
By James Brown | The big event today was the Labor Department's non-farm payrolls report. Outside of the jobs number it is turning into a quiet summer Friday as people head out early for the long holiday weekend. World markets were mostly higher. The U.S. market is seeing a widespread bounce.

Intraday Market Update
02:19:47 PM EDT | 09/04/2009
Job Losses Decline But Unemployment at 9.7%
By James Brown | The big event today was the Labor Department's non-farm payrolls report. Outside of the jobs number it is turning into a quiet summer Friday as people head out early for the long holiday weekend. World markets were mostly higher. The U.S. market is seeing a widespread bounce.

Intraday Market Update
01:40:41 PM EDT | 09/03/2009
Stocks Slide Sideways Ahead of Jobs Report
By James Brown | The U.S. stock market is seeing a small bounce after a four-day losing streak. Trading remained subdued with stocks churning in a relatively tight range as investors wait for Friday morning's non-farm payroll (jobs) report. This morning the ISM services data was slightly better than expected. The market is also digesting the release of the FOMC minutes, the weekly initial jobless claims...

Intraday Market Update
01:45:08 PM EDT | 09/02/2009
Markets Flirt With Unchanged, ADP Slightly Under Expectations.
By James Brown | The U.S. stock market is flirting with unchanged following yesterday's sell-off. The private-sector ADP report on employment came in worse than expected. While the productivity numbers were higher than estimated. Both reports suggest the jobs number on Friday might be worse than the markets hope for...

Intraday Market Update
01:28:39 PM EDT | 09/01/2009
Profit Taking Accelerates!
By James Brown | The market sell-off is accelerating. Stocks are down for the third day in a row. The S&P 500 index is testing round-number support at the 1,000 mark. Pending home sales and the ISM data came in better than expected but it appears the news was already baked in or we're just seeing a "sell the news" reaction as nervous investors peer into September.

Intraday Market Update
01:37:49 PM EDT | 08/31/2009
China's New Bear Market + Merger Monday
By James Brown | Global markets stumbled through the last day of August. The Chinese market actually took a nosedive falling almost 7%. Normally bullish merger and acquisition activity here in the U.S. was not enough to shake off the worldwide profit taking. Positive economic data out of the Chicago area was overlooked in favor of...

Intraday Market Update
01:39:59 PM EDT | 08/28/2009
DELL & Intel Soar, Consumer Confidence Ho-hum
By James Brown | Stocks are down as we approach the end of August. A better than expected earnings report from Dell (DELL) and a positive surprise from Intel (INTC) were not enough to shake off a mediocre consumer confidence number. Meanwhile consumer spending was in line with estimates. The Dow Industrials are on track to end an eight-day winning streak...

Intraday Market Update
01:37:58 PM EDT | 08/27/2009
Stocks Bounce Back From Morning Losses
By James Brown | U.S. stocks are clawing their way back from an early morning swoon and the major indices are close to unchanged levels. Investors were digesting a second look at U.S. second-quarter GDP and the weekly jobless numbers. Volume continues to be light as we wrap up the last few dog days of summer. The bond market had their eyes on the $28 billion Treasury auction of 7-year notes...

Intraday Market Update
01:38:47 PM EDT | 08/26/2009
Stronger New Homes Sales and Durable Goods, Yet Stocks Slip
By James Brown | Wednesday delivered another round of positive economic news and yet the bulls aren't buying it. Is the rally finally running out of gas? Stronger than expected new home sales and rising durable goods orders should have helped push stocks higher. Several market pundits are very surprised that stocks aren't a lot stronger today and find...

Intraday Market Update
02:30:58 PM EDT | 08/25/2009
Better than Expected Consumer Confidence!
By James Brown | The stock market's gains are fading after a rocky session in spite of generally bullish economic data this morning. The S&P 500 managed to hit a new relative high at 1,037 but traders appear to be taking profits. A few market pundits feel that stocks should have performed better today given the big improvement in the consumer confidence numbers and...

Intraday Market Update
00:23:42 PM EDT | 08/24/2009
Another Up Day for Global Markets
By James Brown | The stock market has begun the last full week of August on a positive note. Economic data continues to improve giving traders no reason so sell yet. Major indices in the U.S. and Europe are trading at ten-month highs. Rising expectations for the economic recovery are driving...

Intraday Market Update
02:39:42 PM EDT | 08/21/2009
Bernanke Talks Growth, Home Sales Surge
By James Brown | The U.S. market is hitting new ten-month highs thanks to positive comments from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke. A much better than expected existing home sales report certainly didn't hurt either. The U.S. dollar continues to sink and this time commodities are surging with oil rising toward $74.00 a barrel.

Intraday Market Update
02:24:07 PM EDT | 08/20/2009
Strong Philly Fed and Bounce in China Fuel Market Gains
By James Brown | The bounce in stocks continues. The S&P 500 is back above the 1,000 level and the Dow Industrials are back above the 9,300 mark as investors ignore bad news and only focus on positive news. The economic data today was mixed. The big report was the Philly Fed economic report, which was better than expected...

Intraday Market Update
02:16:04 PM EDT | 08/19/2009
Ignoring China, Traders Buy The Dip as Oil Surges
By James Brown | Traders continue to buy the dip in the U.S. markets. Stocks opened lower this morning but 10 minutes later bulls were back and pushing stocks higher. There are still worries about the sharp drop in the Chinese Shanghai market and the drop in oil inventories this morning also caught investors off guard.

Intraday Market Update
02:25:39 PM EDT | 08/18/2009
Better Than Expected Earnings
By James Brown | Markets delivered a bounce on Tuesday following Monday's sharp decline. The rebound was worldwide. Investors digested a parade of better than expected retail sector earnings and a couple of economic reports on wholesale prices and the pace of construction.

Intraday Market Update
01:50:18 PM EDT | 08/17/2009
Too Far Too Fast
By James Brown | Stock markets around the world are seeing investors take profits. The weakness began in Asia with many market watchers blaming the worse than expected U.S. consumer sentiment data from Friday as the catalyst for selling in Chinese stocks. Throw in some disappointing earnings data...

Intraday Market Update
02:07:35 PM EDT | 08/14/2009
S&P 500 Back Under 1,000 As Consumer Sentiment Sinks
By James Brown | The stock market appears to be correcting a bit on worse than expected consumer sentiment numbers. Investors were also digesting the latest CPI data and industrial production report. The profit taking started overseas this morning. The U.S. dollar is bouncing, which is putting a little pressure on the commodity space. The worst performers today appear to be technology, cyclicals and oil services.

Intraday Market Update
02:11:01 PM EDT | 08/13/2009
The Rally Stalls on Disappointing Data & Rising Foreclosures
By James Brown | Stocks are up but the rally isn't seeing much progress. Investors have a lot to digest today with a 30-year bond auction, a key earnings report, weekly jobless claims, record foreclosures, and more economic data. This morning traders were focused on Wal-Mart's earnings and the official retail sales numbers for July.

Intraday Market Update
01:42:32 PM EDT | 08/12/2009
Bulls Charging Toward The Fed Decision
By James Brown | In an unusual move the stock market is up sharply ahead of an FOMC decision on interest rates. Normally stocks tend to trade sideways as investors await the Federal Reserve's decision and commentary on the economy. It's widely expected that Ben Bernanke and crew will leave rates unchanged so the focus will be on their outlook for the economy. What's really impressive is...

Intraday Market Update
02:28:13 PM EDT | 08/11/2009
Lackluster Economic Data Hurries Market Decline
By James Brown | The stock market correction is starting to pick up a little speed. All of the major market averages are lower thanks to some disappointing economic data and a rash of analyst downgrades. Crude oil is also rolling over in spite of a drop in the U.S. dollar after OPEC lowered their demand forecast for oil by 1.6 million barrels per day.

Intraday Market Update
02:16:51 PM EDT | 08/10/2009
Stocks Suffer a Mild Monday Morning Hangover
By James Brown | It's shaping up to be a relatively quiet day on Wall Street. Stocks are seeing a little profit taking after Friday's gains. There doesn't appear to be any new catalyst to drive stocks higher so investors may be content to wait for the end of the two-day FOMC meeting on Wednesday.

Intraday Market Update
02:11:27 PM EDT | 08/07/2009
Jobs Number Better Than Expected, Stocks Soar
By James Brown | The S&P 500 is soaring to new highs for the year with a 2% rally following the better than expected jobs number. The index has now risen 50% off its March lows. The market is seeing a widespread rally with commodities the only laggards thanks to a super strong bounce in the dollar. The Dow Transportation index is hitting highs for the year and the small cap Russell 2000 index is...

Intraday Market Update
02:23:13 PM EDT | 08/06/2009
Nervous Ahead of the Jobs Number
By James Brown | Stocks are drifting lower on Thursday as investors digest lackluster retail sales data and sour comments out of England and the Euro-zone's central banks. Investors are nervous ahead of tomorrow's non-farm payrolls report where economists expect the U.S. economy to have lost 320,000 jobs in July. Weakness in the euro and the pound is giving the dollar a bounce and that's weighing on commodities.

Intraday Market Update
02:12:31 PM EDT | 08/05/2009
Disappointing Economic Data Sparks A Little Profit Taking
By James Brown | The worldwide rally in stocks has finally stalled at least for the moment. There was plenty of economic news to digest with the factory orders, ISM services index, and the ADP employment report. Thus far the sell-off in equities is pretty mild. The U.S. dollar continues to slide but its weakness isn't helping commodities today, which have been caught in the market-wide profit taking.

Intraday Market Update
02:31:53 PM EDT | 08/04/2009
Rally Running Out of Breath
By James Brown | The markets are struggling to hold their gains as we move into the last couple of hours. Stocks initially struggled this morning only to claw back into positive territory. There is still a lot of money chasing performance even though stocks are overbought. Some of the best performers today are the financials, the gambling stocks, the airlines and even the homebuilders are showing some strength thanks to the pending home sales data.

Intraday Market Update
00:41:04 PM EDT | 08/03/2009
S&P 500 Flirts With 1,000 as ISM Data Improves
By James Brown | July's stock market rally has carried over into the first trading day of August. Investors were happy to see some improvement in the ISM data this morning. A strong performance by stocks overseas helped set the tone. The S&P 500 managed to briefly trade over the 1,000 mark for the first time since November 2008.

Intraday Market Update
02:02:01 PM EDT | 07/31/2009
Best July In Years!
By James Brown | Second-quarter U.S. GDP came in better than expected and it set the stage for stocks to finish the month at its highs. July 2009 is going to close with big wins for the bulls. The S&P 500 index is on pace for its best July since 1997. The Dow Industrials were up more than 8% for the month before the opening bell making it the best July since 1989. The NASDAQ composite is up over 8% for the month...

Intraday Market Update
02:25:22 PM EDT | 07/30/2009
Stocks Rally Worldwide Ahead of U.S. GDP
By James Brown | Investors are enjoying another global stock market rally. A bounce in Asia carried over into Europe and some better than expected jobless data helped fuel the rally in the U.S. A rising appetite for riskier assets pushed the U.S. dollar lower and that's powering big gains in the commodities. Meanwhile the earnings parade continues and some better than expected numbers only added fuel to the fire.

Intraday Market Update
00:52:57 PM EDT | 07/29/2009
Dollar Rallies, Oil Plunges, and MSFT Seals YHOO Deal
By James Brown | Exhaustion is finally starting to weigh on the market's July rally. Investors are absorbing the June durable goods order, a surprising oil inventory report, big news on a Microsoft/Yahoo! alliance, and a steady stream of earnings reports. Most sector indices are trading lower with banks, defense, biotech and healthcare the only bright spots still in positive territory today.

Intraday Market Update
02:40:36 PM EDT | 07/28/2009
Sliding Consumer Confidence Trumps A Bump in Home Prices
By James Brown | Stocks are churning sideways but they appear to be bouncing off their lows of the session. Investors were unhappy with the drop in consumer confidence, which overshadowed a dead-cat bounce in the Case-Shiller index of home prices. The market remains short-term overbought but...

Intraday Market Update
01:43:08 PM EDT | 07/27/2009
Stocks Stall In Spite of Rising New Home Sales
By James Brown | The rally in stocks has stalled. The major averages are churning sideways and we're seeing similar sideways movement in crude oil and the U.S. dollar. Short-term the market is overbought but this morning's lackluster earnings data was not enough to spark any serious profit taking.

Intraday Market Update
01:13:12 PM EDT | 07/24/2009
Profit Taking Ahead of the Weekend
By James Brown | Stocks are holding up reasonably well. The U.S. markets had risen more than 10% in the last two weeks on better than expected earnings data and guidance. A couple of high profile earnings disappointments from AMZN and MSFT last night sparked a sharp turn lower after hours. Yet the sell-off today has been almost mild and stocks are off their worst levels of the session.

Intraday Market Update
02:49:10 PM EDT | 07/23/2009
Global Markets Rally, NASDAQ Aims for 12
By James Brown | The stock market is extending its gains with the S&P 500 breaking out past resistance and hitting new highs for the year. The NASDAQ is soaring toward the 2,000 level and set to mark its 12th gain in a row. Better than expected existing home sales and another round of positive earnings news overshadowed a bearish move in weekly jobless claims and an earnings warning from UPS.

Intraday Market Update
01:39:55 PM EDT | 07/22/2009
Stocks Stretch Gains But Momentum Wanes
By James Brown | Better than expected earnings reports are powering the market's rally and the NASDAQ is poised to mark its 11th gain in a row. Yet the stock market's gains are relatively minor. Energy stocks are under performing while technology continues to steal the spotlight. Meanwhile Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke...

Intraday Market Update
03:12:15 PM EDT | 07/21/2009
Beating The Bottom Line
By James Brown | The second quarter earnings season is hitting high gear today with results pouring in fast and furious. The trend appears to be corporate earnings are beating analysts' lowered estimates but they're beating on the bottom line due to cost cutting. Revenues are generally missing estimates. Meanwhile on capital hill Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke is speaking before the House Financial Services committee in a two-day semiannual report on the economy.

Intraday Market Update
01:18:21 PM EDT | 07/20/2009
NASDAQ Shoots for 9 in a Row
By James Brown | Stocks continue to rally on strong earnings results, analyst upgrades, and improving economic indicators. The S&P 500 is up five out of the last six sessions and the index is now testing major resistance near the 950 level. The tech-heavy NASDAQ is up nine days in a row and currently trading above potential round-number resistance at the 1900 level.

Intraday Market Update
01:30:08 PM EDT | 07/17/2009
Earnings Bonanza
By James Brown | It was all about earnings on Friday. The stock market's rally has stalled a bit as investors digest another big plate of corporate earnings news from the technology and financial sectors. Markets seemed to ignore the two hotel bombings in Indonesia last night.

Intraday Market Update
01:16:05 PM EDT | 07/16/2009
Stocks Stall As Bulls Take a Break
By James Brown | The bulls appear out of breath after yesterday's sprint higher. Stocks are languishing sideways as investors sift through very strong JPM earnings news in contrast to a meltdown in shares of CIT. In economic news the jobless numbers appear to be improving but the Philly Fed survey was disappointing.

Intraday Market Update
01:38:37 PM EDT | 07/15/2009
Intel's Earnings Lead Market Higher
By James Brown | Better than expected earnings results from tech titan Intel (INTC) has fueled an extremely widespread rally across the globe. Economic reports like the CPI, NY Empire state index, and industrial production all took a back seat to corporate earnings.

Intraday Market Update
02:10:38 PM EDT | 07/14/2009
Goldman Delivers but Stocks Stall
By James Brown | The U.S. markets are not seeing much follow through on Monday's big gain. Investors are sifting through June's retail sales data, the PPI report, lackluster comments from Dell, and a massive earnings report from Goldman Sachs.

Intraday Market Update
02:16:06 PM EDT | 07/13/2009
Whitney Gives Banks A Boost
By James Brown | The first full week of the second quarter earnings season is off to a strong start. Positive comments from influential Wall Street analyst Meredith Whitney launched a rally in financials.

Intraday Market Update
02:13:46 PM EDT | 07/10/2009
Consumer Sentiment Sinks, Stocks Follow
By James Brown | The major U.S. stock market indices were lower on Friday morning thanks to disappointing consumer sentiment numbers. The energy sector continues to under perform as oil resumes its decline. Investors are apprehensive about second quarter earnings, which really hit full force next week.

Intraday Market Update
02:22:44 PM EDT | 07/09/2009
Same-Store Sales Sink, Oil Oozes Lower (Again)
By James Brown | Stocks are trying to bounce after a multi-day sell-off but investors are having a hard time digesting lackluster same-store sales data and another disappointing weekly jobless claims report.

Intraday Market Update
02:39:50 PM EDT | 07/08/2009
Breaking Support: Oil and Financials Lead Stocks Lower
By James Brown | The market correction continues. Stocks are lower across the board and across the globe. Today's decline in the S&P 500 is a technical breakdown from its head-and-shoulders formation. Recent comments and forecasts for a slower economic recovery might be considered a reality check for the market.

Intraday Market Update
01:36:05 PM EDT | 07/07/2009
Investors Nervous Ahead of Earnings
By James Brown | Stocks around the globe were sinking lower as investors nervously wait for the second quarter earnings season to begin. Dow-component Alcoa (AA) is due to kick off earnings tomorrow night. Energy stocks continued to under perform as crude oil sinks to new relative lows.

Intraday Market Update
02:26:15 PM EDT | 07/06/2009
ISM Services Improve but Oil's Decline Weighs on the Market
By James Brown | U.S. markets continued last Thursday's slide but the major indices are bouncing from their worst levels of the session. Without any catalyst to drive stocks higher and second quarter earnings looming just days away money seems to be sitting on the sidelines.

Intraday Market Update
02:30:04 PM EDT | 07/02/2009
Jobs Number Misses, Stocks Tank Ahead of the Holiday
By James Brown | The official non-farm payrolls (jobs) report for June was released this morning. We've been warning readers in the markets wraps that if the number misses expectations stocks will sell-off.

Intraday Market Update
02:34:04 PM EDT | 07/01/2009
Bulls Kick Off the Third Quarter
By James Brown | Stocks marched higher into the third quarter on a parade of slowly improving economic data. Improving PMI data out of China and Europe and an improving ISM here in the U.S. contributed to market gains. The ADP employment report was slightly better than expected.

Intraday Market Update
02:29:45 PM EDT | 06/30/2009
Best Quarterly Gain Since 1998
By James Brown | Stocks are set to end the quarter on a sour note thanks to an unexpected decline in consumer confidence. In spite of today's weakness most global markets have produced one of their best quarterly gains in years. Investors are trying to digest a plate full of economic data...

Intraday Market Update
02:03:41 PM EDT | 06/29/2009
Oil Rallies. Madoff Gets the Max!
By James Brown | The end of quarter window dressing continues as the first half of 2009 draws to a close tomorrow. Financials and oil are areas of strength. Investor sentiment may have gotten a boost from the Bernie Madoff sentencing news.

Intraday Market Update
02:04:59 PM EDT | 06/26/2009
Window Dressing Stalls on Savings Rate
By James Brown | Stocks are struggling to build on their midweek bounce thanks to a soaring consumer savings rate. Consumer sentiment came in better than expected. Banks and energy stocks were some of the worst performers.

Intraday Market Update
00:20:09 PM EDT | 06/25/2009
Widespread Rally In Progress
By James Brown | U.S. stocks are bouncing with a widespread rally underway. Retail, healthcare and transportation stocks are leading the market higher. An improvement in the latest GDP reading is bullish and investors ignored a slight up tick in unemployment.

Intraday Market Update
11:32:52 AM EDT | 06/24/2009
Durable Goods Data Surprises. Stocks Bounce.
By James Brown | Better than expected economic data gave stocks a boost on Wednesday. Investors looked past a drop in new home sales and applauded a rise in durable goods. A slightly better global economic forecast from the OECD didn't hurt.

Intraday Market Update
01:42:52 PM EDT | 06/23/2009
Waiting For the Fed
By James Brown | Stocks were generally flat on Tuesday as investors wait for the FOMC decision on interest rates tomorrow. The lack of follow through on yesterday's painful sell-off is a positive for the markets but a lot of technical damage was done yesterday.

Intraday Market Update
01:10:06 PM EDT | 06/22/2009
World Bank Forecast Sparks Sell-Off
By James Brown | The market stumbled out of the starting block launching the new week with a loss. Heavy selling in Europe spread to the U.S. following negative comments from the World Bank.

Intraday Market Update
Friday, June 19, 2009 2:26:45 PM
Expiration Bounce
By James Brown | The tone on option expiration Friday was generally positive. Thus far it has been a relatively quiet day without any significant economic news. Technology stocks were stronger thanks to leadership in stocks like Apple (AAPL) and Microsoft (MSFT).

Intraday Market Update
02:23:13 PM EDT | 06/18/2009
Stocks Bounce Toward Options Expiration Friday
By James Brown | American stock markets are currently up and if we close positive will end a three-day losing streak. Traders are making last minute bets and adjustments ahead of tomorrow's quadruple-witching Friday where stock options, index options, index futures and single-stock futures all expire....

Intraday Market Update
01:57:14 PM EDT | 06/17/2009
Banks Downgraded but Stocks Rebound
By James Brown | The U.S. markets are bouncing from their late morning lows. Financial stocks remain weak as investors react to a downgrade of the banking sector and concerns over President Obama's new financial regulations....

Intraday Market Update
02:43:12 PM EDT | 06/16/2009
Stocks Slip Again as Buyers Step Back
By James Brown | Stocks were slowly fading lower as buyers continue their boycott from Monday. The markets are trying to absorb a lot of economic data both here in the U.S. and overseas...

Intraday Market Update
03:32:06 PM EDT | 06/15/2009
Worst Not Yet Over
By James Brown | Stocks were down across the board and across most of the globe on Monday. Investors were turning more defensive and taking profits after a wave of news and cautious comments by financial leaders and analysts...

Intraday Market Update
01:17:55 PM EDT | 06/12/2009
Stocks Slip Into Their Trading Range
By James Brown | After Thursday's temporary breakout higher stocks were slowly drifting lower toward the bottom of their recent trading range. Investors were taking profits in recent winners like technology and commodity-related stocks...

Intraday Market Update
01:42:52 PM EDT | 06/11/2009
Stocks Breaking Out To New 2009 Highs
By James Brown | Stocks were drifting toward the top of their recent trading range and hinting at a potential bullish breakout higher soon. Investors are digesting the weekly jobless claims, latest retail sales data, rising oil, and rising interest rates...

Intraday Market Update
03:02:06 PM EDT | 06/10/2009
U.S. Stocks Underperform on Bond Worries
By James Brown | The U.S. stock markets are under performing the rest of the world's major markets on Wednesday. Concerns over the 10-year bond auction and rising oil's impact on the economic rebound both played a part in today's weakness...

Intraday Market Update
01:36:48 PM EDT | 06/09/2009
Tech Takes The Lead
By James Brown | It is another quiet summer day on Wall Street. Stocks seem to be aimlessly drifting but the undercurrent is still positive...

Intraday Market Update
01:12:07 PM EDT | 06/08/2009
Stocks Stumble
By James Brown | Stocks stumble out of the gate this week. Investors are worried about rising interest rates and how that might affect the recovery and the housing market...

Intraday Market Update
12:37:04 PM EDT | 06/05/2009
Jobs Report Better Than Expected
By James Brown | The big story today is the U.S. non-farm payrolls report. The results were significantly better than expected. This is good news for the economy...

Intraday Market Update
01:36:45 PM EDT | 06/04/2009
Jobless Claims Tick Lower, Retailers Disappoint
By James Brown | Stocks are mostly positive on Thursday as the markets slowly drift higher. Investors are still trying to sift through a number of mixed signals. There was some minor improvement in...

Intraday Market Update
02:25:26 PM EDT | 06/03/2009
Sour Economic Data Sends Stocks Lower
By James Brown | Stocks snap a four-day winning streak as investors react to disappointing economic data. Even the commodity bulls took a step backwards as a strong dollar and a surprising build in oil inventories pushed oil prices lower...

Intraday Market Update
02:11:54 PM EDT | 06/02/2009
Markets Pause as Banks Fade Lower
By James Brown | The stock market struggled to build on yesterday's gains. After some technical heavy lifting and a number of bullish breakouts on Monday the bulls have taken a moment to pause and digest some news in the financial sector...

Intraday Market Update
02:57:48 PM EDT | 06/01/2009
200-dma Breakout!
By James Brown | The month of June is off to a very strong start. Stocks across the globe are in rally mode again. Signs of improvement in several manufacturing and purchasing indices from China, Europe and the U.S. are all contributing to the bullish tone on Wall Street...

Intraday Market Update
02:56:31 PM EDT | 05/29/2009
Oil & Commodities Mark Big Gains in May
By James Brown | Stock markets around the world are on track to close out the month of May on a positive note. Asian markets closed near six-month highs while Europe ended May with its third monthly gain in a row. The U.S. is poised to do the same...

Intraday Market Update
02:31:49 PM EDT | 05/28/2009
Bond Auctions, Jobless Claims, and New Home Sales, Oh My!
By James Brown | Stocks are bouncing in what has been a choppy session for Wall Street. Investors are trying to digest the lackluster new home sales figures, rising oil prices, a drop in new jobless claims, and worries over another bond auction...

Intraday Market Update
02:17:14 PM EDT | 05/27/2009
No Real Follow Through on Tuesday's Rally
By James Brown | Markets were relatively quiet on Wednesday. Stocks were generally drifting sideways with a slight upward tilt most of the morning. Investors were taking their time...

Intraday Market Update
02:17:02 PM EDT | 05/26/2009
Consumers Trump North Korean Missiles
By James Brown | Markets were sharply on Tuesday as we move into the last week of May. Stocks actually opened lower due to escalating rhetoric and missile tests by North Korea. Yet a much better than expected read on consumer confidence here in the states reversed...

Intraday Market Update
02:32:53 PM EDT | 05/22/2009
A Quiet Pre-Holiday Friday
By James Brown | Friday's early morning bounce in stocks is stalling and the markets are churning sideways as investors focus more on the long Memorial Day weekend. Gold, copper, oil and most commodities were higher as the U.S. dollar continues to fall.

Intraday Market Update
03:06:51 PM EDT | 05/21/2009
Negative Outlook on Britain Fuels Stock Sell-off
By James Brown | Stocks retreated around the world on Thursday as investors turned to profit taking after a multi-week rebound. Bears are getting braver and are back to calling the March-May rise just a bear-market rally....

Intraday Market Update
02:58:53 PM EDT | 05/20/2009
Staying Alive
By James Brown | Staying alive. I'm not talking about the 1983 movie directed by Sylvester Stallone and starring John Travolta. Nope. I'm talking about the market's ability to keep the rally alive...

Intraday Market Update
02:49:22 PM EDT | 05/19/2009
Optimism Fuels Stock Gains
By James Brown | Stocks continue to rally across the world with strong gains in Asia and Europe lending strength to a multi-week rally here in the states...

Intraday Market Update
01:59:24 PM EDT | 05/18/2009
Bulls Unwilling To Let Go
By James Brown | Stocks were up almost across the globe for major world indices. Election results in India made big news while better than expected earnings numbers and guidance from...

Intraday Market Update
02:53:17 PM EDT | 05/15/2009
Investor Caution
By James Brown | Traders are feeling cautious on Friday, hesitant to sell stocks should the rally continue but also reluctant to buy the dip ahead of the weekend...

Intraday Market Update
02:51:54 PM EDT | 05/14/2009
Banks Bounce Back
By James Brown | After a sharp three-day sell-off the banking sector was bouncing back and leading the rest of the market higher...

Intraday Market Update
01:57:20 PM EDT | 05/13/2009
Three Days In A Row
By James Brown | Stocks continue to sell-off with investors using a poor retail sales report from the government as an excuse to take money off the table...

Intraday Market Update
01:57:01 PM EDT | 05/12/2009
Stocks Slip for a Second Day
By James Brown | The S&P 500 fell again for the second day in a row. Investors are nervous as this index flirts with the 900 level. Since the March 2009 lows the S&P 500 has not seen a three-day decline...

Intraday Market Update
02:42:49 PM EDT | 05/11/2009
Markets Drift Lower
By James Brown | Global markets were mostly weaker on Monday. The profit taking began in Asia and spread around the globe as investors decided to take some money off the table following last Friday's surge higher...

Intraday Market Update
02:48:15 PM EDT | 05/08/2009
Global Rally on Bank Strength and Job News
By James Brown | Bulls were in control again on Friday as investors rejoiced that the stress test news was out and finally behind us. Clarity into the health of the banking system is overriding concerns that the top 19 U.S. banks will need to raise $75 billion in capital...

Intraday Market Update
01:43:51 PM EDT | 05/07/2009
Stocks Retreat Ahead of the Stress Test
By James Brown | U.S. markets were lower as generally better than expected retail sales and lower weekly jobless claims were not enough to offset a little profit taking. Investors appear to be taking some money off the table...

Intraday Market Update
03:12:18 PM EDT | 05/06/2009
Just Another $34 Billion
By James Brown | Everyone knew the information leaks on the stress test news was coming. The government is due to officially release the final numbers...

Intraday Market Update
03:05:34 PM EDT | 05/05/2009
Stocks Catch Their Breath
By James Brown | The U.S. markets traded lower on Tuesday as stocks catch their breath following Monday's sprint higher. Investors were a little more nervous about the stress test results...

Intraday Market Update
02:19:23 PM EDT | 05/04/2009
No Stress For the Markets
By James Brown | Several foreign markets decided to catch up to U.S. indices after being closed last Friday for the May 1st holiday. Today's rally began in China, spread across to Europe and is now sending U.S. markets to 2.4% gains.

Intraday Market Update
01:37:23 PM EDT | 04/30/2009
Bulls Mark April Another Big Winner
By James Brown | As we head into the afternoon stocks are fading from their intraday highs but a single down day won't erase the big gains seen in April.

Intraday Market Update
01:49:45 PM EDT | 04/29/2009
GDP Punges, Markets Rally
By James Brown | The preliminary report on the U.S. first quarter GDP shows the economy plunging to a -6.1% growth rate. This news failed to stymie the rally and stocks shot higher on the session.

Intraday Market Update
03:25:59 PM EDT | 04/28/2009
Market Resilience
By James Brown | U.S. markets continue to show resilience in the face of a weak bank sector and the continued spread of the swine flu outbreak. Overall stocks were mostly higher thanks in part to better than expected consumer confidence numbers.

Intraday Market Update
02:15:28 PM EDT | 04/27/2009
Swine Flu Outbreak Rattles the Market
By James Brown | An outbreak of alarming headlines over the weekend concerning the spread of swine flu out of Mexico fueled a mild pull back in stocks on Monday. Thus

Intraday Market Update
01:47:33 PM EDT | 04/24/2009
Shooting For Seven
By James Brown | The S&P 500 is up 1.9% and just two or three points away from marking the seventh weekly gain in a row for this rally. Investors were cheering positive earnings results from the likes of Amazon.com

Intraday Market Update
02:17:25 PM EDT | 04/23/2009
Markets Adrift
By James Brown | Thursday's markets meandered sideways as investors were faced with conflicting earnings results and concerns over the banks stress tests results.

Intraday Market Update
02:01:46 PM EDT | 04/22/2009
The Burden of Earnings
By James Brown | The U.S. markets were trying to extend Tuesday's bounce but the latest wave of earnings reports appears to be going sour. Wells Fargo was a standout to the upside...

Intraday Market Update
01:39:46 PM EDT | 04/21/2009
Buying the Dip
By James Brown | The markets experienced a bit of a tug-of-war in the first hour of trading but eventually the bulls pulled ahead. Financials were once again leading the market higher

Intraday Market Update
03:37:37 PM EDT | 04/20/2009
BAC Beats, ORCL Snags JAVA
By James Brown | Stocks were sharply lower on Monday in spite of positive earnings news from the likes of Bank of America (BAC) and M&A news in the tech sector

Intraday Market Update
02:37:08 PM EDT | 04/17/2009
Aiming For Six
By James Brown | The stock market is poised to finish the week higher extending the March rally to six weeks in a row. Friday's session saw widespread strength led by banks, builders and small caps.

Intraday Market Update
03:35:26 PM EDT | 04/16/2009
Positive Earnings Push Stocks Higher
By James Brown | First quarter earnings are off to a pretty good start. Investors have been responding positively to most of the earnings news. Financials have led the way with much better than expected results.

Intraday Market Update
02:41:41 PM EDT | 04/15/2009
Churning On Earnings and Data
By James Brown | Stocks are trading flat to down on Wednesday as investors digest another round of earnings news and a parade of economic data. Tech stocks were stumbling as investors sold the Intel earnings news last night.

Intraday Market Update
01:59:04 PM EDT | 04/14/2009
Traders Selling Goldman and Retail Sales News
By James Brown | After five up weeks in a row the rally was looking a little tired and investors have decided to cash in following Goldman Sachs' impressive earnings report last night.

Intraday Market Update
02:43:26 PM EDT | 04/13/2009
Investors Turn A Little Cautious
By James Brown | Traders were turning a little cautious on stocks as we move into our first full week of first quarter earnings.

Intraday Market Update
02:57:35 PM EDT | 04/09/2009
Fifth Week of Gains
By James Brown | An unexpected and surprisingly bullish earnings report from Wells Fargo (WFC) set stocks stampeding higher again. The better than expected news launched the financials...

Intraday Market Update
01:55:49 PM EDT | 04/08/2009
Stocks Shrug Off Alcoa News
By James Brown | The stock market managed to shrug off the disappointing Alcoa earnings news last night. The major averages are in positive territory and aside from the financials...

Intraday Market Update
01:06:22 PM EDT | 04/07/2009
Angst Before Earnings Season
By James Brown | Stocks turned lower ahead of 2009's first quarter earnings season, which kicks off tonight. Analysts are expecting this earnings season to be one of the worst on record...

Intraday Market Update
02:54:10 PM EDT | 04/06/2009
Bears Take a Swipe at Stocks
By James Brown | After four weeks of gains and close to a 25% rally in the S&P 500 the bears have finally had enough. There was a swell of negativity on the Wall Street today

Intraday Market Update
03:05:48 PM EDT | 04/03/2009
Jobs Number Could Have Been Worse
By James Brown | Bulls might be able to claim another victory before Friday closes the books on another up week in the markets.

Intraday Market Update
02:57:07 PM EDT | 04/02/2009
Big News Day Fuels Another Global Rally
By James Brown | Investors knew that Thursday would be a big news day thanks to the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) vote on changing mark-to-market rules.

Intraday Market Update
02:02:49 PM EDT | 04/01/2009
Markets Shrug Off Early Jobs Data
By James Brown | The official jobs report doesn't come out until Friday but the private-sector ADP employment report was very ugly.

Intraday Market Update
11:20:37 AM EDT | 04/01/2009
Market Monitor Update
By Keene H. Little | The Market Monitor updates can now be found in Live Updates under the Market Monitor section on OIN's home page.

Intraday Market Update
10:26:19 AM EDT | 04/01/2009
Market Monitor Update
By Jane Fox |

Intraday Market Update
09:22:40 AM EDT | 04/01/2009
Market Monitor Update
By Jane Fox |

Intraday Market Update
02:38:38 PM EDT | 03/31/2009
March Set to Close Higher
By James Brown | March 2009 is set to close on a high note. Stocks are bouncing across the board and most of the major averages have recovered more than half of yesterday's punishing losses.

Intraday Market Update
12:22:15 PM EDT | 03/31/2009
Market Monitor Update
By Jane Fox |

Intraday Market Update
11:11:31 AM EDT | 03/31/2009
11:15 AM Market Monitor Update
By Keene H. Little | The market is trying to hold its early gains.

Intraday Market Update
11:08:04 AM EDT | 03/31/2009
Market Monitor Update
By Jane Fox |

Intraday Market Update
09:15:46 AM EDT | 03/31/2009
Pre-Market Update for Market Monitor
By Keene H. Little | Equity futures are up but they might not hold.

Intraday Market Update
09:13:41 AM EDT | 03/31/2009
Market Monitor Update
By Jane Fox |

Intraday Market Update
03:45:47 PM EDT | 03/30/2009
End-of-Day Market Monitor Update
By Keene H. Little | Getting a small bounce into the close but follow the money.

Intraday Market Update
03:12:30 PM EDT | 03/30/2009
Global Market Sell-off
By James Brown | Investors are seeing a worldwide sell-off in stocks on Monday following one of the best, three-week rallies in years.

Intraday Market Update
02:33:53 PM EDT | 03/30/2009
2:30 PM Market Monitor Update
By Keene H. Little | The market is still nearing potential support but it looks like the decline should still continue a little further this afternoon.

Intraday Market Update
01:20:11 PM EDT | 03/30/2009
Market Monitor Update
By Jane Fox |

Intraday Market Update
12:29:50 PM EDT | 03/30/2009
12:30 PM Market Monitor Update
By Keene H. Little | The market is nearing potential support but it looks like the decline should continue a little further this afternoon.

Intraday Market Update
10:46:27 AM EDT | 03/30/2009
Market Monitor Update
By Jane Fox |

Intraday Market Update
10:04:36 AM EDT | 03/30/2009
10:00 AM Market Monitor Update--SPX 50-dma getting tested
By Keene H. Little | The big decline this morning has SPX testing its 50-dma and last Wednesday's low.

Intraday Market Update
09:20:46 AM EDT | 03/30/2009
Pre-Market Update for Market Monitor--The Sound of Retreat
By Keene H. Little | Bonds are rallying and equity futures are down very hard as we head for the opening bell.

Intraday Market Update
03:56:02 PM EDT | 03/27/2009
End-of-Day Market Monitor Update
By Keene H. Little | A day of consolidation before an anticipated rally on Monday.

Intraday Market Update
02:33:38 PM EDT | 03/27/2009
2:30 PM Market Monitor Update
By Keene H. Little | Just another choppy day.

Intraday Market Update
01:28:39 PM EDT | 03/27/2009
Profit Taking Into the Weekend
By James Brown | There is still three hours left in the trading day on Wall Street. At the moment investors are doing a little profit taking before the weekend arrives.

Intraday Market Update
01:09:23 PM EDT | 03/27/2009
1:00 PM Market Monitor Update
By Keene H. Little | Today's pullback is constructive for a continuation higher on Monday.

Intraday Market Update
12:53:36 PM EDT | 03/27/2009
Market Monitor Update
By Jane Fox |

Intraday Market Update
11:14:20 AM EDT | 03/27/2009
11:15 AM Market Monitor Update
By Keene H. Little | So far it's a consolidation kind of day.

Intraday Market Update
10:22:57 AM EDT | 03/27/2009
Market Monitor Update
By Jane Fox |

Intraday Market Update
09:45:46 AM EDT | 03/27/2009
Market Monitor Update
By Jane Fox |

Intraday Market Update
09:44:59 AM EDT | 03/27/2009
Morning Update for Market Monitor
By Keene H. Little | All Sectors Red

Intraday Market Update
03:50:09 PM EDT | 03/26/2009
End of Day Market Monitor Update
By Keene H. Little | The market is still being held up even if the rally's not pretty.

Intraday Market Update
03:06:10 PM EDT | 03/26/2009
Market Monitor Update
By Jane Fox |

Intraday Market Update
02:04:26 PM EDT | 03/26/2009
2:00 PM Market Monitor Update
By Keene H. Little | The market is struggling but the bulls are holding things up.

Intraday Market Update
01:56:06 PM EDT | 03/26/2009
A Three-Week Run is a Rare Feat
By James Brown | The U.S. market is poised to end the week with its third weekly gain in a row. This will be the third time since the bear-market began

Intraday Market Update
12:04:41 PM EDT | 03/26/2009
12:00PM Market Monitor Update
By Keene H. Little | Day of consolidation so far.

Intraday Market Update
09:50:10 AM EDT | 03/26/2009
10:00 AM Market Monitor Update
By Keene H. Little | SPX is still struggling with the 825 area.

Intraday Market Update
03:47:40 PM EDT | 03/25/2009
End-of-Day Market Monitor Update--Bulls Hold the Line
By Keene H. Little | After a little throw-under below its uptrend line from March 6th it looks like SPX is going to hold, at least for now.

Intraday Market Update
02:36:30 PM EDT | 03/25/2009
Data Lifts the Markets but the Rally Fades
By James Brown | The U.S. markets managed to cling to positive territory after the early morning gains faded away.

Intraday Market Update
02:35:46 PM EDT | 03/25/2009
2:30 Market Monitor Update--SPX at Support
By Keene H. Little | SPX has dropped down to its uptrend line from March 9th so the bulls need to do some pushing back this afternoon.

Intraday Market Update
01:40:02 PM EDT | 03/25/2009
1:30 PM Market Monitor Update
By Keene H. Little | NDX is the first to reach potential support at its uptrend line from March 9th, near 1226. Bulls want to see the techs hold on here.

Intraday Market Update
11:30:20 AM EDT | 03/25/2009
11:30 AM Market Monitor Update
By Keene H. Little | The stock market is in a bullish up-channel and pullbacks remain corrective. Stick with the bulls for now.

Intraday Market Update
09:19:24 AM EDT | 03/25/2009
Market Monitor Down
By Keene H. Little | The Market Monitor is down this morning so bear with us while it's fixed. Look for intraday blogs in it's place in the meantime.

Intraday Market Update
12:17:32 PM EDT | 03/24/2009
Stocks See a Mild Pullback
By James Brown | The U.S. markets dipped a little on Tuesday morning after Monday's big rally. It's normal to see some profit taking after such a big one-day move like the 500-point rally we saw yesterday.

Intraday Market Update
02:47:26 PM EDT | 03/23/2009
Episode IV, A New Hope
By James Brown | No, I'm not talking about the Star Wars film from 1977. I am referring to the U.S. Treasury's latest plan...

Intraday Market Update
02:16:18 PM EDT | 03/20/2009
Triple Witching Friday Sinks Into the Weekend
By James Brown | Today marks an event that only happens four times a year. It's a triple-witching Friday where equity options, index options, and futures all expire on the same day.

Intraday Market Update
01:56:31 PM EDT | 03/19/2009
Stocks Stall After Eight-day Run
By James Brown | The S&P 500 index is stalling after a very impressive eight-day rally that has lifted the index more than 18%.

Intraday Market Update
01:58:43 PM EDT | 03/18/2009
Stocks Pause Ahead of FOMC
By James Brown | Wednesday marks the conclusion of another two-day FOMC meeting but expectations are for the Federal Reserve to leave interest rates alone.

Intraday Market Update
02:57:45 PM EDT | 03/17/2009
Bulls Make Another Push
By James Brown | The U.S. markets showed surprising resilience on Tuesday with the major indices and most of the market in a widespread upswing. It looks like the only sector not in positive territory is...

Intraday Market Update
01:28:14 PM EDT | 03/16/2009
Bear-Market Bounce Continues!
By James Brown | The week is off to a strong start with the U.S. markets stair-stepping higher. The appearance of U.S. Treasury Secretary Geitner and President Obama on T.V. to talk about...

Intraday Market Update
03:26:03 PM EDT | 03/13/2009
3:30 PM Update--Bulls May Not Be Doing Themselves a Favor Here
By Keene H. Little | Bulls Need a Pullback to Stay Bullish

Intraday Market Update
03:05:46 PM EDT | 03/13/2009
Rally Stalls after a 10% bounce
By James Brown | The rally in stocks appears to be running out of steam or is it just a pause to let the bulls catch their breath? The U.S. markets spent most of Friday churning sideways...

Intraday Market Update
01:06:11 PM EDT | 03/13/2009
1:30 PM Update (in place of the Market Monitor)
By Keene H. Little | Bulls are still holding the uptrend line from last Friday and another push higher is possible. But at this point it's looking like this week's rally is about to be corrected.

Intraday Market Update
10:27:04 AM EDT | 03/13/2009
11:00 AM Update (in place of Market Monitor update)
By Keene H. Little | The bulls are trying to hold onto their 3-day gains but cracks are starting to appear.

Intraday Market Update
09:31:43 AM EDT | 03/13/2009
Market Monitor Down
By Keene H. Little | Market Monitor subscribers will be without the Market Monitor today as we wait for some technical difficulties to get resolved.

Intraday Market Update
12:43:49 PM EDT | 03/12/2009
Madoff Guilty Plea Sends Stocks Higher
By James Brown | There were two big stories on Wall Street today. Investors seemed to react positively to both the ongoing saga with con-man Bernie Madoff and the discussion over mark-to-market accounting rules.

Intraday Market Update
02:29:31 PM EDT | 03/11/2009
Follow through on the rally is faltering
By James Brown | Yesterday's market rally was impressive and the party continued this morning for about 30 minutes. Stocks shot higher at the open but quickly ran out of gas.

Intraday Market Update
01:37:59 PM EDT | 03/10/2009
NASDAQ up 6% and S&P surging 5.5%
By James Brown | The U.S. markets are seeing a very widespread rally with several factors as potential catalysts. A lot of traders, while happy to see some market strength, don't expect this rally to last since the sudden spike this morning looks like another round of short covering.

Intraday Market Update
02:21:25 PM EDT | 03/09/2009
Morning Bounce Fades Into Losses
By James Brown | Global markets were weak again as investors focused on a lack of solutions for the financial crisis and struggling banks.

Intraday Market Update
01:47:31 PM EST | 03/06/2009
Market Gains Evaporate After Jobs Report
By Jim Brown | The markets have now given back the brief gains achieved after the Non-Farm Payrolls report came in better than expected. The Dow has declined to the low of the day with a loss of -78 points to 6512 and the Nasdaq has traded briefly below 1275.

Intraday Market Update
02:38:19 PM EST | 03/05/2009
Markets Sink to New Lows
By James Brown | Wednesday's oversold bounce is gone. One again it is the financial sector that is leading the market lower. There was a lot of news out today with the monthly retail same-store numbers.

Intraday Market Update
01:46:16 PM EST | 03/04/2009
Global Oversold Bounce
By James Brown | China sparked an oversold bounce that spread across the world on Wednesday. News that Wen Jiabao, the Chinese Premier, was considering new plans to expand...

Intraday Market Update
02:26:36 PM EST | 03/03/2009
Blame It On Bernanke
By James Brown | The U.S. stock market was trying to bounce back from twelve-year lows this morning but negative comments from Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke sucked the wind out of the market's sails.

Intraday Market Update
02:39:51 PM EST | 03/02/2009
In like a Lion, March sends Dow under 6,900
By James Brown | The month of March begins with a global market slide. New fears over the crumbling economic landscape and no solution for the financial quagmire pushed most of the world's major stock market indices to 3.5% losses.

Intraday Market Update
02:39:47 PM EST | 02/27/2009
Teetering on the edge
By James Brown | The U.S. markets teeter on the edge of the cliff as investors react to a wave of bad news on Friday. The U.S. GDP numbers came in worse than expected and the S&P 500 sank to new multi-year lows before staggering back to almost breakeven on the day.

Intraday Market Update
01:00:59 PM EST | 02/26/2009
Another Big Bounce in the Banks
By James Brown | The banking indices were market leaders this morning but the major averages were struggling to keep up with the rebound in financial stocks. Overseas markets were mixed.

Intraday Market Update
02:33:42 PM EST | 02/25/2009
Stocks Churning Lower
By James Brown | The U.S. market opened lower this morning following what many investors felt was a disappointing speech by President Obama last night. The market has been craving details about the administration's plan to solve this financial crisis and last night did not deliver any.

Intraday Market Update
02:26:41 PM EST | 02/24/2009
Oversold Bounce Right On Schedule
By James Brown | U.S. markets bounce in spite of a widely negative day for stocks across global markets. News out last night that insurance giant AIG is poised to report the largest quarterly loss in U.S. history of $60 billion next week failed to truly weigh on American markets. The rest of the world was not so resilient.

Intraday Market Update
02:06:52 PM EST | 02/23/2009
Friday Afternoon Bounce is Dead
By James Brown | The U.S. market's Friday afternoon bounce is dead, long live the Friday afternoon bounce! Maybe the correct name should be Friday afternoon short covering. After a big down week last week successful shorts covered positions and took profits ahead of the weekend. Now that we're back to a new week the downtrend has resumed.

Intraday Market Update
02:47:11 PM EST | 02/20/2009
Banks Crumble Under Nationalization Fears
By James Brown | The U.S. stock market continues to sink as financial stocks lead the way lower. Fears that major banks might need to be nationalized fueled the sell-off. Earlier this morning the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) was on pace for its lowest close since October 1997.

Intraday Market Update
01:32:12 PM EST | 02/19/2009
Indecision in the Market
By James Brown | The U.S. stock market isn't sure what direction to go but the path of least resistance seems to be down. Currently the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) is flirting with a close under its November 2008 lows near 7,550.

Intraday Market Update
01:21:56 PM EST | 02/18/2009
Digesting the Housing Plan
By James Brown | This morning the country waited for President Obama to unveil his new housing plan and the government's attempt to stem the rising foreclosure rates. Unfortunately, while investors waited they did not stop selling stocks.

Intraday Market Update
01:59:45 PM EST | 02/17/2009
Global Markets Slide
By James Brown | U.S. markets re-open to big declines as global markets sink against a wide range of concerns. The major European markets were plunging on fears that Western European banks may have too much exposure to struggling Eastern European debt and credit.

Intraday Market Update
02:23:33 PM EST | 02/13/2009
No Follow Through On The Bounce
By James Brown | Last night the bulls were declaring victory after a very impressive and very sharp last hour rally in the U.S. market. Sadly there has been no follow through higher on the bounce today,

Intraday Market Update
02:19:11 PM EST | 02/12/2009
Wall Street Still Unhappy with Washington
By James Brown | The talk on Wall Street is still about Treasury Secretary Tim Geitner's lack of details in his speech on Tuesday. The market is worried about how the government is going to approach the pricing of toxic mortgage-related assets.

Intraday Market Update
02:14:26 PM EST | 02/11/2009
Oversold Bounce is Fading
By James Brown | Wednesday's session started out with some hope that Tuesday's drop was overdone and that stocks were short-term oversold. Investors were buying the dip this morning but it looks like enthusiasm for stocks is quickly fading.

Intraday Market Update
02:19:32 PM EST | 02/10/2009
Investors Respond with a Sell the News Reaction.
By James Brown | The U.S. markets are down sharply today as investors react to the government's latest plans on reversing this economic crisis and stimulating the economy. This seems like a classic "sell the news" type of move

Intraday Market Update
02:09:47 PM EST | 02/09/2009
World Waits For Stimulus
By James Brown | The U.S. markets churned sideways on both sides of zero as the world waits for news on the U.S. stimulus package. This past weekend brought news that a compromise had been reached on Friday night but by Sunday the Obama administration doubted it would have enough votes to pass the stimulus package.

Intraday Market Update
02:16:32 PM EST | 02/06/2009
Bulls Buy the Bad News
By James Brown | Stocks are sharply higher on Friday in spite of grisly numbers from the Labor Department's non-farm payroll (jobs) report. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 are both on track to end a four-week losing streak.

Intraday Market Update
01:03:35 PM EST | 02/05/2009
Bouncing Back from the Lows
By James Brown | Wednesday's afternoon decline continued into Thursday morning and the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 111 points to hit 7,845. This was a new ten-week low for the DJIA but the bears had little time to rejoice...

Intraday Market Update
01:51:02 PM EST | 02/04/2009
Stocks Sideways but for How Long?
By James Brown | The U.S. markets got a boost this morning after European markets surged higher late in the day. Unfortunately for American investors the rally seems to be losing steam.

Intraday Market Update
03:03:34 PM EST | 02/03/2009
Drug Stocks Lead a Rebound
By James Brown | The major stock market indices were positive on Tuesday with the Dow Jones Industrials and the S&P 500 index both ending a three-day losing streak.

Intraday Market Update
02:30:59 PM EST | 02/02/2009
February Opens With A Down Day
By James Brown | Widespread losses across European markets on Monday led the U.S. indices to spike lower at the open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average produced another triple-digit decline...

Intraday Market Update
03:09:59 PM EST | 01/30/2009
GDP Not So Bad, Stocks Sink Anyway
By James Brown | I think investors have reason to worry. It was widely expected that the GDP for the fourth quarter of 2008 would come in around minus 5%. As of yesterday this number was pretty much "baked in" to the market.

Intraday Market Update
02:32:33 PM EST | 01/29/2009
Economic Data Depresses
By James Brown | Stocks snap a four-day winning streak as investors react to some depressing economic data. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) is off about 220 points and back under the 8,200 level. Tech stocks are taking in on the chin...

Intraday Market Update
01:33:48 PM EST | 01/28/2009
Worldwide Bounce
By James Brown | Stocks are higher on Wednesday as a confluence of sentiment, news, and analyst opinion all flowed together to lift global markets. A big bounce in banking stocks is powering most of the move...

Intraday Market Update
03:06:11 PM EST | 01/27/2009
Upside Bias in the Churn
By James Brown | Stocks are still churning sideways but there appears to be an upside bias of higher lows. It is encouraging to see buyers coming out to play in spite of negative earnings news and a new record low in consumer confidence.

Intraday Market Update
02:42:46 PM EST | 01/26/2009
Morning Bounce is Dead
By James Brown | The market's morning bounce has died. The Dow Industrials managed to breakout above its short-term trend of lower highs and it looked like we were set up for a bullish day. Sadly the rally failed at the DJIA's simple 10-dma. The NASDAQ and S&P 500 produced similar moves.

Intraday Market Update
02:52:54 PM EST | 01/23/2009
Another Bounce from the Lows
By James Brown | Another day, another triple-digit move in the Dow Industrials. The market continues to see big intraday swings. The bulls are trying to defend stocks in the 7900-8000 zone.

Intraday Market Update
02:43:45 PM EST | 01/22/2009
A Seasick Microsoft Stinks Up the Market
By James Brown | It was all about tech stocks on Thursday. A surprise earnings report from Microsoft and a bad one at that left investors feeling sick. Once again the market reversed course and stocks where down sharply midday.

Intraday Market Update
02:10:06 PM EST | 01/21/2009
Trying To Bounce
By James Brown | Wednesday feels like a quiet day for the stock market. Stocks are trying to bounce after yesterday's painful sell-off. The media is focused on the congressional hearings for Treasury Secretary nominee Tim Geithner.

Intraday Market Update
02:47:53 PM EST | 01/20/2009
No Obama Bounce, Bank Stocks Sink
By James Brown | Tuesday marked Obama's inauguration as the nation's 44th President. His speech and the media's suggestion that America is feeling a new wave of optimism did little to lift shares on Wall Street.

Intraday Market Update
02:24:47 PM EST | 01/16/2009
No Follow-through
By James Brown | The market was up briefly this morning. The DJIA managed to gain more than a hundred points before plunging to minus 70. The NASDAQ and S&P 500 delivered similar performances.

Intraday Market Update
09:38:52 PM EST | 01/15/2009
Adding some added perspective
By Robert Ogilvie | There are many ways to look at the market. This is an addition to Keene Little's Market Wrap commentary.

Intraday Market Update
02:06:13 PM EST | 01/15/2009
Stocks Down 10% in Seven Days
By James Brown | The market continues to plunge lower. Thursday's decline marks the longest drop in the market since Lehman Brothers disintegrated back in October 2008.

Intraday Market Update
01:29:29 PM EST | 01/14/2009
Markets Break Support
By James Brown | Wednesday's session was a tough one for investors. Stocks jolted lower on another round of negative earnings results and a dismal December retail sales report.

Intraday Market Update
03:35:03 PM EST | 01/13/2009
Earnings News Push Stocks Lower
By James Brown | The first fruits for the Q4 earnings season are rotten. Negative earnings news from multiple sectors have pushed the major indices toward support. This is an important test for the DJIA and S&P 500. A breakdown from here could spell a retest of the 2008 lows.

Intraday Market Update
03:10:14 PM EST | 01/12/2009
Sinking Into Earnings
By James Brown | Stocks were struggling as we step into the second full week of January. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is marking its fourth decline in a row.

Intraday Market Update
03:57:05 PM EST | 01/08/2009
Nymex Feb'09 settles back below $42.36
By Jeff Bailey | Into the U.S. Oil Fund's (NYSE:USO) $33.02 -0.75% close, I wanted to quickly alert any oil traders ...

Intraday Market Update
03:26:56 PM EST | 01/08/2009
Afternoon Bounce
By James Brown | The DJIA and the S&P 500 may be down but they are off their worst levels of the day. Meanwhile the NASDAQ is leading the way higher with a 0.5% gain.

Intraday Market Update
11:36:38 PM EST | 01/07/2009
Crude Prices Drop $8 in One Day
By Jim Brown | It was a perfect storm for crude prices with a monster jump in inventory levels and news that even more tankers were being hunted to store crude until fall.

Intraday Market Update
02:16:48 PM EST | 01/07/2009
Stocks are trading at their lows
By James Brown | Stocks are trading at their lows for the day as investors react to dire employment news and souring earnings expectations...

Intraday Market Update
01:49:40 PM EST | 01/06/2009
Markets Trying to Advance
By James Brown | Stocks were sharply higher this morning. The Dow Jones Industrial Average managed to tag a new high but quickly reversed and actually fell into the red.

Intraday Market Update
03:12:33 PM EST | 01/05/2009
Stocks Down But Holding Last Week's Gains.
By James Brown | Monday proved to be a mixed bag for stocks. The major indices are all lower at the moment but they're off their lows of the session and appear to be churning sideways. You might consider this a show of relative strength...

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