Day Traders Diary

10/2/09

U.S. stocks open sharply lower, extending the prior session's steep decline, after the September jobs report indicated that job losses exceeded expectations and the rate of unemployment rose to 9.8%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 58 points to 9,452. The S&P 500 dipped 7 points to 1,022. The Nasdaq Composite declined 8 points to 2,048. Even with all the disappointing economic data, the analysts are still bullish. In the tech sector Google, Microsoft, and Apple were all upgraded. Only Microsoft is lower. The financials are lower once again. Credit Suisse lowered earnings numbers for Bank of America, Citigroup, JP Morgan, and PNC. Bank of America was also upgraded, but the stock is lower. Allstate, US Bancorp, Charles Schwab, Ameritrade, and BB&T were all upgraded. All opened lower, but had a nice turnaround. After the first hour the major averages had a nice turnaround, clawing their way back to the unchanged level. The techs are in the lead. In the retail sector, Pepsi is up 3% on an upgrade. Dreamworks is up 5% on an upgrade from Goldman Sachs. After the first hour, the averages sold off, then rebounded to the unchanged level. Through the morning and into the afternoon, the averages held firm near the unchanged level. Brazil won the bid for the 2016 Summer Olympics today which means more stadiums and buildings. Good news for Gerdau, the Brazilian steel company which is trading up 5%. In the last hour the averages moved back into the red. Not a good start to October. The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished down 21 points at 9,487, leaving the blue chip average with a loss of 1.8% for the week. The S&P 500 Index declined 4 points to 1,025, and a 1.8% slide for the week. The Nasdaq Composite closed at 2,048, off 9 points, leaving the technology-laden index off 2.1% from the week-ago close.

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