Stocks Showing A Lack Of Direction In Early Trading
Stocks are turning in another lackluster performance in early trading on Wednesday after showing a lack of direction throughout the previous session. The major averages are showing only modest moves, lingering near the unchanged line.
The major averages are currently turning in a mixed performance, with the Dow posting a slim gain. The Dow is up 6.47 points or 0.1 percent at 13,571.11, while the Nasdaq is down 3.53 points or 0.1 percent at 3,174.27 and the S&P 500 is down 0.81 points or 0.1 percent at 1,458.51.
The choppy trading on Wall Street comes as traders continue to express uncertainty about the near-term outlook for the markets following the upward move seen over the past few months.
With the Federal Reserve's announcement of further quantitative easing now in the rear-view mirror, traders seem unsure about what the next catalyst for the markets will be.
The markets have largely shrugged off news of additional stimulus from the Bank of Japan, with the move largely seen as symbolic.
While the Bank of Japan increased its asset purchase program by 10 trillion yen, the purchases are exclusively earmarked for 2013.
In a research note, Capital Economics said, "The Bank of Japan surprised markets today with a move that gave the impression of coordinated easing by the major global central banks, providing a welcome boost to confidence."
"However, we had already expected them to ease by this amount in October, so although the timing is slightly earlier than we (and most others) had anticipated, it is not a game changer," the firm added.
On the U.S. economic front, the Commerce Department released a report showing that housing starts rebounded in August but still came in below economist estimates.
The Commerce Department said housing starts rose 2.3 percent to an annual rate of 750,000 in August from the revised July estimate of 733,000. Economists had expected starts to climb to 768,000 from the 746,000 originally reported for the previous month.
Building permits, an indicator of future housing demand, fell 1.0 percent to an annual rate of 803,000 in August from 811,000 in July.
Most of the major sectors are showing only modest moves, although substantial weakness has emerged among railroad stocks. The Dow Jones Railroads Index has fallen by 2.3 percent, pulling back further off last Friday's record closing high.
On the other hand, airline stocks have moved sharply higher in early trading, driving the NYSE Arca Airline Index up by 1.8 percent. US Airways (LCC) and United Continental (UAL) are turning in two of the sector's best performances.
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved to the upside on Wednesday following the news from the Bank of Japan. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index and Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index both ended the day up by 1.2 percent.
Meanwhile, the major European markets have turned mixed on the day. While the German DAX Index is up by 0.2 percent, the French CAC 40 Index and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index are both just below the unchanged line.
In the bond market, treasuries have moved notably higher, extending the upward move seen over the two previous sessions. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is down by 4.7 basis points at 1.765 percent.
| FX Market Report |  | | CADUSD | Oil | Gold | Allbanc |  |  |  |  | | Please click on the images to view our interactive charts | | Following the release of U.S. existing homes sales data for August at 10:00 am ET Wednesday, the greenback changed little against the yen but was slightly down against the rest of major currencies.
The greenback is now trading at 0.9281 against the franc, 78.51 against the yen, 1.3041 against the euro and 1.6220 against the pound.
The pound continued slide against the U.S. dollar in the European session on Wednesday. The pound declined to a 5-day low of 1.6206 against the greenback, reversing from an early 2-day high of 1.6273. On the downside, the pound may target 1.615 level. The pound-greenback pair closed yesterday's deals at 1.6246.
The Swiss currency that erased early gains against the U.S. dollar was weakening in the European session on Wednesday.
The franc hit a 5-day low of 0.9301 per greenback, compared to Tuesday's close of 0.9287. If the franc declines further, it may target 0.935 level.
The Japanese yen extended early rally against the Swiss franc, U.S. and Canadian dollars in the American session on Wednesday.
The yen climbed to 2-day highs of 84.38 against the franc and 78.42 versus the greenback, bouncing back from previous session's multi-month low of 85.57 and multi-week low of 79.23, respectively.
The yen also advanced to a 5-day high of 80.40 against the loonie from late Asian session's multi-month low of 81.47. |
| European Market Report | | | | FTSE 100 | Euronext | Dax perf | CAC 40 |  |  |  |  | | Please click on the images to view our interactive charts | | European Markets Mixed
The European markets are mixed in afternoon trading Wednesday, after additional stimulus announcement from Japan, amid lingering worries about the debt crisis. The Asian markets ended in positive territory and the U.S. index futures are higher.
The Bank of Japan embarked on a powerful monetary easing by expanding the total size of the asset purchase program by about 10 trillion yen and extending the asset purchase deadline by six months.
The minutes of the Bank of England's policy meeting held on September 5 and 6 showed that policymakers unanimously decided to maintain quantitative easing at 375 billion pounds and the interest rate unchanged at 0.50 percent.
The Euro Stoxx 50 index of eurozone bluechip stocks is losing 0.16 percent, while the Stoxx Europe 50 index, which includes some major U.K. companies, is rising 0.13 percent.
The German DAX is losing 0.05 percent and the French CAC 40 is falling 0.14 percent. The UK's FTSE 100 is advancing 0.07 percent and Switzerland's SMI is gaining 0.17 percent.
In Frankfurt, Infineon Technologies is losing 2.1 percent. Insurer Allianz is falling 1 percent. Deutsche Bank is sliding 0.7 percent while Commerzbank is moderately higher. BMW and Daimler are in negative territory while Volkswagen is up 0.9 percent.
Porsche is gaining 5.5 percent after the firm won the dismissal of two investor suits in connection with the allegations that the company had lied about its failed Volkswagen takeover plan in 2008.
Truckmaker MAN is modestly higher. Basf, SAP and Deutsche Telekom are making modest advances.
In Paris, lenders Credit Agricole, Societe Generale and BNP Paribas are declining around 2.3 percent each. Insurer Axa is losing 1.5 percent. Bouygues is dropping 1.4 percent and peer Vinci is falling 0.6 percent. HSBC cut Bouygues to "Neutral" from "Overweight," while initiating Vinci with a "Neutral" rating.
EADS is moderately lower. Zodiac Aerospace is losing 2.7 percent.
Michelin raised its adjusted earnings guidance for 2015 to 2.9 billion euros from its previous target of 2.5 billion euros. The stock is gaining 0.2 percent. Vivendi is rising 1.5 percent. Carmaker Renault is advancing 1.1 percent and Peugeot is gaining 0.4 percent.
In London, miners Eurasian Natural Resources and Kazakhmys are notably higher. Lonmin is advancing 2.4 percent. The striking miners at its Marikana platinum mine in South Africa's North West province finally struck a deal with the management on wages after a 39-day violent strike. The protesting miners were demanding pay rises and recognition of a new union.
United Utilities is gaining 2.7 percent. Severn Trent is rising 1.4 percent. Smiths Group reported a decline in fiscal 2012 profit hurt by one-time costs. The British technology company's revenue, however, increased with growth across all divisions. The stock is up 1.2 percent.
HSBC is gaining 1.4 percent. Barclays is losing 1.7 percent and Royal Bank of Scotland is modestly lower. Spanish fashion retailer Inditex SA said profit in the first half of the year climbed 32 percent from last year, amid a 17 percent increase in sales, as the company opened more stores. The stock is up 2.2 percent.
Heineken is gaining 6.4 percent in Amsterdam after the Dutch brewer announced the support of ThaiBev in its offer for Fraser & Neave Ltd.'s stake in Asia Pacific Breweries Ltd.
Holcim is up 1.8 percent. JPMorgan raised its rating on the stock. |
| Asia Market Reports | Asian Markets Mostly Trade Higher Ahead Of BOJ Decision
Asian stock markets are mostly trading higher on Wednesday, ahead of the conclusion of the Bank of Japan's policy board meeting later in the day. However, gains are modest due to lack of fresh triggers and on mixed cues overnight from Wall Street.
The Japanese stock market is trading higher on expectations that the Bank of Japan will decide to adopt additional monetary easing measures at the end of its policy board meeting later in the day.
The BOJ will also announce its decision on interest rates. The bank is widely expected to keep rates on hold at the current level of 0.10 percent.
In late morning trades, the benchmark Nikkei 225 Index is adding 47.38 points or 0.52 percent to 9,171.15.
Utility stocks are trading higher after the Japanese government said earlier that it will allow Electric Power Development Co. and Chugoku Electric Power to go ahead with their nuclear power projects. Kansai Electric Power is gaining more than 4 percent and Chubu Electric Power is up more than 3 percent.
Among automakers, Toyota Motor (TM:Quote) is advancing 0.78 percent, Honda Motor is up 0.50 percent and Suzuki Motor is adding 0.61 percent.
Among exporters, Canon Inc. is down 0.92 percent, Sony Corp. is declining 0.78 percent and Sharp Corp. is losing almost 2 percent.
Japan Airlines is up more than 0.5 percent in its first day of trading after relisting, amid robust trading volume. This was higher than the IPO price of 3,790 yen.
Shares of Fast Retailing are gaining more than 2.6 percent, recovering from a nearly 7 percent decline in the previous session due to concerns about the impact of anti-Japan protests in China on the company's operations and earnings in that country.
In the currency market, the U.S. dollar was trading in the upper 78 yen range on Wednesday. In late morning trades, the dollar was quoted in a range of 78.55-78.64 yen, down 0.17 yen from Tuesday's close of 78.72-78.74 yen in Tokyo.
On the economic front, Japan will also see final results for July's leading and coincident indexes, with little change expected from the preliminary scores of 91.9 and 92.8, respectively. |
| USDCAD | USDEUR | USDGBP | USDJPY |  |  |  |  | | Please click on the images to view our interactive charts |
The Australian market is trading in negative territory, tracking the mixed cues overnight from Wall Street and on profit taking.
In early morning trades, the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is down 2.80 points or 0.06 percent to 4391.90, while the All Ordinaries Index is losing 1.60 points or 0.04 percent to 4,416.20.
Mining stocks are trading mixed, while banks and energy stocks are mostly trading lower.
In the mining space, BHP Billiton is unchanged and Rio Tinto is declining 0.24 percent. Newcrest Mining is advancing 0.69 percent.
Fortescue Metals said Tuesday that it has secured a $4.5 billion debt facility, thus staving off its debt problems for now. The company's shares are gaining 4 percent.
Shares of Western Desert Resources Ltd. are down 0.53 percent. A Chinese steel maker has offered A $435 million for the Northern Territory gold, iron ore and copper explorer.
Among banks, Commonwealth Bank is up 0.14 percent, Westpac Banking is down 0.29 percent and National Australia Bank is losing 0.20 percent.
ANZ Banking Group has sold its remaining shares in Visa Inc. for a gain of A $224 million as it moves to bolster its capital position. The bank also said it was conducting a review of the value of some of its assets, including software. ANZ stock is down 0.16 percent.
In the energy sector, Oil Search is trading lower by 0.52 percent, Origin Energy is down 0.26 percent and Santos is losing more than 1 percent.
Department store retailer David Jones reported a 40 percent decline in profit for the full year. Net profit for the year to July 28 was A $101.1 million, down from A $168.1 million in the prior year. Sales declined 5 percent from last year to A $1.87 billion. The company's shares are down more than 1 percent.
Alesco chairman Mark Luby has hinted that the company is still open for further talks with paint maker DuluxGroup Ltd. over its A $210 million takeover bid. Shares of Alesco are up 0.26 percent.
In the currency market, the Australian dollar is trading slightly higher against the U.S. dollar on Wednesday. In early trades, the local unit was trading at US$1.0457, compared to US$1.0456 on Tuesday.
Among the other markets in the Asian region that are open for trading, Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, New Zealand, Shanghai and Malaysia are trading in positive territory. Bucking the trend, South Korea and Indonesia are trading marginally lower. Markets in India are closed on account of Ganesh Chaturthi. |
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