13:30 ET Dow -221, Nasdaq -68, S&P -25.87: [BRIEFING.COM] Only two of the 30 Dow components are higher at this point in the session which serves as an indication of just how broadly the markets have sold off. Procter & Gamble (PG +0.47) and United Technologies (UTX +0.38) are the lone standouts on the blue chip index today. While technology sell pressure is exceptionally broad, the defensive posture of semiconductor issues can be singled out as a major contributor to broader market weakness. The SOX is lower by 7.4% on an intraday basis and currently trading towards the day's worst levels. The SOX is in danger of closing at its worst level in three months which has many traders questioning the near-term outlook for this sector. DJTA -2.2%... DJUA +0.5%... SOX -7.4%... XOI -0.5%... BTK -3.6%... Nasdaq 100 -3.8%... S&P Midcap 400 -1.7%... Russell 2000 -1.8%... NYSE Adv/Dec 912/2018... Nasdaq Adv/Dec 926/2484.
13:00 ET Dow -213, Nasdaq -63, S&P -25.36: [BRIEFING.COM] The Nasdaq has held support in the 2,000 area as the index has lifted modestly from its intraday low of 2,003. The tech-heavy index closed out last week at 2,160 which means the current level on the Nasdaq constitutes about a 6.5% loss for the week. For the Dow, the weekly loss based on its current level is a more manageable 2.1%. The question at this point is whether traders or investors have reason to buy going into the weekend. Corporate earnings reports will begin to replace warnings next week which could turn the news cycle favorably. Outside of that dynamic, many traders are likely to sit the afternoon out and see what Monday brings. Notably, the price of crude oil has edged higher throughout the week. Today, the front contract on crude is bidding up $0.55 or 2.1% which brings the price to $27.57 per barrel. DJTA -2.1%... DJUA +0.5%... SOX -6.8%... XOI -0.4%... BTK -2.8%... Nasdaq 100 -3.5%... S&P Midcap 400 -1.7%... Russell 2000 -1.9%... NYSE Adv/Dec 879 /2025... Nasdaq Adv/Dec 887/2492.
12:30 ET Dow -212, Nasdaq -65, S&P -24.62: [BRIEFING.COM] For all practical purposes earnings warnings season has come to a close today and it's definitely going out with a bang. In the current economic climate, it's generally understood that every day carries the potential for a big earnings warning. Yet wholesale reports of earnings warnings should be behind the markets for the current quarter. More recent negative pre-announcements have investors considering two issues: 1) how far and deep will recent economic weakness impact businesses outside of technology and 2) just when is this reacceleration in IT spending going to occur. It's worth noting that warnings season skews the news cycle negatively and reports from those companies which did not warn may turn the near-term tide for market sentiment. DJTA -2.3%... DJUA +0.3%... SOX -7.1%... XOI -0.3%... BTK -3.4%... Nasdaq 100 -3.8%... S&P Midcap 400 -1.9%... Russell 2000 -2.0%... NYSE Adv/Dec 825/2039... Nasdaq Adv/Dec 844/2476.
12:00 ET Dow -228, Nasdaq -73, S&P -27.12: [BRIEFING.COM] The equity markets look horrible today. The Dow is now sporting an intraday loss in excess of 200-points while the Nasdaq is now testing the 2,000 level. Market internals continue to demonstrate notable weakness with NYSE declining volume outpacing advancing volume by an 8 to 1 margin while Nasdaq declining volume leads advancing volume by roughly 19 to 1. Total volume traded is notably light but losses on light volume add up the same... The June Employment Report was released this morning and came in somewhat weaker than expected. Non-farm payrolls fell 114,000 for June versus consensus expectations for a 40,000 decline. Though the unemployment rate at 4.5%, was a tenth of a point stronger than consensus expectations it was also a tenth of a point weaker than the prior month reading. The numbers suggest potential deterioration of the consumer base which has been looked to for economic support given the dearth of capex spending. Another decline in the employment report's aggregate hours index suggests that second quarter GDP growth may have been negative... A couple earnings warnings in the tech sector are also serving to generate sell pressure in today's session. Specifically, chip maker Advanced Micro Devices (AMD -25.6%), said second quarter earnings are projected to be $0.03-$0.05 per share versus the consensus estimate of $0.27. The company cited an aggressive pricing environment in the PC market and weaker than expected flash memory demand. AMD has had one quarter of its market value lopped off today which is contributing to broader sell pressure on semiconductor issues -- the SOX is lower by 7.0% in intraday trading. Separately, data storage company EMC Corp. (EMC -26.1%) also warned that it sees second quarter earnings of $0.04-$0.06 per share versus a consensus estimate of $0.18 EPS. Revenues are expected to come in at $2.0 billion versus prior analyst estimates for approximately $2.46 billion. The storage sector is getting taken apart on this pre-announcement with BRCD, QLGC and EMLX each posting sizeable losses. In light of the broad-based sell pressure, gold-related equities are a notable source of defensive strength with the XAU (+0.02%) holding in positive ground. Oil-related stocks are also demonstrating relative strength as the XOI is only lower by 0.2% on the session. DJTA -2.0%... DJUA +0.2%... BTK -3.4%... Nasdaq 100 -4.2%... S&P Midcap 400 -1.8%... Russell 2000 -1.8%... NYSE Adv/Dec 811/1987... Nasdaq Adv/Dec 789/2438. |
