Jobs Jobs Jobs

Markets were schizophrenic today, first jumping ahead, then backing up at closing. Tomorrow will bring the jobs report and will give Wall Street more information on the state of the economy. We already know that certain sectors, like auto and housing, have lost jobs. Other sectors appear to be taking up much of the slack. The pain of globalization is being felt on the front lines, as service jobs continue to overtake manufacturing. NASDAQ was the hardest hit today. Dow -30.84 NASDAQ -18.17 S&P 500 -5.61

Never Satisfied

Markets are never satisfied! Yesterday was a bell ringer day. Today, the employment report was quite rosy, and, suddenly, the good news turned questionable. With tightening labor markets, investors again became concerned about inflation. It's never about what happened today but about what COULD happen tomorrow. We seesaw back and forth between a slowing economy and an overheated one. It's the nature of stock investing. The losses reported today were minimal. Dow -24.75 NASDAQ -6.52 S&P 500 -1.86

Addicted to Coke

A report showing a higher-than-expected report for the services sector of the economy (almost 70%) gave investors a much needed boost. Trading was up and confidence grew. Leading the pack was Coca-Cola (my personal addiction), gaining 2.5%. Pfizer is still taking a beating after pulling its "good cholesterol" drug, but its competitor, Merck, jumped 1.5%. The Dow ended just shy of a new closing record, and that makes me feel warm on this very cold day. Others leading the pack are...Bono?!? Time Magazine has announced their "Persons of the Year." Among the top are U2's Bono and the Gates (Bill and Melinda - not Robert). DJIA: +47.75 Nasdaq: +3.99 S&P 500: +5.64

Bank Surge

Bank of New York announced a plan to merge with Mellon Financial in a deal that will create a financial giant with a market value near $50 billion. Several other financial stocks did very well today as a result of the announcement. Not only were Bank of New York and Mellon Financial up, but Citigroup, American Express, and J.P. Morgan Chase all gained more than 1%. Now that's a day to bank on! DJIA: +89.72 Nasdaq: +35.18 S&P 500: +12.41

Waiting Till the Last Minute

Traders were cautious today as reports showed the economy might slow, and trading was down. However, there was a very strong rally in the last hour, with the Dow pulling back up 100 points. My toy store, Home Depot, led the way. The home-improvement giant climbed 2.8% after a leaked report claimed a possible buyout. I'm keeping my ears to the ground on this one... Speaking of my ears, they almost froze today. After having beautiful September-like weather all week, today was a cold shock to my body. And I'm not the only one. Flights were canceled and traffic froze all through the midwest during this snowstorm. I'm just glad I have enough hot chocolate to last the weekend! DJIA: -27.80 Nasdaq: -18.56 S&P 500: -3.92