Earning reports and global data boost stocks
U.S. stocks climbed on Thursday, 24 October 2013 with equities picking up steam on signs of an improving global economy. Overall, today's session did not generate too much excitement even with investors receiving more than 200 earning reports. Outside of some choppy action during the first hour, equity indices climbed steadily throughout the session.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 95.88 points, or 0.6%, to 15,509.21. The S&P 500 index climbed 5.69 points, or 0.3%, to 1,752.07. The Nasdaq Composite added 21.89 points, or 0.6%, to 3,928.96.
Consumer discretionary led sector gains among the S&P 500's 10 major sectors, while utilities paced the declines.
Dow surged ahead following 3M's better-than-expected earnings. Among major stocks under focus, Ford Motor climbed 1.4% after the auto maker reported earnings that topped estimates. Symantec Corp.'s shares fell almost 13% after the security-software provider projected sales and profit beneath Wall Street's expectations.
Latest data showed that the preliminary HSBC China manufacturing PMI came in better than expected, hitting a seven-month high of 50.9 in October versus the final PMI reading of 50.2 in September. A reading above 50.0 suggests economic expansion. An overheating housing market in China and the rising short-term interest rates are sparking fears the Chinese central bank could tighten monetary policy, which in turn could reduce demand for raw commodities coming from China.
In the European Union, its manufacturing and services PMI report came in weaker than expected, at 51.5 in October versus 52.2 in September.
At Wall Street, today's economic data was limited to weekly initial claims and the August trade balance report. Problems related to glitches from a computer upgrade in California continued to plague the initial claims data and artificially boosted headline levels. The weekly initial claims level fell to 350,000 from an upwardly revised 362,000 (from 358,000). The consensus expected claims to fall to 341,000. The Department of Labor stated that there was no way to separate the claims from California that were biasing the data from those in the private sector that lost their jobs as a result of the government shutdown.
Separately, the trade deficit widened to $38.8 billion in August from a downwardly revised $38.6 billion reported in July.
The dollar index, which weighs the strength of the dollar against a basket of six other currencies, fell by 0.2% on Thursday.
Bullion metals ended higher on Thursday, 24 October 2013. Gold futures tacked on more than 1% on Thursday for their highest close in five weeks as a gauge of manufacturing in China, one of the world's biggest gold buyers, climbed to a seven-month high in October. A lower dollar index also pushed up prices.
Gold for December delivery gained $16.30, or 1.2%, to settle at $1,350.30 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. December silver rose 21 cents, or 0.9%, to $22.82 an ounce.
Crude oil futures settled higher on Thursday, 23 October 2013 as an improvement in Chinese manufacturing lifted prospects for energy demand, but rising supplies and strong production in the U.S. kept a cap on the price gains. Crude for December delivery added 25 cents, or 0.3%, to settle at $97.11 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
For every three stocks falling, more than four rose on the New York Stock Exchange, where 716 million shares traded. Composite volume approached 3.6 billion.
Tomorrow, September durable orders will be reported at 8:30 ET, the final reading of the Michigan Consumer Sentiment Survey will cross the wires at 9:55 ET, and August wholesale inventories will be announced at 10:00 ET.
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