There was lots of green yesterday on the screen with gains evenly distributed across industries except Energy (which took off) and Utilities finished slightly in the red.
S&P 500 Index | +0.85% | |
Communication Services XLC | +0.49% | |
Consumer Discretionary XLY | +0.65% | |
Consumer Staples XLP | +0.36% | |
Energy XLE | +3.74% | |
Financials XLF | +0.96% | |
Health Care XLV | +0.65% | |
Industrials XLI | +1.10% | |
Materials XLB | +1.06% | |
Real Estate XLRE | +0.38% | |
Technology XLK | +0.88% | |
Utilities XLU | -0.13% |
Market Breadth
Market breadth was better, although not extraordinary. And there were more new lows than highs on the NASDAQ Composite. Overall, the volume remains extraordinarily light. However, some would say that’s a positive development in this environment as would-be sellers hold.
Market Breadth | NYSE | NASDAQ |
Advancing | 2,292 | 2,807 |
Declining | 1,005 | 1,634 |
52 Week High | 74 | 98 |
52 Week Low | 48 | 111 |
Up Volume | 2.79B | 2.92B |
Down Volume | 1.23B | 1.51B |
Watching the Small-Caps
The Russell 2000 was the best performing large equity index, closing near the high of the session. It’s still range-bound, which means a breakout would be monumental.
Session Snapshot | High | Low | Close |
S&P 500 | 4486 | 4438 | 4480 |
NASDAQ | 15,174 | 14,984 | 15,161 |
Russell 2000 | 2236 | 2207 | 2234 |
Portfolio Approach
We added two names in Consumer Discretionary yesterday. This morning, we are adding one material name to our current buy list. Our cash is 5%.
Today’s Session
All major data releases coming in better than expected but initial jobless claims increased.
Retail Sales Drivers
Child Care Tax Credit = Headline
Chip Shortage = Electronics & Autos
Delta = Food at Home (groceries) vs Food Away from Home
August Monthly Sales Retail & Food Services | M/M | Y/Y |
Headline | +0.7 | +15.1 |
Motor Vehicle & Parts | -3.6 | +10.7 |
Furniture | +3.7 | +15.6 |
Electronics | -3.1 | +18.1 |
Building Materials | +0.9 | +6.3 |
Food & Beverage (at home) | +1.8 | +5.7 |
Health & Personal Care | +0.2 | +9.4 |
Gas Stations | +0.2 | +35.7 |
Clothing | +0.1 | +38.8 |
Sporting Goods | -2.7 | +19.8 |
General Merchandise | +3.5 | +15.5 |
Internet | +5.3 | +7.5 |
Food & Beverage (away from home) | +0.0 | +31.9 |
Lots of confusion out there, but overall, these were good developments. I think the biggest news is the strong Philly Fed number. We will have more detail later today.
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