chart13Initially at the open, the markets were on a healthy rise and it looked to be a profitable day. But like any good thing, it had to come to an end and this time, it was all thanks to the comments made by the Fed. It was learned today that credit card defaults have hit an all time high at around 10.6 percent. This means that more people are unable to pay off those credit purchases and the banks are going to suffer is lost revenues. Now going back to the Fed, they were nice enough to take all the credit for the current turnaround. With interest rates staying at zero for the time being (which we all expected), Fed believes that this has helped the market to turnaround this year. I am not sure if this can be attributed to one specific reason, but more to a bunch of actions that took place on various levels that have helped consumers and investors keep afloat.

As I mentioned yesterday in the news to watch, Oracle (ORCL) was the tech leader with a gain of 7% on the markets. This was thanks to their better than expected results. Also, sector wise, the financial stocks were up more than any other sector. It was a good area to watch, especially with the Fed meeting.

Here is the complete market summary for Wednesday:

Looking at Thursday:
Economic Indicator:
8:30AM Initial Unemployment Claims
8:30AM GDP for Q1-final revision
8:30AM Corp Profits for Q1-final revision
11:00AM: Kansas City Fed Survey for June

Earnings wise, Palm is the only stock to watch. They will be reporting after the bell on Thursday. It will be an interesting one to watch as the stock has swung both down to virtual bankruptcy and back up to 52 wk highs in recent months. I would not play the stock, but for some that are into the tech sector, this could be a money maker.

News:
Nike orders disappoint, shares drop (NKE).

Bed Bath & Beyond posts surprise rise in profit (BBBY).

Seagate Boosts 4Q Rev Guidance,Sees 1Q Sales Above Street View.

Red Hat posts higher 1Q profit, sales.

For Thursday, I will just be watching the trickle effect from the (BBBY) surprise earnings. I am going to see if I can get into a position on Pier 1 Imports and play it for a gain. There is some upside potential in the stock and if only the housing sector goes up, more people would be buying these furnishings. Also, I think that Pier 1 has guidance that is much lower than what it will actually be. Its all my opinion.

Happy Investing!

Aman, MBA

Related posts:

  1. Markets Slip Thursday
  2. Markets End Wednesday in the Green
  3. Surprise Retail Numbers Tank Markets Wednesday