Dow gained 30, advancers ahead of decliners 3-2 & NAZ was up 14. The Financial Index was fractionally higher to 202, a 3 month high. The MLP index rose up a fraction in the 393s & the REIT index fell a fraction in the 262s. Junk bond funds inched higher & Treasuries reversed their recent decline. Oil & gold rose.
Photo: Bloomberg
The number of first-time claims for unemployment benefits rose slightly last week. 366K filed jobless claims, up 2K from the previous week, according to the Dept of Labor (a little better expected). The number has also been volatile lately, making it difficult to get a clear signal on the strength of the job market. The 4 week average was at its lowest level since Mar. Last month, the economy created 163K jobs, but the unemployment rate rose to 8.3%. 12.8M remain unemployed, & of those, 3.3M filed ongoing claims for unemployment benefits. While fairly good, the data does not suggest a decline in the unemployment rate.
Jobless Claims in U.S. Little Changed as Market Stable
Photo: Bloomberg
US. builders slowed their pace of housing construction slightly in Jul. But applications for building permits rose to their highest level since Aug 2008. The Commerce Dept said construction of single-family homes & apartments dipped 1.1% in Jul compared with Jun to an annual rate of 746K. In Jun, the pace had been the fastest since Oct 2008. The weakness in Jul came from a 6.5% drop in the building of single-family homes, which represent about 70% of the market, falling to an annual rate of 502K. Construction of apartments rose 12.4%t to an annual rate of 244M units. Even with the gains this year, the rate of construction & the level of permits remain only about half the 1.5M annual rate considered healthy. But in Jun, single-family housing starts, which account for more than 70% of residential construction, rose for the 4th straight month to a 2-year high.
Housing Starts in U.S. Fall as Permits Reach Four-Year High
Photo: Bloomberg
Cisco, a Dow stock, reported quarterly profit & sales that topped estimates as job cuts kept costs in check & price reductions attracted customers. EPS (excluding some costs) was 47¢ in the period ended Jul 28, just topping the estimate of 46¢. Revenue rose 4.4% to $11.7B, compared with a prediction of $11.6B. CSCO has cut almost 8K jobs, shut businesses, and reduced prices to win business & combat a slowdown in Europe, which makes up a 1/5 of sales. The company boosted its div 75% & forecast sales & profit that met expectations. The div was increased to 14¢ from 8¢. CFO Frank Calderoni said CSCO would return at least half of cash generated from operations via divis & share buybacks. “Our financial strength gives us the confidence to commit and execute against this strategy, in order to provide meaningful return to our shareholders,” he said. Including last month’s acquisition of NDS Group, which makes software that powers cable set-top boxes & delivers video, CSCO forecast profit of 45-47¢ in the current qtr, compared with the average estimate of 46¢. Sales should rise 4-6% from a year earlier, which translates to a range of $11.6-$11.9B. Analysts are predicting $11.7B. The stock rose 1.45 (8%).
Cisco Beats Estimates as Price Cuts Lure More Customers
This is another quiet Aug day for the markets. Europe remains on holiday, little news coming from there. Macro US economic data is so-so. After big gains in the first few days of Aug, Dow has been going sideways with only minimal fluctuations. More steady as shows goes performance can be expected.
AMJ (Alerian MLP Index tracking fund)
Treasury yields:
U.S. 3-month | 0.081% | |
U.S. 2-year | 0.281% | |
U.S. 10-year | 1.786% |
| CLU12.NYM | ...Crude Oil Sep 12 | ...94.61 | ... 0.28 (0.3%) |
| GCQ12.CMX | ...Gold Aug 12 | ....1,604.00 | ...... 0.30 | (0.0) |
Get the latest daily market update below:
The number of first-time claims for unemployment benefits rose slightly last week. 366K filed jobless claims, up 2K from the previous week, according to the Dept of Labor (a little better expected). The number has also been volatile lately, making it difficult to get a clear signal on the strength of the job market. The 4 week average was at its lowest level since Mar. Last month, the economy created 163K jobs, but the unemployment rate rose to 8.3%. 12.8M remain unemployed, & of those, 3.3M filed ongoing claims for unemployment benefits. While fairly good, the data does not suggest a decline in the unemployment rate.
Jobless Claims in U.S. Little Changed as Market Stable
US. builders slowed their pace of housing construction slightly in Jul. But applications for building permits rose to their highest level since Aug 2008. The Commerce Dept said construction of single-family homes & apartments dipped 1.1% in Jul compared with Jun to an annual rate of 746K. In Jun, the pace had been the fastest since Oct 2008. The weakness in Jul came from a 6.5% drop in the building of single-family homes, which represent about 70% of the market, falling to an annual rate of 502K. Construction of apartments rose 12.4%t to an annual rate of 244M units. Even with the gains this year, the rate of construction & the level of permits remain only about half the 1.5M annual rate considered healthy. But in Jun, single-family housing starts, which account for more than 70% of residential construction, rose for the 4th straight month to a 2-year high.
Housing Starts in U.S. Fall as Permits Reach Four-Year High
Cisco, a Dow stock, reported quarterly profit & sales that topped estimates as job cuts kept costs in check & price reductions attracted customers. EPS (excluding some costs) was 47¢ in the period ended Jul 28, just topping the estimate of 46¢. Revenue rose 4.4% to $11.7B, compared with a prediction of $11.6B. CSCO has cut almost 8K jobs, shut businesses, and reduced prices to win business & combat a slowdown in Europe, which makes up a 1/5 of sales. The company boosted its div 75% & forecast sales & profit that met expectations. The div was increased to 14¢ from 8¢. CFO Frank Calderoni said CSCO would return at least half of cash generated from operations via divis & share buybacks. “Our financial strength gives us the confidence to commit and execute against this strategy, in order to provide meaningful return to our shareholders,” he said. Including last month’s acquisition of NDS Group, which makes software that powers cable set-top boxes & delivers video, CSCO forecast profit of 45-47¢ in the current qtr, compared with the average estimate of 46¢. Sales should rise 4-6% from a year earlier, which translates to a range of $11.6-$11.9B. Analysts are predicting $11.7B. The stock rose 1.45 (8%).
Cisco Beats Estimates as Price Cuts Lure More Customers
Cisco (CSCO)
This is another quiet Aug day for the markets. Europe remains on holiday, little news coming from there. Macro US economic data is so-so. After big gains in the first few days of Aug, Dow has been going sideways with only minimal fluctuations. More steady as shows goes performance can be expected.
Dow Jones Industrials
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