Stocks Edge Higher Ahead Of Jobs Report

Thursday September 2, 2010
Stock Market Commentary:

Stocks ended higher on Thursday as investors digested a slew of economic data. Thursday’s reported volume total was lower on the NYSE and Nasdaq exchange compared to Wednesday’s high levels which suggests is somewhat normal one day before a big economic report is slated to be released. Advancers led decliners by over a 2-to-1 ratio on the NYSE and by almost a 2-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq exchange. New 52-week highs easily outnumbered new 52-week lows on the NYSE and on the Nasdaq exchange. There were 47 high-ranked companies from the CANSLIM.net Leaders List made a new 52-week high and appeared on the CANSLIM.net BreakOuts Page, one lower than the 48 issues that appeared on the prior session.  

ECB Holds Rates Steady, Retail Sales and Housing Data Top Estimates and Jobless Claims Inch Lower:

The European Central Bank (ECB) decided to hold interest rates steady, near record lows, when they met on Thursday. ECB president Jean Claude Trichet said the ECB is ready to extend emergency bank lending if needed. In the US, retail sales unexpectedly topped estimates thanks to holiday tax incentives and pending sales of existing homes also beat estimates, rising +5.2% in July. Meanwhile, mortgage rates fell to +4.32% which is the lowest level in decades. The Labor Department said initial jobless claims fell by 6,000 to 472,000 last week which was matched the Street’s forecast. Investors are now waiting for August’s official nonfarm payrolls report to be released before Friday’s open.

Market Action- Confirmed Rally:

Looking forward, the window is now open for disciplined investors to begin carefully buying high-ranked stocks again. It was encouraging to see a flurry of high-ranked leaders trigger fresh technical buy signals and break out of sound bases. The next important level to watch for the major averages are their respective 200-day moving average (DMA) lines. It is important to note that approximately 75% of FTDs lead to new sustained rallies, while 25% fail. In addition, every major rally in market history has begun with a FTD, but not every FTD leads to a new rally. Trade accordingly.
The Market Is Back In  Confirmed Rally, Does Your Broker Know?
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