Apple hits $700 for first time; Dow falls 40
Apple tops the benchmark after hours after generating 2 million iPhone 5 orders in 24 hours. Stocks slip on economic and European worries after last week's big Fed-induced rally. Google hits a 5-year high. Crude oil pulls back.
By Charley Blaine Sep 17, 2012 12:57PM
Updated: 6:50 p.m. ETStocks fell back today after four straight gains due to profit-taking and some new worries about the domestic economy and Europe's debt woes.
The market was dismayed as the Empire State Manufacturing Index fell much more than expected. The survey collects data from across New York State.
At the same time, European stocks moved lower after disagreements about how to regulate European banks erupted at a meeting over the weekend in Cyprus. Germany, Sweden and others want eurozone-wide banking regulation to be developed more slowly than, say, France, Spain and Italy.
Apple (AAPL) closed at a record $699.78 but was trading above $700 for the first time after hours. The company said it had received orders for 2 million iPhone 5's in the first 24 hours -- one every 23 seconds. Google (GOOG) nearly reached $713 for the first time since December 2007 before pulling back to $709.98, up 30 cents.
The Dow Jones industrials ($INDU) closed down 40 points to 13,553. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index ($INX) was off 5 points to 1,461, and the Nasdaq Composite Index ($COMPX) dropped 13 points to 3,179.
Article continues below.However, the Nasdaq-100 Index ($NDX), which tracks the largest Nasdaq stocks, closed up 1 point to 2,856. The close reflects the gains for Google and Apple. Apple is the biggest influence on the index.
Not only was today's declines for the Dow, S&P 500 and Nasdaq their first after four gains in a row, but the declines were 15th to occur on a Monday in the last 16 weeks.
As the market was closing, Royal Dutch Shell (RDS.A) shares were up slightly after the company said it was delaying until next year plans to explore for oil in Alaska's Arctic offshore region.
Ford Motor (F) and Canadian Auto Workers said they have a tentative deal for a four-year contract.
And Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) shares slumped 33 cents, or 8.2%, to $3.68, after announcing that its chief financial offer had resigned.
Tuesday's market will face important earnings from FedEx (FDX) and the National Association of Home Builders monthly report on builders' confidence.
Futures suggests a flat open for stocks on Tuesday.
Is the market giving off sell signals?
The market hit five-year highs last week in large part because of the Federal Reserve's decision to buy $40 billion a month in mortgage-backed securities in a bid to stimulate the economy. The major averages also have hit some resistance levels that suggested a pullback was coming.
One was relative strength indexes, which measure price changes over time, usually over 14 days. A reading above 70 is a signal a stock, commodity or even an index is overbought. The Dow, S&P 500 and Nasdaq finished last week with their RSIs well above 70 and are only down slightly from those levels today.
Another signal came from the S&P 500 Index itself: 78.6% of the stocks in the index were trading above their 200-day moving averages on Thursday and Friday, the highest levels since early May when the market had just started to come down from highs reached in early April. Today, the level is 77.2%.
A number of analysts are watching the situation closely. "To me the only question is if the stock market is going to correct its current overbought condition by going sideways, or if it is going to correct back to the 1400-1422 support," wrote Jeff Saut of Raymond James & Associates.
| Energy prices -- New York close | ||||||||||||
| Mon. | Fri. | Month chg. | YTD chg. | |||||||||
| Crude oil (-CL) | $96.62 | $99.00 | 0.16% | -2.24% | ||||||||
| (per barrel) | ||||||||||||
| Heating oil (-HO) | $3.1634 | $3.2395 | -0.53% | 8.55% | ||||||||
| (per gallon) | ||||||||||||
| Natural gas (-NG) | $2.8650 | $2.9430 | 2.36% | -4.15% | ||||||||
| (per mil. BTU) | ||||||||||||
| Unleaded gasoline (-RB) | $2.9433 | $3.0156 | -0.99% | 10.76% | ||||||||
| (per gallon) | ||||||||||||
| Brent crude | $113.14 | $116.66 | -1.25% | 5.36% | ||||||||
| (per barrel) | ||||||||||||
| Retail gasoline | $3.8620 | $3.8640 | 0.86% | 17.89% | ||||||||
| (per gallon; AAA) | ||||||||||||
Crude oil pulls back
Crude oil (-CL) settled down $2.38 to $96.62 a barrel. It had reached as high as $99.81 and then tumbled briefly to as low as $94.98 a barrel. There was no real news to explain the decline except that there wasn't quite the frenzy of anti-American news from the Middle East.
There was speculation that the Obama administration was going to release oil from the nation's Strategic Petroleum Reserve -- a rumor that's been around for months. The administration denied the rumor.
Crude in New York is traded on the New York Mercantile Exchange, owned by CME Group (CME). CME had no explanation for the decline. Brent crude in London settled down $2.87 to $113.79 a barrel.
Barron's correctly pointed out that the price of crude oil includes a $10 to $15 premium due to speculation about a potential Iran-Israel war. The tensions appeared to ease -- at least today -- which makes oil prices vulnerable to a sell-off.
The decline was big enough that it pulled the stock market lower, with the Dow falling as many as 67 points before rebounding.
The national average price of gasoline was $3.862 a gallon, according to AAA's Daily Fuel Gauge Report. The price was down for the third straight day after hitting $3.871 a gallon on Friday.
Gold (-GC) settled down $2.10 to $1,770.60 an ounce. Silver (-SI) settled off 28.9 cents to $34.367 an ounce, and copper (-HG) fell 4.05 cents to $3.792 a pound.
The 10-year Treasury yield fell back to 1.833% from Friday's 1.87%. The dollar was higher against major currencies.
Gilead leads the S&P 500, Nasdaq-100
Gilead Sciences (GILD), up $3.78 to $65.80, was the top S&P 500 performer after JPMorgan analyst Geoff Meacham came out with some positive comments about the company's new HIV medication Stribild and hepatitis C drug program. He also raised his price target to $75 from $70.
Gilead's gain was part of a strong rally overall in biotech stocks today. The NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index ($BTK) was up 15 points to 1,559. The index is up nearly 43% this year.
Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG) was up $10.37 to $346.82. Channel checks from ITG Research showed that third-quarter same-store sales are tracking in a brisk 5.5%-to-7.5% range, Seeking Alpha noted.
Netflix (NFLX) was off $3.50 to $57.02, third-worst among S&P 500 stocks, after analyst Tim Nollen of Macquarie Capital set an "underperform" rating and $50 price target on the stock. Nollen wrote clients that the company would continue to be pressured by "spiraling" content costs.
Metals were the market laggards in part because JPMorgan Securities downgraded steel stocks. Health care and energy stocks were the leaders.
Only 10 of the 30 Dow was stocks were higher, led by pharmaceutical maker Pfizer (PFE) and AT&T (T). Alcoa (AA) and Bank of America (BAC) were the laggards; they had led the Dow last week.
At the same time, 127 S&P stocks were higher with Gilead, Tenet Health Care (THC) and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) the leaders. Cliffs Natural Resources (CLF), Vulcan Materials (VMC) and Netflix were the laggards.
Meanwhile, 29 Nasdaq-100 stocks were higher, led by Gilead, Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) and Life Technologies (LIFE). Netflix, Research In Motion (RIMM) and Sirius XM Radio (SIRI) were the laggards.
| Short hits from the markets -- New York close | ||||||||||||
| Mon. | Fri. | Month chg. | YTD chg. | |||||||||
| Treasury yields | ||||||||||||
| 13-week Treasury bill | 0.0900% | 0.100% | 0.00% | 800.00% | ||||||||
| 5-year Treasury note | 0.717% | 0.715% | 20.30% | -13.61% | ||||||||
| 10-year Treasury note | 1.838% | 1.870% | 17.67% | -1.76% | ||||||||
| 30-year Treasury bond | 3.032% | 3.088% | 12.97% | 4.95% | ||||||||
| Currencies | ||||||||||||
| U.S. Dollar Index | 78.843 | 78.841 | -2.92% | -2.09% | ||||||||
| British pound | 1.6255 | 1.6239 | 2.31% | 4.62% | ||||||||
| (in U.S. $) | ||||||||||||
| U.S. $ in pounds | £0.615 | £0.616 | -2.26% | -4.41% | ||||||||
| Euro in dollars | $1.32 | $1.31 | 4.47% | 1.57% | ||||||||
| (in U.S. $) | ||||||||||||
| U.S. $ in euros | € 0.760 | € 0.762 | -4.28% | -1.54% | ||||||||
| U.S. $ in yen | 78.86 | 78.36 | 0.47% | 2.29% | ||||||||
| U.S. $ in Chinese | 6.34 | 6.31 | -0.39% | 0.20% | ||||||||
| yuan | ||||||||||||
| Canada dollar | $1.028 | $1.031 | 1.33% | 4.76% | ||||||||
| (in U.S. $) | ||||||||||||
| U.S. dollar | $0.974 | $0.970 | -1.31% | -4.55% | ||||||||
| (in Canadian $) | ||||||||||||
| Commodities | ||||||||||||
| Gold (-GC) | $1,770.60 | $1,772.70 | 4.92% | 13.01% | ||||||||
| (per troy ounce) | ||||||||||||
| Copper (-HG) | $3.792 | $3.833 | 9.69% | 10.36% | ||||||||
| (per pound) | ||||||||||||
| Silver (-SI) | $34.3670 | $34.6560 | 9.30% | 23.11% | ||||||||
| (per troy ounce) | ||||||||||||
| Wheat (-ZW) | $8.7800 | $9.2425 | -1.29% | 34.51% | ||||||||
| (per bushel) | ||||||||||||
| Corn (-ZC) | $7.4800 | $7.820 | -6.47% | 15.70% | ||||||||
| (per bushel) | ||||||||||||
| Cotton | $0.7533 | 0.759 | -2.50% | -17.83% | ||||||||
| (per pound) | ||||||||||||
| Coffee | $1.7565 | 1.811 | 6.62% | -23.51% | ||||||||
| (per pound) | ||||||||||||
| Crude oil (-CL) | $96.62 | $99.00 | 0.16% | -2.24% | ||||||||
| (per barrel) | ||||||||||||
323Comments
Sep 17, 2012 1:34PM
Wow, Everybody thinks that their opinion should be set in concrete. Meanwhile this country is in a down fall that can't be stopped. The Constitution is hanging by a thread, gas prices are out of control, the middle east is in peril, American citizens are depressed, food prices are skyrocketing, etc. Why can't we as Americans pull together and get 0bama out of there!!!!!!!! Hello people, he has not done a dang thing for this economy but suppress it so much it is pathetic!!!!!!!
Sep 17, 2012 2:10PM
We have ....
a grossly over priced stock market being propped up by a politically biased FED.
Out of control debt,
a populace addicted to entitlements,
oil prices being driven by fear instead of demand,
a middle east on verge of launching nukes at each other and possibly US or Europe,
every muslim in the world wanting to kill us
high unemployment
rising food and gas prices
And a President spending the weekend in Vegas and booked for the Letterman show.
Sep 17, 2012 1:52PM
Sep 17, 2012 1:25PM
Sep 17, 2012 1:22PM
obama is running the popsicle stand and it is time to stop him, the new third world is coming faster than he thought and i believe they caught on what he is doing, screw the economy and people will beg for free food, makes him king ****.
damn economy been going down sense the demo's been running washington, oh, 2006 then along came spending jones without a budget. everything is free, money and healthcare, oops sorry screwed the american people, pay more tax. the tax man , obama!!!! not in november, not me.
Sep 17, 2012 1:22PM
Sep 17, 2012 2:26PM
Simple rules, FIRST bring our troops home to protect our borders, SECOND stop foreign aid use it to pay-down our debt, THIRD put a tax on everything imported, FOURTH if it ain't made here you don't need it, FIFTH if you did not pay into anything (Unemployment, Social-Security, etc) you do not get anything out of it (Foreigners/illegals getting college aid, medical, food-stamps, etc.).
Sep 17, 2012 2:04PM
Sep 17, 2012 1:44PM
I wish everyone would stop blaming the President for every time the stock market goes down. I really don't care who's president. What I would like to see is a Congress that has term limits so we don't have the same people in office their whole life. Stop worrying about getting elected and do your job.
As long as Congress can't make progress with the fiscal cliff and making a budget and sticking with it, we can't blame anyone but ourselves for not voting in new people with new ideas for change.
What ever happened to compromise.
Is the stock market rigged? Of course it is. When the same politicians are in office longer than I am old. They can promise you the moon until they are re-elected then it's business as usual.
I say, do your duty as a voter and vote for who ever you want too. Just don't believe any promises. Vote for your Country and not for yourself.
As long as Congress can't make progress with the fiscal cliff and making a budget and sticking with it, we can't blame anyone but ourselves for not voting in new people with new ideas for change.
What ever happened to compromise.
Is the stock market rigged? Of course it is. When the same politicians are in office longer than I am old. They can promise you the moon until they are re-elected then it's business as usual.
I say, do your duty as a voter and vote for who ever you want too. Just don't believe any promises. Vote for your Country and not for yourself.
Sep 17, 2012 1:44PM
Stocks drop due to economic worries. This is bull and just the 1% manipulating the market to suit themselves. Its part of that old saying, "the rich get richer and the poor, well, you know what happens to them. Friday the economy was jumping. Nothing has happen since then to cause all this downward reaction.
Sep 17, 2012 2:31PM
Sep 17, 2012 1:34PM
Andrews Dickson White's book: Fiat Money Inflation in France.
Yea, it looks like we are a quadrillion in the hole and counting now.
"The recently completed GAO audit of the Federal Reserve as required under the Frank/Dodd legislation has revealed that the true number given to TBTF banks during the financial crisis was nearly 20 FOLD LARGER AT $16.115 TRILLION !!"
These funds were handed out at 0% interest rates, and VIRTUALLY NONE HAVE BEEN PAID BACK!
Yea, it looks like we are a quadrillion in the hole and counting now.
Sep 17, 2012 2:40PM
Newsweek September 17th, 2012
Here’s what happens to American presidents who look to be loved in the Middle East. In 2008, the year Obama won the presidency with his pledge to end George W. Bush’s wars, 75 percent of Egyptians had an unfavorable opinion of the United States. Today it’s 79 percent. Four years ago, that was the percentage of Jordanians with a negative view of the U.S. Now it’s 86 percent.
“It is much safer to be feared than loved,” Machiavelli teaches us. Today America is neither. Consider the wider ramifications of the Middle Eastern crisis. Revolutions have succeeded, with halfhearted American support, in Egypt, Libya, and Tunisia. Among the beneficiaries have been staunch anti-American organizations like the Muslim Brotherhood. The United States continues to give Egypt more than $1 billion a year in aid, roughly the price of the two attack submarines the Egyptians are buying from Germany. The country was once America’s ally. Last week the president conceded it is now neither our enemy nor our friend.
Sep 17, 2012 2:18PM
Sep 17, 2012 3:08PM
Another brilliant move by the fed to "shore-up" the economy - resulted in 2 session gains - well worth the 60+ billion dollars wasted on preserving lower, long term interest rates for loans that wary business owners won't take advantage of even at 0%, and millions of out of work americans who can't qualify for any type of loans.
Sep 17, 2012 2:03PM
SAILOR 7 YOU ARE RIGHT THIS IS THE SAME OLD MONDAY STORY THE BLEEDING SPECULATORS ARE WORRIED ABOUT ECONOMIC WORRIES AFTER A FRIDAY RALLY. THIS MARKET IS JUST A PERSONAL CASINO FOR THE CHOSEN FEW WITH THE VAST RESOURCES TO GAMBLE, PRICE FIX AND CONTROL THE ECONOMY AT WILL. THE MARKET IS NOT BASED ON FACT OR SUPPLY AND DEMAND BUT ON SPECULATION AND FEAR GENERATION(HENCE THE PRICE OF OIL DUE TO MIDDLE EAST WORRIES-WORRIES BEING THE KEY WORD) BUT ONE THING ALL THESE RICH P-RI--C--KS BETTER THINK ABOUT. AS FUEL COSTS GO UP, AMERICANS HAVE LESS DISPOSABLE INCOME. AS THEY SPEND LESS TO MAKE UP FOR THIS FABRICATED OIL SCARE-RESTAURANTS BECOME EMPTY, MOVIE THEATERS , RETAIL STORES, HOUSING PURCHASE SLACKS OFF ETC. BEFORE MUCH TIME PASSES THESE 1 PERCENTERS BEGIN TO GET HIT IN THEIR POCKET, AND MAY FIND IT DIFFICULT AT SOME POINT IN TIME TO BANKROLL THE LAVISH LIFESTYLE. WHAT GOES AROUND EVENTUALLY COMES AROUND AND THIS IS WHAT IS NEEDED TO CONTROL THIS EXCESSIVE GREED. FUNNY, THE LOUDEST NOISE YOU HEAR FROM ANY POLITICIAN ABOUT GAS PRICES IS DEAFENING SILENCE
Sep 17, 2012 3:35PM
"Looks like Bonkers Ben's QE3 is a failure already...."
Much like a bad burrito... it will come at us again and again and again. This one compromised the Dollar substantially against foreign currency. They have us looking at Europe as the malady du jour today, but it's all us and thanks to Bernanke... we went bust (Wall Street just doesn't know it yet).
Much like a bad burrito... it will come at us again and again and again. This one compromised the Dollar substantially against foreign currency. They have us looking at Europe as the malady du jour today, but it's all us and thanks to Bernanke... we went bust (Wall Street just doesn't know it yet).
Sep 17, 2012 3:26PM
Sep 17, 2012 4:53PM
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