Stocks Higher After Worst Week of 2012

Stocks opened higher Monday after their worst week this year.

The Dow Jones industrial average was up 99 points at 13,179 in the first minutes of trading. The Standard & Poor’s 500 was up 11 at 1,408. The Nasdaq composite index was higher by 26 at 3,093.

Last week, the S&P lost half a percent and the Dow more than 1 percent in a break from a strong rally in stocks this year.

Traders were digesting remarks from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, who said the U.S. job market remains weak despite three months of strong hiring and that Fed’s existing policies will help increase growth.

Bernanke told a conference in Arlington, Va., that more job gains will probably require more robust demand from Americans and businesses. His comments suggested the Fed is ready to keep short-term interest rates near zero.

All 10 industry groups in the S&P 500 opened higher. Health care companies and industrial and materials stocks led the way with gains of more than 1 percent apiece. Fewer than 20 stocks in the S&P 500 were lower in the early going.

Lions Gate Entertainment was among the early winners on Wall Street. The stock climbed more than 5 percent after its movie “The Hunger Games” made $155 million on its opening weekend.

European markets were mostly higher. The benchmark index in Germany added more than 1 percent, and stocks also climbed in France and Germany. The euro gained half a penny against the dollar.

Wall Street this week will closely watch consumer confidence numbers due to be released Tuesday, as well as the final March numbers for consumer sentiment on Friday.

Source

SYDNEY (MarketWatch) — Asian shares rallied Tuesday, with investors welcoming comments from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke that signaled U.S. monetary policy will remain accommodative.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index HK:HSI +1.33%  rose 1.3%, Shanghai Composite CN:000001 +0.32%  advanced 0.3%, and Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average JP:100000018 +1.75%  jumped 1.7%, hitting a fresh 2012 high in the session.

South Korea’s Kospi KR:0100 +0.56%  and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index AU:XJO +0.66%  each rose 0.8%.

 

Bernanke remarks, German data boost U.S. stocks

Stocks rise after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke signals more easy monetary policy and positive German business confidence data cheers Europe. (Photo: AP/Seth Wenig)

The gains in Asia followed a strong performance for U.S. stocks Monday, after Bernanke said that it’s not yet certain the recent pace of improvement in the nation’s labor market will be sustained but improvements may be supported by “continued accommodative policies.” Read more on U.S. stockmarket action.

“Chairman Bernanke’s palpable disappointment in terms of jobs growth played out like music to the ears of market sentiment,” said Stewart Hall at RBC Capital Markets.

Read More…

Coming off of only its second weekly loss in 12 weeks the stock market is up solidly on the back of renewed broad-based buying.

Stocks opened the day on a decidedly positive note. The move was helped along by strength in Europe, where Germany’s DAX helped lead efforts to advance following a multi-month high in its latest business climate reading. That helped temper concerns related to Spain’s ability to implement fiscal reform. Additionally, a speech this morning by Fed Chairman Bernanke seemed to suggest that the Fed recognizes the need to remain accommodative in its policies, given that job market conditions remain far from normal.

Health Care stocks have had an impressive session so far. The sector is currently sitting on a 1.3% gain with help from health care facilities plays and managed care providers. Industrials and Financials are close behind with gains of 1.2%.

Telecom and Utilities — both defensive in nature — are each up 0.2%. Their lackluster performance today is consistent with how they have fared in 2012.

Without higher oil prices to provide Energy stocks with a boon, the Energy sector has lagged the rest of the market for most of the session. Collectively, Energy stocks are currently up 0.4%, which is less than half of what the broad market has put together. Oil prices have chopped along the neutral line for most of the session and currently sit at $106.80 per barrel, which makes for a 0.1% loss.

An increased tolerance for risk has allowed the dollar to drift lower. Its descent has left it lagging a collection of competing currencies by about 0.4% after it had been relatively flat this morning.

The only consequential piece of domestic data released today was the pending home sales report for February. In a surprise slip, they fell 0.5% from the prior month. DJ30 +117.65 NASDAQ +36.71 SP500 +12.64 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1865/765 mln/590 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 2190/290 mln/755

Market update

An interesting tweet by Michael Margolis, a former Apple TV engineer at Apple Inc., popped up in our Twitter feed this evening, and we thought it was worth passing on. According to Margolis, the new Apple TV UI was not only on the table at Apple years ago, but Steve Jobs allegedly shot it down because he didn’t like it at the time.

Source: Macgasm

The flash crash that knocked $52 billion off Apple’s market cap was hardly the first

Snapshot of Tuesday’s “false print.” Via Seeking Alpha

By now anybody who reads the business pages knows that BATS Global Markets screwed up its initial public offering big time Friday by mangling trades in a bunch of stock symbols at the top of the alphabet, including Apple (AAPL) and BATS, its own stock.

Apple’s shares briefly fell by more than $55 per share. BATS, which had been trading for more than $15, fell to less than 4 cents.

NASDAQ quickly erased all those trades and BATS was allowed to cancel its IPO.

Read More…

The NFL came down hard on the New Orleans Saints on Wednesday.

Saints coach Sean Payton has been suspended for one year, former defensive coordinator Gregg Williams was suspended indefinitely, general manager Mickey Loomis was suspended for eight regular-season games, the team was fined $500,000 and lost two second-round draft picks (one in 2012 and ’13) as a result of a bounty program conducted by the team during the 2009-11 seasons.

Details of an NFL investigation released at the beginning on March reported that the Saints’ bounty program gave thousands of dollars in payoffs to players for hits that knocked targeted opponents out of games. The NFL said the amounts reached their height in 2009, the season the Saints won the Super Bowl.

Williams, now defensive coordinator of the Rams, has admitted to and apologized for running the program.

Payton and Loomis apologized and took the blame for violations that “happened under our watch,” but not until almost a week after the NFL pointed to them for failing to stop the program.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

ESPN

Tim Tebow has been traded from the Denver Broncos to the New York Jets … this according to FOX NFL insider Jay Glazer.

According to Jay … the Jets only had to give up a 4th round draft pick in exchange for the former Heisman Trophy winner.

The Jets already have a starting quarterback in Mark Sanchez … but if Sanchez chokes again … like he did last season … Tebow could be in a good position to take over the #1 spot.

Story developing …

TMZ

3:00 pm : Momentum behind the broad market’s upward climb has stalled. That has left the major equity averages mired in negative territory with modest losses as they enter the final hour of the day.

Looking ahead to what’s on tap for tonight and tomorrow, both Oracle (ORCL 29.74, -0.02) and Jabil Circuit (JBL 26.44, -0.69) will release their quarterly numbers after the close. Tomorrow morning brings the latest from General Mills (GIS 38.76, +0.04). The latest monthly existing home sales numbers will be released Wednesday at 10:00 AM ET. Weekly oil inventory numbers will be posted at 10:30 AM ET.

Market Update

Peyton Manning will become the next quarterback of the Denver Broncos, barring a snag during intensified contract negotiations that have commenced under the instruction of the four-time MVP to his agent Tom Condon, according to multiple sources.

Once the Manning deal becomes official, Denver will try to trade Tim Tebow, according to sources.

Read More

Free mobile apps which use third-party services to display advertising consume considerably more battery life, a new study suggests.

Researchers used a special tool to monitor energy use by several apps on Android and Windows Mobile handsets.

Findings suggested that in one case 75% of an app’s energy consumption was spent on powering advertisements.

Read More

Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) will finish work on Windows 8 this summer, setting the stage for personal computers and tablets with the operating system to go on sale around October, according to people with knowledge of the schedule.

The initial rollout will include devices running Intel Corp. (INTC) and ARM Holdings Plc (ARM) chips, making good on Microsoft’s promise to support both standards, said the people, who declined to be named because the plans are confidential. In embracing ARM technology, Microsoft is using the same kind of processors as Apple Inc.’s iPad. Still, there will be fewer than five ARM devices in the debut, compared with more than 40 Intel machines.

The Microsoft booth at the 2010 International Consumer Electronics Show on Jan. 7, 2010 in Las Vegas. Photographer: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

The timing would let Microsoft target Christmas shoppers with the new software, which works with touch-screen devices as well as laptops and desktop PCs.

Read more

BANGKOK (AP) — State media in Thailand say the self-made Thai billionaire who created the renowned Red Bull energy drink three decades ago has died. He was 89.

Read More

 

Today’s Industry Highlights via Yahoo Finance

Today’s Industry Highlights via Yahoo Finance

Led higher by Financials, the S&P 500 has come in touch with the 1400 line for the first time since June 2008. The broad market measure is now up about 11% year to date. Meanwhile, oil prices continue to oscillate. The latest action comes in response to conflicting reports regarding the release of U.S. strategic oil reserves. Oil prices are currently down 0.4% at $105 per barrel.

Market Update

I’ve just been informed that it is Steak and Blowjob day. I had no idea this day existed until now, but excited to find out such a day exist.

Celebrated on March 14th, Steak and Blowjob Day is a holiday for men, celebrated the month after Valentine’s Day — a holiday for women.

The idea is simple: no cards, flowers, candy or other whimsical gifts. Ladies, you simply bestow your partner with a steak and a blowjob. Not necessarily in that order.

Urban dictionary

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=wie1gte6IRE

Morgan Stanley, the uber Bull of Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) is raising their Bull case PT to $960 this morning:

They see further upside to AAPL shares on meaningful EPS revisions as their new CY13 base / bull case EPS estimates of $60 / $80 are 24% / 65% above consensus. Firm new official $720 PT (prior $515) conservatively assumes no multiple expansion. AAPL has been added to Morgan Stanley’s Best Ideas list.

Full Story

Today’s Industry Highlights

Stocks continue to climb steadily. The effort has the S&P 500 at its best level since 2008. Amid the bullish bias the Volatility Index, often euphemistically referred to as the Fear Gauge, has extended its descent so that it is down more than 5% and near its 52-week low. With stocks up and volatility down Treasuries have come under increased selling pressure, such that the yield on the benchmark 10-year Note is now up to nearly 2.10%, or its highest level since January.

Market Update

A lack of leadership and an absence of trading catalysts have left the broad market to spend the session chopping along with a modest loss.

Although up from session lows, Financials have been a steady drag on overall action. The sector was contending with a loss on the order of 1% when it set its session low about an hour ago, but it has managed to trim that to a 0.6% loss. Banks, both diversified and regional, have weighed the most on the space.

Energy stocks have also hampered action. The sector’s 0.7% loss comes in conjunction with lower oil prices, which have been in the red all session and were most recently quoted with a 1.1% loss at $106.25 per barrel.

Defensive in nature and without any meaningful market weight, Utilities have been performing well all session. The sector currently sports a 1.0% gain with help from the likes of American Electric (AEP 38.68, +0.47) and Exelon (EXC 39.79, +0.88). Although not quite as strong, Telecom plays are performing well with a 0.5% gain.

The dollar has been contending with moderate selling for most of the session. It is currently down 0.2%. That makes for a lackluster follow-up to a 0.8% weekly gain. The greenback gained 1.3% the preceding week.

Treasuries have traded with modest strength today, but the benchmark 10-year Note has moved closer to the flat line with the imminent release of results from an auction of 10-year Notes.

There hasn’t been a single dose of economic data released today, but the latest monthly Treasury Budget will be posted at 2:00 PM ET.

Market update