This past week in the market was difficult and stocks did not finish in
positive territory. The major indices all ended lower this past week. On Monday,
the Dow held positive value but the Nasdaq and S&P 500 were both red. The Dow
was just green at 12,381.11 for the day. The Nasdaq was red at 2,7771.51 to
finished and the S&P 500 was red to finish at 1,324.46. Little economic data
posted this day. On Tuesday, news spread of Alcoas revenues posting lower than
expected. The nuclear crisis in Japan continued to escalate. The Treasury
Department released its most recent report on the federal deficit. The report
indicated that the federal deficit increased to $188.2 billion, falling just
below economists anticipated forecast of $189 billion. All three major indices
ended in the red this day. The Dow dropped 117.53 points or 0.95% to 12263.58.
The Nasdaq declined by 26.72 points or 0.96% to 2744.79. The S&P 500 was down
10.30 points or 0.78% to 1314.16. At the mid week point on Wednesday, data
posted regarding retail sales in March. Retail sales rose .4 percent last month.
This number was less than what economists had been expecting for March. Business
inventories posted a .5 percent increase for February. By end of day close, the
major indices had recovered and were posting green across the majority of the
stock market tracking boards. The Dow Jones Industrials finished the day off
green by .06 percent at 12,270.99. The Nasdaq finished higher by .61 percent at
2,761.52 and the S&P 500 finished the day higher by .02 percent at 1,314.41.
Thursday, values did not hold. Markets were hit with negative news early as the
Federal Reserve issued a statement relaying that fines would be levied on some
of the world's largest banks due to practices found to be "unsound"
regarding their handling of the foreclosure process. The Labor Department
reported that first time applications for unemployment benefits increased. The
data shows that the number of claims increased the prior week by 27,000 to a
total of 412,000. All three indices ended in the red this day. Friday brought a
bit of a rally, but it was not enough to push stocks into the green overall for
the week. The University of Michigans U.S. consumer sentiment index moved higher
which was a positive sign for investors. The Nasdaq ended in the green as well
by .16 percent at 2,764.65. The S&P 500 ended the day higher by .39 percent at
1,319.68. The Dow Jones Industrial finished the last session in the green by .46
percent at 12,341.83. Author: Frank Matto
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