Thursday, February 5, 2015

Economic Journal - Thursday, 2/5/2015



(As of 7:00 am PST)

US stocks opened higher as positive earnings announcements and merger news trumped economic data. Investors shrugged off news that came late yesterday afternoon that the European Central Bank would no longer accept Greek debt as collateral. The move by the ECB indicates a contentious negotiation may be shaping up between Greece and its lenders. The news is holding back European markets today with all the major indexes in the red. At home, economic data was mostly disappointing. Jobless claims rose from the prior week, while the US trade balance also widened more than expected. Earnings reports and merger news added strength to the US markets however. Oil is up 2.7% today after yesterday’s losses while gold is slightly lower. Interest rates are also inching up. Markets look to be strengthening in the early going. With the S&P500 testing key resistance levels, we’ll see if the bulls can push through to the upside today.

No comments: