(As of 7:24 am PST)
Stocks are off to a slow start on Monday with the Nasdaq
and S&P500 etching slight gains while the Dow is slightly lower. McDonald’s is holding back the blue-chip
index, as one of world’s largest restaurant chains reported disappointing
earnings results for Q2. In other
earnings news, Kimberley-Clark beat on earnings but missed on revenues, while
oilfield-services firm Halliburton reported slipping profits. Economic data is light today, although one
report showed existing home sales fell 1.2% in June, while median home prices
rose 13.5% from the year-ago period to $214,200. The housing recovery continues to show
tremendous signs of growth, causing some analysts to toss around the idea of a
new housing bubble, although prices still remain well below their 2006
peak. Rising mortgage rates are likely
causing the slowdown in existing home sales.
In international news, Asian markets finished higher after election
results in Japan which are being viewed as favorable to the future of financial
markets. European markets are
mixed. Gold is rallying today on a
falling dollar, with the precious metal rising over 2.5%. Interest rates are slightly lower as treasury
prices rose. It’s a quiet week on the
data front, with reports on durable goods and consumer sentiment due out later
in the week.
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