Daily Market Summary 1/4/07

[Portfolio Crafter]

End of Day Market Summary Thursday, January 4, 2007
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Stocks closed higher as investors opted out of a fast-falling energy sector and put their money to work in technology, offsetting earlier disappointment over lackluster holiday sales from retailers. Tech shares surged boosting the Nasdaq composite and helping the Dow industrials stabilize by the close of trade.

Today, the Dow Jones industrial average closed up 6.17 or 0.05% to 12,480.69, the broader S&P 500 index closed up 1.71 or 0.12% to 1,418.34, and the Nasdaq closed up 30.27 or 1.25% to 2,453.43, thanks to strength in a variety of technology shares.

Market breadth was mixed. On the New York Stock Exchange, losers narrowly edged winners on volume of 1.729 billion shares. On the Nasdaq, advancers topped decliners 9 to 7 on volume of almost 2.146 billion shares.

In the December employment report expected tomorrow, employers are expected to have added 115,000 jobs to their payrolls. The unemployment rate is expected to have held steady at 4.5%. The rise in initial claims for jobless benefits suggest a weakening trend in the labor market.

Factory orders rose 0.9% in November, versus forecasts for a rise of 1.4%. Orders fell a revised 4.5% in October. The ISM index on the services sector fell to 57.1 in December from 58.9 in November. This is against the expected fall to 57. These two reports served to add to recent concerns that the economy is slowing more than has been expected.

Stock of Intel closed up $0.82 to $21.17, after Bank of America raised its first-quarter and fiscal-year 2007 earnings per share estimates on the chipmaker, citing better momentum in notebooks and servers. This was the Dow 30's worst-performing component in 2006, falling more than 18%.

Shares of Wal-Mart Stores closed up $0.23 to $47.78, on posting better than expected gain of 1.6% in same-store sales. The company laid out its growth target for January and affirmed its quarterly profit outlook.

U.S. light crude oil for February delivery fell $2.73 to settle at $55.59 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange following the release of the weekly oil inventory report. The report showed a reported rise in the nation's gasoline supplies to offset a slight decline in crude stocks in the latest week.

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