The Dow Jones Industrial Average remained mostly stable today alternating gaining and losing small amounts throughout the day. Ultimately, the Dow settled with an 18.24 point gain closing at 10,216.27.
Quarterly earnings reports that indicate how the economy may or may not be rebounding are due out soon, and that is causing investor emotions to run the gambit, ultimately resulting in a sort of “wait and see” attitude. The continued work on the revolutionary new Wall Street Bill is also keeping investors in a state of uncertainty.
European markets were up today while Asian markets were mixed. Cuts in wages in Greece as well as an increased retirement age and increased taxes may conspire to push European markets down as the week progresses.
The first company set to announce quarterly earnings is Alcoa who will be announcing after stocks close today. It will be interesting to see how big an effect their late Monday announcement will have on stocks when they open Tuesday. As the economic climate continues to grow heavy, investors may overreact to the first bits of news they receive taking the information in overly optimistically or pessimistically.
The S&P 500 closed at 1,078.75 up .79 points from Friday and the Nasdaq closed at 2,198.36 up 1.91 points.
