"After a strong breakout late last week, the market quickly returned back to form and delivered another lackluster trading day," said Schaeffer's Senior Equities Analyst Joe Bell. "While market participants will be keeping an eye on this Wednesday's meeting of European leaders, the August 31st Fed meeting will certainly be the next date on the calendar to circle." Indeed, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) spent most of the session faltering under the breakeven mark. Keep reading to see what else was on our radar today:
At its lowest point, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI – 13,271.64) was off nearly 45points to an intraday low of 13,230.06. But by the time the closing bell sounded, the blue-chip barometer had regained nearly all of its deficit, parking just 3.6 points below breakeven. Twenty of the 30 components declined, as American Express Company's (NYSE:AXP) 1.2% tumble paced the underperformers. On the contrary, Hewlett-Packard Company (NYSE:HPQ) led the 10 winning issues with a 2.9% gain.
Similarly, the S&P 500 Index (SPX – 1,418.13) and Nasdaq Composite (COMP – 3,076.21) were little moved by the time the dust settled, notching fractional losses on the day.
The CBOE Market Volatility Index (VIX – 14.02) moved north today, increasing by 4.2%, and settling just atop its session low of 13.99.
Today's highlight: "We continue to contend with the former 2012 closing high of 1,422 on the SPX," noted Bell. "The market was able to hold last week's gains and shrug off a slight bit of weakness this morning, finishing virtually breakeven today."
Turning to today's major market stories...
For today's activity in commodities, options, and more, head to page 2.
Mid-Caps Nearing a Triple of March 2009 Lows