Jobless claims, new home sales to help determine if there's a rally, or just a pause in the selling.
February 26, 2004: 5:50 AM EST
NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - The losing streak is over, and U.S. stock markets will be looking at reports Thursday on employment and housing to help determine if the budding rally will go on.
At 5:40 a.m. ET, futures pointed to a slightly higher start for the major indexes.
After five straight down sessions, the Dow Jones industrial average and Nasdaq composite index both gained ground Wednesday. Among the factors: comments by Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan that the economy is recovering, although he warned about danger from growing budget deficits.
The Dow gained 0.3 percent, while the Nasdaq rallied nearly 0.9 percent.
Before trading begins, the government issues its weekly jobless claims report. The number is expected to edge up to 345,000 in the week ended Feb. 21 from 344,000 in the prior week, according to a consensus of economists surveyed by Briefing.com.
Also slated before the open is the January report on durable goods orders, expected to show a rise of 1.4 percent, an improvement from December's 0.3 percent gain.
After the open, the January numbers on new home sales, with a consensus forecast for a rise in the annual sales rate to 1,075,000 from 1,060,000 in December.
Asian-Pacific stocks gained ground Thursday, with Tokyo's Nikkei index up 1.5 percent. European markets advanced in early trading. (Check the latest on world markets)
Among U.S. stocks trading in Europe, Walt Disney (DIS: Research, Estimates) rose more than 4 percent. The nation's largest public employee pension fund, Calpers, said Wednesday it would withhold votes for chairman Michael Eisner at next week's board meeting in Philadelphia, calling his performance over the past five years "dismal." A leading proxy advisory board also recommended that investors withhold votes for Eisner.
Treasury prices eased in early trading, sending the 10-year note yield up to 4.02 percent from 4.01 percent late Wednesday. The dollar continued to rally against the yen and euro after getting a lift from Greenspan's comments.
Brent oil futures slipped 2 cents to $31.55 a barrel in London. Gold edged higher.
O Clubeinvest.com informa que nenhuma da informação
aqui facultada deverá ser entendida como conselho ou recomendação
de qualquer tipo de transacção ou investimento.
