Stock market today, April 2, 2014: The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 74.95 points yesterday to finish at 16,532.61. The Nasdaq increased 69.05 points finishing at 4,268.04, while the S&P 500 hit a new record yesterday before settling at 1,885.52.
Now here are the five biggest stories moving markets today:
Five Biggest Stories in Today's Stock Market, April 2, 2014
Another "Weather" Delay: Despite high hopes for this month's jobs report,the U.S. economy created 191,000 new private-sector jobs last month, according to the ADP National Employment Report. The figure was lower than expected by economists surveyed by Bloomberg who projected 195,000. The report did feature a sharp upward revision of February jobs, to 178,000 from 139,000. The report states that in March, small businesses created 72,000 jobs, medium-sized firms opened 52,000 positions, and large companies created 67,000 new jobs during the month. Investors will now await official confirmation on the unemployment situation with Friday's jobs report approaching.
Another Big Buy: The Wall Street Journal reports that Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL) may purchase Renesas SP Drivers, a Japanese manufacturer of energy-saving smartphone chips, for nearly $1 billion. The deal would purchase Renesas' 55% stake in the company and provide Apple exclusive access to the company's groundbreaking energy-reducing technology.
A Big Announcement: On Wednesday, Amazon.com Inc.(Nasdaq: AMZN) will likely unveil a device to compete against Google Inc.'s (Nasdaq: GOOG) Chromecast, Apple TV and Roku, according to CNBC. The new product enables viewers to access television shows from Amazon's network and stream video from Netflix and Hulu. It's possible that Amazon's new streaming device could be released in the next few days.
Bad News for Bitcoin: According to the Financial Times, China will shut down its citizens' access to Bitcoin. The report states: "The People's Bank of China is considering whether to order the country's banks to close Bitcoin trading accounts, according to people familiar with the matter. If that order goes through, it would eliminate the last major remaining channel by which people in China can buy the virtual currency." Bitcoin is now down more than 60% from its November peak.
IPO Delay: The pen is truly mightier than the sword. The publication of Michael Lewis' new book on high frequency trading is so powerful that it has disrupted a company's initial public offering. Virtu Financial Inc., a high-frequency trader that announced its IPO last month, will delay marketing of its shares for at least two more weeks. The decision came as anger at high-frequency trading is at its peak after the publication of "Flash Boys" and news that the FBI is investigating whether these traders gain an advantage by acting on "nonpublic information." Check out other companies making their IPOs this week.
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U.S. Economic Calendar April 2, 2014
MBA Purchase Applications at 7:00 a.m.
ADP Employment Report at 8:15 a.m.
Gallup U.S. Job Creation Index at 8:30 a.m.
Factory Orders at 10 a.m.
EIA Petroleum Status Report at 10:30 a.m.
Atlanta Federal Reserve Bank President Dennis Lockhart speaks at 12:30 p.m.
St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank President James Bullard speaks at 5 p.m.
Key Companies Reporting Earnings April 2, 2014
Consensus earnings per share for Monsanto Co. (NYSE: MON) is $3.09.
Consensus earnings per share for Acuity Brands Inc. (NYSE: AYI) is $0.83.
Consensus earnings per share for Unifirst Corp. (NYSE: UNF)is $1.39.
Other Companies Reporting
OMNOVA Solutions Inc. (OMN), Texas Industries (TXI), Mitcham Industries Inc. (MIND)
Garrett Baldwin is a globally recognized research economist, financial writer, consultant, and political risk analyst with decades of trading experience and degrees in economics, cybersecurity, and business from Johns Hopkins, Purdue, Indiana University, and Northwestern.