The Biggest Stories Moving the Dow Jones Industrial Average Today

By Garrett Baldwin, Executive Producer, Money Morning • June 19, 2014

Dow Jones Industrial Average today, June 19, 2014: U.S. markets soared on Wednesday after the conclusion of the Federal Open Market Committee's (FOMC) June meeting. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.58%, the Nasdaq Composite was up 0.59%, and the S&P 500 jumped 0.77% to a record close.

Here are the top stories affecting the stock market today (Thursday):

• Oil Prices Surge Again: Brent crude prices struck a nine-month high of nearly $115 a barrel this morning as intense fighting in Iraq will likely reduce oil output from OPEC's second-biggest producer. Reports indicate that the nation's largest oil refinery is under siege in Baiji. As civil war threatens Baghdad and Kirkuk, rising oil prices stand to rattle global markets this summer.
• Exceeding Expectations: Shares of BlackBerry Ltd. (Nasdaq: BBRY) soared more than 10% in premarket trading on news that the company beat earning expectations. After a string of quarterly losses, the company reported a surprise small net profit of $23 million for its fiscal first quarter ending May 31.
• The "Sweet Spot" of Energy Investing: On Wednesday, Royal Dutch Shell (NYSE: RDSA) filed initial public offering (IPO) forms for Shell Midstream Partners, a master limited partnership (MLP). The MLP will aim to raise $750 million with a plan to own, develop, and acquire U.S. pipelines. The IPO will happen in the second half of 2014 and the company will trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol SHLX.
• You're Out of Here: Shares of American Apparel Inc. (NYSE: APP) jumped more than 17% this morning after the company's board ousted its founder Dov Charney as chairman. The company has also informed him in writing that they plan to remove him as president and chief executive officer. The ousting is being done "with cause," after Cheney faced multiple lawsuits related to inappropriate conduct with female employees.
• Back Online: Despite a brief outage on its mobile and desktop platforms, Facebook Inc. (Nasdaq: FB) announced that it is back online and that users can post messages once again. The outage occurred briefly this morning and lasted approximately 17 minutes.
• Today's Economic Calendar: Today's schedule features the Fed Balance Sheet, the EIA Natural Gas Report, and the Philadelphia Fed Survey.

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• Earnings Reports: Stay tuned for earnings reports from BlackBerry Ltd. (Nasdaq: BBRY), IHS Inc. (NYSE: IHS), Kroger Co. (NYSE: KR), Oracle Corp. (Nasdaq: ORCL), Rite Aid Corp. (NYSE: RAD), Smith & Wesson Holding Corp. (Nasdaq: SWHC), TIBCO Software Inc. (Nasdaq: TIBX).

Full U.S. Economic Calendar June 19, 2014 (NYSE: all times EDT)

• Philadelphia Fed Survey at 10 a.m.
• Leading Indicators at 10 a.m.
• EIA Natural Gas Report at 10:30 a.m.
• 3-Month Bill Announcement at 11 a.m.
• 6-Month Bill Announcement at 11 a.m.
• 52-Week Bill Announcement at 11 a.m.
• 2-Yr FRN Announcement at 11 a.m.
• 2-Yr Note Announcement at 11 a.m.
• 5-Yr Note Announcement at 11 a.m.
• 7-Yr Note Announcement at 11 a.m.
• 30-Yr TIPS Auction at 1 p.m.
• Fed Balance Sheet at 4:30 p.m.
• Money Supply at 4:30 p.m.

Thursday's Top Content: Ukraine and Iraq prove that geopolitical factors are the quintessential wild cards when it comes to estimating energy prices - and the oil "crisis spike" is just getting started. Our expert breaks down recent events and forecasts where oil prices are headed in coming months...