The Dow Jones struck yet another record closing high Monday - its fourth in a row. The S&P 500 likewise hit a new record today.
The VIX, the market's volatility gauge, slipped more than 3% on the day, a sign that the markets are shedding concerns about geopolitical tensions.
Today's Scorecard:
Dow: 17,613.74, +39.81, +0.23%
S&P 500: 2,038.26, +6.34, +0.31%
Nasdaq: 4,651.62, +19.08, +0.41%
What Moved the Markets Today: With elections in the rearview mirror and confidence rising after the U.S. unemployment rate slipped to 5.8%, investors are optimistic about the current state of the American economy. Events in Europe still remain central to investor confidence, but the light slate of economic data combined with positive short-term hindsight had investors looking forward to China's largest e-commerce event, "Singles' Day."
Now check out the day's most important market notes:
- Net Neutrality Battle Heats Up: Online providers slumped on news that U.S. President Barack Obama called for the Federal Communications Commission to introduce Net Neutrality regulations to balance traffic on the Internet. Shares of Comcast Corp. (Nasdaq: CMCSA) slipped nearly 4% on news that the U.S government was aiming to introduce new regulations on Internet traffic. The president is pushing for the FCC to regulate Internet companies in the same manner as public utilities.
- USPS Data Breach: On the heels of The Home Depot Inc.'s (NYSE: HD) recent data breach, America's postal service is the next to fall victim to a cyberattack. The USPS announced this morning nearly a half-million employees could be affected by the data breach.
- Singles' Day Surge: Shares of Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. (NYSE: BABA) jumped 4% ahead of Tuesday's "Singles' Day" shopping event. The holiday, which was created to celebrate or lament being single in China, is the largest 24-hour online shopping event in the world. In 2013, Alibaba processed a record $5.8 billion in transactions on Singles' Day, crushing the $1.6 billion in sales during American online shopping event Cyber Monday.
- Hack Attack: Cybersecurity firm FireEye Inc. (Nasdaq: FEYE) announced research this afternoon showing Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL) iPhone and iPad technology is highly prone to data attacks. FireEye said harmful malware could permit hackers to breach sensitive financial and password data. Shares of Apple were down marginally on the day. Get the most important AAPL info here.
Now our experts share some of the most important investment moves to make based on today's market trading - for Money Morning Members only:
- How to Profit from a Stronger U.S. Dollar: The Federal Reserve plans to wind down its asset purchases this month, but Japan and the United Kingdom are still buying, full swing. Meanwhile, the European Union is just looking to get started with its stimulus efforts. That's sent the U.S. dollar into a major run-up, with the euro and yen on the losing side. This adds up to a global currency conflict. And Money Morning Resource Expert Peter Krauth, a 20-year commodity guru and portfolio advisor, has identified a very rare, very lucrative opportunity...
- How to Profit from Unrest in Hong Kong: Most investors haven't got a clue about what Hong Kong's riots represent, let alone the investment potential that's being unleashed there. As a result, they're going to miss out on some really terrific profit opportunities. But before we get to the best way to play this, understanding what's driving the unrest is key...
- How to Get a Piece of Wall Street Profits Without the Wall Street Corruption: There's simply no limit to how far Wall Street will go to make a buck. It's no wonder. With corporate offenses and "bad behavior" routinely going unpunished, perpetrators have developed a sense of impunity. But we can strike back against banks that are behaving badly. And here's how we're going to play a non-bank investment against a rigged services industry...
About the Author
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.