Stocks closed mostly higher on Wednesday with only the Dow missing the mark by just -0.03%. But they all closed at or near their session highs as they rallied into the close.
Strong economic growth continues to fuel stocks.
That was underscored, once again, by Wednesday's lower than expected Weekly Jobless Claims which saw new claims fall by -71,000 to 199K, well below the consensus for 264K, and setting a new pandemic low in the process.
MBA Mortgage Applications were up 1.8% on a w/w basis, with purchases up 5.0%, and refi's up 0.4%.
Durable Goods Orders fell -0.5% m/m vs. the consensus for 0.3%. But excluding the volatile transportation component, which includes vehicle sales (which have been suppressed due to the chip shortage), it was up 0.5%, in line with expectations. And core capital goods were up 0.6%, also in line with expectations. (And for good measure, the previous month was revised up from 0.8% to a gain of 1.3%.)
The second estimate for Q3 GDP came in at 2.1%, as expected.
And Consumer Sentiment rose to 67.4 from last month's 66.8 and the consensus for 66.9.
But inflation is the wall of worry that the market has had to climb.
That was evidenced by the Personal Income and Outlays report which showed the PCE Price Index up 0.6% m/m and 5.0% y/y. While that was in line with expectations, it was still the hottest reading in 30 years. The core PCE Price Index was slightly less, rising 0.4% m/m and 4.1% y/y.
But the resilience of the market has been on full display all year.
And with Q4 GDP expected to accelerate into the end of the year, not to mention another robust showing for 2022, it looks like there's a lot more upside to go for both the economy and the market.
So make sure you're taking full advantage of it.
That means getting into the right stocks and staying out of the wrong ones.
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Best,