Market Summary 8/25/2010

Stock Market Closing Prices – 8/25/10

Dow ( DJIA ) Close - 10060.06 +19.61
Nasdaq Close - 2141.54 +17.38
S&P 500 Close – 1055.33 +3.46

Commodities Closing Prices – 8/25/10

Gold Close - 1239.50
Oil Close – 72.79
Natural Gas – 3.89

The Dow up 20 points to 10060 after drop as many as 102 points soon after open.

New-home sales drop to their lowest level on record. The report was especially disappointing because most analysts had expected sales to be flat from June.

The Dow had hovered around 10,000 for all of the morning and much of the afternoon before the rally set in. The Dow dropped below 10,000 on at least three occasions today.

The S&P 500 dropped twice to about 1,040, which technical analysts have been watching carefully. A close below 1,040 would be very bearish for stocks.

But the market faces a big head wind on Thursday when the Labor Department issues its weekly report on jobless claims. Over the past few weeks, the report has signaled a deteriorating job market.

Oil futures for October delivery gained 89 cents to settle at $72.52 a barrel. Gold for December delivery rose $7.90 to settle at $1,1241.30 an ounce.

Economic Data: August 26, 2010

U.S. weekly jobless claims. 8:30 a.m.
EIA releases weekly natural gas inventories. 10:30 a.m.
J. Crew Group is scheduled to report quarterly results before market open.