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2 hr 38 min ago

[BRIEFING.COM] With investors still especially sensitive to economic data and swings in oil prices, Thursday was no exception -- except that neither left the market very convinced as to which direction the market should go. Stocks opened slightly higher, but traded relatively flat and in a narrow range throughout the session, only to cling to small gains. To wit, another day of below average volume, as the NYSE did not see 1.0 bln shares change hands until 3:30 ET, provided even less appreciation behind the market's modest uptick.

Before the bell, the Commerce Dept. reported a larger than expected 2.4% decline in July durable orders. However, since that was largely due to a sharp drop in the very volatile transportation component, the strong underlying trend in new orders further suggested that business investment will continue to provide a lift to the economy despite the slowdown in consumer spending, offering some early optimism.

Nonetheless, investors shortly thereafter contending with more evidence of a slowdown in a housing market which had bolstered consumer spending for years via mortgage refinancing and home equity withdrawals took some steam out of early recovery efforts following Wednesday's moderate sell-off. At 10:00 ET, new home sales checked in with a greater than expected decline of 4.3% in July and lifted inventories to an 11-year high, mirroring a disappointing report on home resales a day earlier that left investors questioning whether past rate hikes now leave the economy cooling off faster than previously thought.

When it was all said and done, another rise in oil prices (of all things) provided just enough leadership in the earnings-rich Energy sector -- the day's best performer -- to inch the indices into positive territory going into the close. Another sector providing notable leadership was Health Care; but again, the sector gained largely on its defensive-oriented merits and upbeat analyst commentary on Johnson & Johnson (JNJ 64.55 +0.64), which also happens to be the seventh most influential component on the S&P 500.

The Industrials sector, in contrast, acted as the day's biggest constraint, led by weakness in Caterpillar (CAT 65.50 -1.71) -- the day's worst performing Dow component (-2.5%) following weaker than expected economic data, and Boeing (BA 75.24 -1.12), which ranked second among Dow laggards (-1.5%) after the Commerce Dept. showed that orders for civilian aircraft fell 10% in July.
NYSE Adv/Dec 1698/1512...Nasdaq Adv/Dec 1515/1475