12:10pm (EST)
The bulls are still running, albeit at a slow pace, as the market is higher for the third consecutive day. The Dow is currently enjoying a 20 point pop and is at 10,328. The S&P 500 is back at 1,100 and is up a point while the Nasdaq is higher by 4 and is trading at 2,229.
The Dow started off in negative territory but got a lift after the Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank said its business activity index rose to 17.6 from 15.2 in January. It was better-than-expected news as new orders jumped to their highest in more than five years. The boys on the Street were expecting a reading of 17.
Elsewhere, the index of leading economic indicators rose 0.3% last month but was weaker than the 1.2% rise in December and a 1.1% rise in November. It was also the smallest of the index’s 10 straight monthly gains and short of the 0.5% growth that was expected. Despite the weaker-than expected results, it still showed that the economy continues to chug along.
Toyota Motors (TM, $73.71, down $0.39) continues to feel the heat as another model has been called into question. The Corolla may have a potential power-steering problem that could involve up to a half million vehicles.
The U.S. Transportation Department plans to open a formal investigation despite Toyota saying it has received fewer than 100 complaints with the Corolla, the world’s best-selling car.
This could put Toyota’s recalls in the double-digit millions…the company has already recalled 8.5 million of its cars because of problems with sticking gas pedals, floor mats and braking systems.
We wanted to send today’s update out a little early because we have a NEW TRADE that we profile in our Members Area. The options are already up 10% but we think we can squeeze a double out of the trade by mid-March.
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