US Stocks Poised For Best Month In 4 Years

Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Rockwell Global Capital, said U.S. stocks were “consolidating” after the October equity surge ahead of the monthly jobs report and other key data next week.

In Europe, stocks were largely down (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/european-stocks-on-track-for-best-month-since-2009-2015-10-30), while oil prices were tilting lower (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/crude-prices-pull-back-as-us-growth-worries-creep-in-2015-10-30) and gold was flat.

For October, all three major indexes posted their biggest percentage increases since October 2011, with the S&P 500 rising 8.3 per cent, led by energy and materials, while a measure of volatility fell.

This year through mid-August, before the stock market began its steep late-summer swoon, the S&P 500 had been up 2.1 per cent, compared with a 1.7 per cent gain by the Russell 2000 index for shares of small companies.

Yesterday, the Dow Jones average (INDEXDJX:.DJI) finished down 0.1% at 17,756, while the broader-based S&P 500 (INDEXSP:.INX) was barely changed at 2,089 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (INDEXNASDAQ:.IXIC) declined 0.4% to 5,074. The Bank of Japan holds a policy meeting on Friday.

Meanwhile, the Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally-adjusted index of application activity, which covers home purchase demand and refinancing demand, declined 3.5% in the week ended 23 October.

The Nasdaq has gained 42.41 points, or 0.8 percent. The BOJ also trimmed its price and growth forecasts on Friday, and many still expect it to eventually deliver more easing.

Valeant Pharmaceuticals global slumped 15.8 per cent as it announced it was severing ties with mail-order pharmacy Philidor RX, which has been criticised for predatory pricing of drugs.

Markets around the world have rallied since the Fed’s decision not to raise rates in September, when the central bank highlighted global risks. Central banks’ ultralow interest-rate policies have boosted stock markets in recent years, and expectations that a few central banks could keep the stimulus in place for longer have buoyed investors’ appetite for equities.

The Fed said a December rate rise was still on the table at its meeting Wednesday. Separate data showed wages and salaries rose in the third quarter at a faster pace, while another report showed consumer sentiment increased less than forecast in October as Americans viewed buying conditions as less favourable than they did earlier in the month.