20Nov2015 Market Close: Markets Closed In The Green Pushing The Biggest Gain This Year, Technology Stocks Rose And Crude Fell Back To Opening Prices

Written by Gary

US averages closed in the green with the DOW up over 90 points. Strong results from retailers lifted the stock market to its biggest weekly gain this year. Ross Stores led the way higher today, gaining 10 percent, Nike jumped 6 percent and Google parent company Alphabet gained 2 percent. Crude rose over one dollar and fell back to where it opened this morning.

Todays S&P 500 Chart

The Market in Perspective

Here are the headlines moving the markets.
	Apple wins patent trial against Pendrell subsidiary MARSHALL, Texas (Reuters) – A U.S. jury on Friday found Apple Inc did not infringe five patents owned by a Pendrell Corp subsidiary at trial in a Texas federal court.
	Aetna, Anthem reassure investors on Obamacare business (Reuters) – U.S. health insurers Aetna Inc and Anthem Inc on Friday sought to reassure investors that their Obamacare businesses had not worsened after UnitedHealth Group Inc warned of mounting losses in that sector.
	Wall St. ends up; S&P posts best week since December NEW YORK (Reuters) – Wall Street ended higher on Friday, with healthcare and consumer stock rising and investors looking beyond a widely-expected December interest rate hike.
	Brent up 1 percent on short-covering; U.S. crude down, just above $40 NEW YORK (Reuters) – Brent oil settled 1 percent higher on Friday on pre-weekend short-covering, while U.S. crude settled lower but just above the $40-per-barrel support it has struggled to defend after a surge in inventories.
	GM, Ford, Fiat Chrysler labor costs rise in new pacts: study DETROIT (Reuters) – Hourly labor costs will rise to an average of $60 per auto worker by 2019 if proposed contracts at General Motors Co and Ford Motor Co are ratified by rank-and-file members of the United Auto Workers union, a study released on Friday said.
	Exclusive: Pfizer, Allergan CEOs agree on combined company roles – sources (Reuters) – Pfizer Inc and Allergan Inc chief executives have agreed on the roles they would assume in a combined company, removing one of the last hurdles to the largest ever healthcare merger, people familiar with the matter said.
	VW emissions issue extends to additional 75,000 vehicles WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Volkswagen AG has told U.S. regulators that emissions issues in larger luxury cars and SUVs extend to an additional 75,000 vehicles dating back to 2009, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said on Friday.
	Endangered species on Wall Street: The stock split NEW YORK (Reuters) – The U.S. stock market has more than tripled in value since its March 2009 lows but stock splits, a tool favored by company management in prior boom times, have yet to make a comeback.
	Weekend Reading: Differing Diatribes Submitted by Lance Roberts via STA Wealth Management, As expected, the market rallied from short-term support levels as the year-end rush to chase returns has started in full swing. To wit: “With the markets NOW oversold, it will be critically important that support at 2020 is not broken. The next critical level of support is the short-term moving average (dashed blue line) at 2010, and then 1990 at previous support levels from early this year. It will be important for the market to hold these current levels of support without violating it over the next few trading days to set up a more tradeable short-term rally. As shown in the chart below, the markets did not disappoint. Even with Japan slipping into its fifth recession in the last 5-years, despite massive infusions of capital, and the devastating attacks in Paris over the weekend, the market rallied strongly off of support as expected.” “As we progress through the last two months of the year, historical tendencies suggest a bias to the upside. This is particularly the case given the weakness this past summer which has left ma …
	Stocks Soar Most In 13 Months After Worst European Terrorist Attack In Over A Decade Quite a week eh? “I don’t care… I want to trade size and be a big swinging dick… I’m gonna make it rain!!” A quick summary of the week… Paris Population Down 130 people – worst European terrorist attack since Madrid (190 people) in 2004 S&P Up 3.3% – best week since Bullard Bounce Oct 2014 EM Stocks Up 4.5% – best week in 2 months Gold Down 0.4% – 5th weekly drop in a row, lowest since Oct 09 Silver Down 0.7% – 5th weekly drop in a row, lowest since July 09 Crude Down 0.5% – 5th drop in last 6 weeks, lowest since August Copper Down 5.3% – worst week sicne Dec 2014, down 6 weeks in a row to lowest since April 2009 Let’s start with stocks… From worst week of the year last week to best week since October 2014’s Bullard Bounce… Futures show the real exuberance though… Sunday night’s open marked the low after 100-plus people had been killed, and Paris was under martial law…Nasdaq +5% off Sunday night lows!!
	Metal Prices Plummet Two of the worldâ€™s most important industrial metals, copper and nickel, plummeted to six- and 12Â½-year lowsÂ on Friday, battered by a negative mix of weaker Chinese growth, a stronger U.S. dollar and too much metal.
	U.S. Stocks Climb, Capping Strong Week The Dow Jones Industrial Average posted its largest week of gains in more than a month, boosted on Friday by health-care, consumer discretionary and technology shares.
	Currencies: Euro weakens after dovish Draghi comments The euro falls against major currencies Friday after European Central Bank President Mario Draghi suggested further stimulus measures may be deployed to fight low inflation in the eurozone economy.