U.S. Stocks Fall Again (Bloomberg)
The S&P 500 declined 0.4% Wednesday in its first two-day skid in a month. ???The earnings are validating and supporting the market as opposed to pushing the market higher,??? Mark Freeman the chief investment officer at Westwood Holdings Group Inc. in Dallas said, ???It just speaks to how far we have come and the amount of positive expectations that have already been cleared by the market.???
Dollar Recovers against the Euro (Reuters)
Housing data and an increase in treasury yields helped the dollar break its downtrend Wednesday, as the Euro fell from a one-month high. "The dollar is being supported by higher yields right now, suggesting that the ongoing recovery in the U.S. is still positive overall," said Brian Kim, currency strategist at RBS Securities in Stamford, Conn.
Gold Falls from One-Month High (CNBC)
Gold fell 1% Thursday as gains in the dollar and rallying U.S. Treasury yields hurt gold???s investment appeal. "The higher U.S. Treasury yields and strong economic data is renewing the idea that maybe the Fed would start tapering in September" earlier than gold investors had thought, said Bill O'Neill, partner of commodities investment firm LOGIC Advisors.
