The Closing Look

Thursday was another quiet day on Wall Street as the market continued to consolidate the recent and strong post brexit rally and waited for Yellen’s speech and the latest reading on GDP on Friday. Economic data topped estimates, with initial jobless claims falling for a third consecutive week to 261,000. Separately, durable goods orders jumped +4.4% in July, easily beating estimates for +3.7%. The Fed began its annual meeting in Jackson Hole and a few Fed heads came out and were a little hawkish. Esther George, Kansas City Fed President and voting member, said “I do think it is time to move that rate” and then Dallas Fed President Robert Kaplan said the central bank was “moving toward being able to take another step.” For the past few years, at nearly every meeting, the Fed has been teasing of another rate hike but when push comes to shove, they back off and do nothing.

Gary’s Thoughts: Sickening we have to wait on a speech from people that have done nothing more than screw savers and created massive bubbles around the globe. If I was Prez, they would be back to teaching their nonsense.