The market declined sharply just one day after it posted strong gain. By close, the Dow was off by almost 160 points. Clearly, volatility is now back. Financials were under pressure with Goldman Sachs down nearly 9% amid news that it will be part of a federal criminal probe. Tech stocks also tumbled 2.2% with the semi sector losing 4.5%. As for the week, the S&P 500 fell 2.5% but on a year-to-date basis, it was still up more than 6%. Earlier, the government reported that the first quarter GDP hit an annualized rate of 3.2%. It was slightly below consensus but the consumption component actually came better than expected.

Most major sectors finished the session lower led by financials and tech. The CRB commodity index rose 0.9%. The US dollar was higher against most currencies. Treasury yields were lower. The three-month US LIBOR advanced 1 bps to 35 bps. The VIX index rose almost 4 points. The market breath was negative on both NYSE and Nasdaq. The volume was similar compared to the previous session.

The market rose strongly on Thursday with all three major indexes finishing the session higher by more than 1%. The gain was steady and broad. Investors seemed to believe the European debt issue has been contained, at least for the time being with the yields narrowing in several countries involved. Shares of BP, though, fell to a multimonth low as investors realized the costs to clean up its recent oil spill will be more than initially expected. Separately, initial claims for the week ended April 24th totaled 448K, slightly higher than the consensus estimate of 445K.

All 10 major sectors finished the session higher led by financials and industrials. The CRB commodity index rose 0.3%. The US dollar was lower against most currencies. Treasury yields were lower. The three-month US LIBOR was unchanged at 34 bps. The VIX index dropped more than 2 points. The market breath was positive on both NYSE and Nasdaq. The volume was similar compared to the previous session.

The market finished the Fed decsion session in a mixed fashion. As widely expected, the Fed not only kept the fed funds rate unchanged at the range 0% to 0.25% it also indicated that it would keep the rates exceptionally low for an extended period. The fed news offered little surprise and the market moved little following the decision. Separately, analysts at Standard & Poor's downgraded Spain's credit rating to AA from AA+ one day after it cutting its rating for Portugal and Greece. The market initially dipped into red following the downgrade but managed to reverse.

Most major sectors finished the session higher led by financials and energy. The CRB commodity index rose 0.5%. The US dollar was higher against most currencies. Treasury yields were higher. The three-month US LIBOR rose 1 bps at 34 bps. The VIX index dropped almost 2 points. The market breath was positive on both NYSE and Nasdaq. The volume was lighter compared to the previous session.

The market tumbled on Tuesday with all three major indexes finishing the session lower by around 2%. Credit analysts at S&P downgraded Greece's debt to junk and cut Portugal's debt two notches to A-. Within 30 minutes of the downgrade news, the Dow was down roughly 150 points. The VIX, which is normally served as a fear indicator, surged more than 30% to its highest level since February.  The euro, which had been weak since the Greek debt issue emerged, fell to 1.3179 against the dollar, the lowest level in a year. Trading volume on the NYSE surged to nearly 1.7 billion shares, which is the most for any non-options expiration session this year. Economic data were mostly ignored in today's trading. The S&P/Case Shiller 20-City Composite made its first increase since 2006 with a 0.6% year-over-year increase. But it was still weaker than the 1.3% annual increase expected. The Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index came in at 57.9. The reading was the best since August 2008.

All 10 major sectors finished the session lower led by financials and materials. The CRB commodity index tumbled 1.9%. The US dollar was higher against most currencies. Treasury yields were lower. The three-month US LIBOR rose 1 bps at 33 bps. The VIX index rose more than 5 points. The market breath was negative on both NYSE and Nasdaq. The volume was on the heavy side.

The market started the first session of the new week in a mixed fashion. Financials were under pressure throughout the session as shares of Citigroup fell 5% after it disclosed that the Treasury will sell up to some 7 billion its shares. The Dow component Caterpillar climbed to a fresh 52-week high after it posted earnings that exceeded the consensus estimate and raised its outlook. The movement in Caterpillar helped the Dow close at a new high for the year.

Most major sectors finished the session lower led by financials and health care. The CRB commodity index dipped 0.2%. The US dollar was mixed against most currencies. Treasury yields were little changed. The three-month US LIBOR was unchanged at 32 bps. The VIX index rose 0.8 point. The market breath was neutral on both NYSE and Nasdaq. The volume was on the heavy side.