The market tumbled on Friday with all three major indexes posting a loss in excess of 3%. Once again, the trigger of the selling was from Europe as officials from Hungary stated that economic conditions in their country are grave. It should be noted that Hungarian total GDP as of 2009 is less than $200 billion. In comparison, the GDP figure for Greece and Portugal is $344 billion and $232 billion respectively and that for Spain and Italy is$1.44 trillion and $2.09 trillion respectively. Nonetheless, contagion concerns sent the euro to a fresh four-year low and it closed the session below $1.20. Separately, the nonfarm payrolls also disappointed some traders. The headline number came in at 431K, below 500K consensus. The unemployment rate dipped to 9.7% from 9.9% the prior month. The average workweek increased to 34.2 from 34.1. 

All 10 major sectors finished the session lower led by industrials and financials. The CRB commodity index tumbled 2.3%. The US dollar was higher against most currencies. Treasury yields were lower. The three-month US LIBOR was unchanged. The VIX index surged over 20%. The market breath was negative on both NYSE and Nasdaq. The volume was heavier compared to the previous session.

The market finished the Thursday modestly higher following yesterday's big rally. It was the first back-to-back gain for the S&P 500 since April 29th. The market's action was still influenced by the movement in the euro. With euro weakening in the morning, the equity market was also week. And when the euro was starting to stabilize in the afternoon, so was the general market. Most economic news for the session came in in-line with expectations. The May ADP Employment report indicated an increase of 55K private positions, slightly worse than 70K expected. The ISM Services Index came in at 55.4 vs. 55.6 expected. Factory orders for April increased 1.2%, slightly below the 1.7% increase expected. First quarter nonfarm productivity increased 2.8% compared with 3.3% increase expected. Unit labor costs for the first quarter fell 1.3%, less than a 1.6% drop expected. 

Most major sectors finished the session modestly higher led by energy and tech. The CRB commodity index rose 0.8%. The US dollar was higher against most currencies. Treasury yields were higher. The three-month US LIBOR was unchanged. The VIX index was little changed. The market breath was positive on both NYSE and Nasdaq. The volume was neutral compared to the previous session.

The market rebounded sharply on Wednesday after falling in each of the previous two sessions. All three major indexes registered gains of more than 2%. A rebound in the euro gave the equity market an early boost. Then late in the afternoon, President Obama mentioned about better condition seen in the job market, which some viewed as a possibility that the President has already seen the number that is supposed to be released on Friday. As a result, some analysts on the street are looking for a number of half a million job creations from the non-farm payroll report. Although I don't agree with such a rosy view about the job report, it is very likely we will see another 100K or more job creations on Friday.  

All 10 major sectors finished the session higher led by energy and financials. The CRB commodity index rose 0.2%. The US dollar was lower against most currencies. Treasury yields were higher. The three-month US LIBOR was unchanged. The VIX index dropped more than 5 points. The market breath was positive on both NYSE and Nasdaq. The volume was neutral compared to the previous session.

The market fell sharply in the first trading session following the holiday long-weekend. The S&P 500 has dropped almost 3% over the past two trading sessions, erasing most of the gain from last Thursday. Once again a sell-off in the euro was the main reason behind today's late-day decline. The euro fell to a new four-year low of $1.211 after the ECB said that the euro zone banks could face further write downs over the next 18 months. Separately, ISM Manufacturing Index for May came in at 59.7, slightly better than consensus. Construction spending for April surged 2.7%. It is not only surpassing all expectations but also making the best monthly increase in 12 years.

All 10 major sectors finished the session lower led by energy and materials. The CRB commodity index declined 1.0%. The US dollar was higher against most currencies. Treasury yields were little changed. The three-month US LIBOR was unchanged. The VIX index rose more than 3 points. The market breath was negative on both NYSE and Nasdaq. The volume was neutral compared to the previous session.

Market is closed for Memorial Day.