Stocks Start Slow, Finish Well To Open Third Quarter

Starting off the third quarter by stumbling into the red, US stock indices bounced off their early lows to erase the losses and post gains late in the afternoon.

With the notable exception of the NYSE Composite, the major exchanges posted small advances in what really looked like coordinated buying by forces unseen (hint: central banks, led by the Federal Reserve and the PPT).

Most of the rest of the world finished lower on the day, so the US market appears to be an outlier, because, well, America rocks, ya know.

Monday's finish was nothing more than market noise and should be regarded as such. Tuesday's session is shortened so that the brokers and dealers can beat the traffic out to the Hamptons. The exchanges will close at 1:00 pm EDT and remain closed on Wednesday, July 4, in appreciation of Independence Day.

Dow Jones Industrial Average July Scorecard:

Date	Close	Gain/Loss	Cum. G/L
7/2/18	24,307.18	+35.77	+35.77

At the Close, Monday, July 2, 2018:
Dow Jones Industrial Average: 24,307.18, +35.77 (+0.15%)
NASDAQ: 7,567.69, +57.38 (+0.76%)
S&P 500: 2,726.71, +8.34 (+0.31%)
NYSE Composite: 12,485.58, -18.67 (-0.15%)