WEEKEND WRAP: American Exceptionalism Is Being Measured by Price, Not Value; Gold Bounding; Oil Drops on U.S.-Russia Talk Proposal; the West is Bankrupt

With most of the unwashed masses focused on a meeting this coming Friday in Alaska between President Trump and Russia's Vladimir Putin, the instability from Trump's tariffs was interrupted by a sublime sense of calm late in the week.

Those expecting the U.S. President and Russia to make any kind of lasting deal on ending the conflct in Ukraine are likely to be disappointed by this time next week. Neocon and European grumblings have already been received, Zelensky called the proposals "dead", but the mainstream media will continue to push the hope and change rhetoric all the way to the summit, which means that happiness, flower petals, skittle-pooping unicorns, and AI hype is likely to dominate trading and noise in the week ahead.

Stocks aren't yet high enough for anybody to back off or jump off the "America First" bandwagon. Tariffs have just scratched the surface of American exceptionalism, which is soon to be measured by how high prices for manufactured goods, cars, coffee, gold, and many non-essentials can go.

Somebody once said, "a little inflation is a good thing." It was probably some dunce like George W. Bush or other self-absorbed political nitwit. A little inflation being a good thing means two to three percent, which is touted by the Federal Reserve, most all members of congress, presidents dating back to LBJ, and most media commentators doubling or tripling the price every 15 to 20 years, so that after 50 years - that would be 1975 in this case, prices for anything and everything in the United States have at least increased by 10-12 times.

The average sale price of a new car in 1975 was under $5000 in 1975. Today, it's $48,000. A gallon of gas was around 50 cents. Today, $3.13 and up, except in the southeast. A house cost, on average, $42,000. Today, it's 10 times that. A postage stamp was 10 cents in 1973. The USPS just raised the price to 73 cents. In a few years it is sure to be over a dollar. The price of a dozen eggs in 1975 compared to today... don't ask.

America is exceptional in one regard. Exceptionally easy to fool and abuse by the elite governing class. Weimerica approaches.

Stocks

U.S. stocks had a solid week with all the majors sporting gains. The S&P closed Friday just pennies from a new all-time high, while the NASDAQ closed out the week at a record level (21,450.02). Notably, the Dow Jones Industrials and Transports continue to lag, neither making new highs since December 4 for the Dow, and November 25 for the Trannies. Old hat Dow Theory purports that these indices remain in a primary bearish pattern. Effects on the rest of the market are not correlated.

Either investors have cooled on these small indices (the Industrials are only 30 stocks; the transports but 20) or the Magnificent 7 and the NASDAQ are heading in a 1999 direction, straight off the page. It's an odd comparison, similar to the dotcom era "new economy vs. old economy" trope, but the suggestion is that not everything in the U.S. economy is experiencing smooth sailing. The NASDAQ and S&P, in particular, carry some of the most extreme valuations seen since the crash of 2008.

The Shiller PE (CAPE) ended the week at 38.45, just below the October 2011 reading of 38.58, the second highest ever. Considering prospects for end of summer trading to be genuinely positive, the CAPE should continue to approach the bubble levels of the dotcom boom, which peaked at the highest level ever, 44.19, in November 1999.

For the week, Mag7 stocks were led by Apple's 12% gain, but Palantir (PLTR) outshone them all after releasing second quarter earnings with an 18% surge in share price. The company shows trailing earnings of 46 cents, putting this tech darling at a PE of 406, quite speculative, but that's just how Wall Street rolls these days.

Stocks reporting this week will not be among the most important as earnings season for second quarter results is nearly at an end. Here's the short list:

Monday (before open) Barrick (B), Diversified Energy ((DEC); (after close) AMC Entertainment (AMC), Plug Power (PLUG), GoPro (GPRO)

Tuesday (before open) Cardinal Health (CAM), Paysafe (PSFE) Circle Internet Group (CRCL); (after close) CAVA (CAVA), H&R Block (HRB); Zevra Theraputics (ZVRA)

Wednesday (before open) Endeavour Silver (EXK), Innoviz Technologies (INVZ); (after close) Cisco (CSCO), Red Robin (RRGB), Equinox Gold (EQX), Aethlon Medical (AEMD)

Thursday (before open) JD.Com (JD), John Deere (DE), Advance Auto Parts (AAP), Birkenstock (BIRK)First Majestic (AG) ; (after close) Applied Materials (AMAT), Sandisk (SNDK), Gambling.com (GAMB)

Friday (before open) VolitionRX (VNRX); BitFuFu (FUFU), Flowers Foods (FLO).

The economic data calendar will be fairly busy with the focus on Tuesday's July CPI and Thursday's PPI. On Wednesday, the weekly EIA report is released with crude and distillate output and U.S. rig counts. Thursday also has weekly unemployment claims before the open.

A load of data drops on Friday, including July Retail Sales, Export Prices, Industrial Production, Capacity Utilization, and the University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Survey.

Treasury Yield Curve Rates

Date	1 Mo	1.5 mo	2 Mo	3 Mo	4 Mo	6 Mo	1 Yr
07/03/2025	4.35	4.43	4.50	4.42	4.41	4.34	4.07
07/11/2025	4.37	4.39	4.47	4.41	4.42	4.31	4.09
07/18/2025	4.35	4.39	4.46	4.40	4.42	4.30	4.08
07/25/2025	4.37	4.46	4.46	4.42	4.42	4.31	4.09
08/01/2025	4.49	4.46	4.44	4.35	4.30	4.16	3.87
08/08/2025	4.48	4.43	4.39	4.32	4.27	4.15	3.93

Date	2 Yr	3 Yr	5 Yr	7 Yr	10 Yr	20 Yr	30 Yr
07/03/2025	3.88	3.84	3.94	4.12	4.35	4.87	4.86
07/11/2025	3.90	3.86	3.99	4.19	4.43	4.96	4.96
07/18/2025	3.88	3.84	3.96	4.18	4.44	4.99	5.00
07/25/2025	3.91	3.86	3.95	4.15	4.40	4.92	4.92
08/01/2025	3.69	3.67	3.77	3.97	4.23	4.79	4.81
08/08/2025	3.76	3.70	3.84	4.03	4.27	4.84	4.85

With everybody jumping back into stocks, Treasury yields declined modestly, the most pronounced a seven basis point move on 2-year and 5-year notes, to 3.76% and 3.84%, respectively.

The spread on 2s-10s remained elevated at +51, while full spectrum widened to +37.

The yield curve remains inverted from 30-days out to 10 years, sloping lower to 3-year notes, then rising from 3.84% on 5-year notes out to 4.85% on the 30-year bond.

Since purchases of treasuries are going to soon be (already happening) done by stablecoins, the entire treasury complex may soon become largely irrelevant, but not until everybody is suckered into the most massive Ponzi scheme ever created.

Spreads:

2s-10s
9/15/2023: -69
9/22/2023: -66
9/29/2023: -44
10/06/2023: -30
10/13/2023: -41
10/20/2023: -14
10/27/2023: -15
11/03/2023: -26
11/10/2023: -43
11/17/2023: -44
11/24/2023: -45
12/01/2023: -34
12/08/2023: -48
12/15/2023: -53
12/22/2023: -41
12/29/2023: -35
1/5/2024: -35
1/12/2024: -18
1/19/2024: -24
1/26/2024: -19
2/2/2024: -33
2/9: -31
2/16: -34
2/23: -41
3/1: -35
3/8: -39
3/15: -41
3/22: -37
3/28: -39
4/5: -34
4/12: -38
4/19: -35
4/26: -29
5/3: -31
5/10: -37
5/17: -39
5/24: -47
5/31: -38
6/7: -44
6/14: -47
6/21: -45
6/28: -35
7/5: -32
7/12: -27
7/19: -24
7/26: -16
8/2: -08
8/9: -11
8/16: -17
8/23: -09
8/30: 00
9/6: +06
9/13: +09
9/20: +18
9/27: +20
10/4: +5
10/11: +13
10/18: +13
10/25: +14
11/1: +16
11/8: +5
11/15: +12
11/22: +4
11/29: +5
12/6: +5
12/13: +15
12/20: +22
12/27: +31
1/3: +32
1/10: +37
1/17: +34
1/24: +36
1/31: +36
2/7: +20
2/14: +21
2/21: +23
2/28: +25
3/7: +33
3/14: +29
3/21: +31
3/28: +38
4/4: +33
4/11: +52
4/17: +53
4/25: +55
5/2: +50
5/9: +49
5/16: +45
5/23: +51
5/30: +52
6/6: +48
6/13: +45
6/20: +48
6/27: +56
7/3: +47
7/11: +53
7/18: +56
7/25: +49
8/1: +54
8/8: +51

Full Spectrum (30-days - 30-years)
9/15/2023: -109
9/22/2023: -99
9/29/2023: -82
10/06/2023: -64
10/13/2023: -82
10/20/2023: -47
10/27/2023: -54
11/03/2023: -76
11/10/2023: -80
11/17/2023: -93
11/24/2023: -95
12/01/2023: -105
12/08/2023: -123
12/15/2023: -154
12/22/2023: -149
12/29/2023: -157
1/5/2024: -133
1/12/2024: -135
1/19/2024: -118
1/26/2024: -116
2/2/2024: -127
2/9: -117
2/16: -103
2/23: -112
3/1: -121
3/8: -125
3/15: -109
3/22: -112
3/28: -115
4/5: -93
4/12: -87
4/19: -77
4/26: -70
5/3: -85
5/10: -87
5/17: -94
5/24: -99
5/31: -83
6/7: -92
6/14: -113
6/21: -103
6/28: -96
7/5: -101
7/12: -108
7/19: -103
7/26: -104
8/2: -143
8/9: -131
8/16: -138
8/23: -141
8/30: -121
9/6: -125
9/13: -117
9/20: -80
9/27: -80
10/4: -75
10/11: -58
10/18: -54
10/25: -38
11/1: -18
11/8: -23
11/15: -10
11/22: -12
11/29: -40
12/6: -23
12/13: +18
12/20: +29
12/27: +38
1/3: +38
1/10: +54
1/17: +41
1/24: +40
1/31: +36
2/7: +32
2/14: +32
2/21: +31
2/28: +13
3/7: +24
3/14: +25
3/21: +23
3/28: +26
4/4: +5
4/11: +38
4/17: +44
4/25: +40
5/2: +41
5/9: +46
5/16: +52
5/23: +68
5/30: +59
6/6: +69
6/13: +67
6/20: +69
6/27: +66
7/3: +51
7/11: +59
7/18: +65
7/25: +55
8/1: +32
8/8: +37

Oil/Gas

WTI crude oil closed out the week near the lows, at $63.35, a loss of nearly $4.00 from last Friday's close of $67.26. Crude's decline was tied primarily to a heavily-publicized meeting between America's President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, scheduled for this coming Friday, the 15th, somewhere in Alaska, though the exact location has yet to be revealed, the purpose of which is to end the conflict in Ukraine with some sort of deal.

Oil's price decline may prove to be very temporary, depending on the outcome of the top-level discussions.

Gas prices have leveled off over the past month and remain near the low end. Gasbuddy.com reports the national average for a gallon of unleaded regular gas at the pump at $3.12, just a penny lower than the past two weeks.

As usual, California has the highest prices in the country, $4.48, up one cent on the week.

Oklahoma ($2.66) has the lowest prices at the pump, followed closely by Mississippi ($2.67). Texas is next at $2.68. South Carolina comes in at $2.76, followed by Tennessee and Alabama at $2.77 on Sunday. Arkansas ($2.78) is lower than North Carolina ($2.86) and Georgia ($2.88), while Florida ($3.02) ia up a dime from last week.

Pennsylvania ($3.23) was a penny cheaper this week, leading the northeast. All northeast states are above $3.00, from New Hampshire ($3.01) to Maryland at $3.16.

Midwest states were topped by Illinois ($3.37), the price dropping seven cents on the week. Kansas ($2.85) is the lowest in the region, followed by North Dakota ($2.86), Missouri and Wisconsin ($2.87). Other states n the region below $3 include Iowa ($2.90), Nebraska ($2.92), South Dakota and Kentucky ($2.93), Ohio ($2.94), Minnesota ($2.95). Indiana s at $3.13 and Michigan the highest in the region at $3.23.

Along with California, Washington ($4.49) is the only other one above $4, as Oregon remained a few cents below, at $3.97. Nevada ($3.73) was up two cents. Arizona ($3.17) is stable, but is still priced more than 30 cents higher than neighboring New Mexico at $2.83. Idaho ($3.53) was up a dime, while Utah ($3.33) was virtually unchanged.

Sub-$3.00 gas can be found in 21 states, equal to last week.

Bitcoin

This week: $118,483.10
Last week: $113,838.20
2 weeks ago: $118,275.80
6 months ago: $96,362.31
One year ago: $60,423.20
Five years ago: $11,860.80

Bitcoin and all crypto coins, alt-coins, and stablecoins are all frauds. So are Federal Reserve Notes, which are basic counterfeit. So, enjoy living in a fake world. See directly below about real money.

Precious Metals

Gold:Silver Ratio: 89.80; last week: 92.08

Per COMEX continuous contracts:

Gold price 7/11: $3,370.30
Gold price 7/18: $3,355.50
Gold price 7/25: $3,338.50
Gold price 8/1: $3,416.00
Gold price 8/8: $3,458.20

Silver price 7/11: $39.08
Silver price 7/18: $38.42
Silver price 7/25: $38.33
Silver price 8/1: $37.10
Silver price 8/8: $38.51

After silver was severely beaten down on the COMEX last week, it recovered some ground, gaining $1.41 per ounce this week. Of course, COMEX prices being about as reliable as BLS employment figures, prices elsewhere in the world, especially on the Shanghai Futures and Metals Exchanges, are at a premium by comparison. Silver actually rose above $41 per ounce in Shanghai on July 27 and closed out this week at $40.05. Comparing the Shanghai price to spot is even more extreme. Spot silver stood at 38.27 at Friday's market close.

In coming months, expect prices for both gold and silver to become less reliant on COMEX and London Fix prices, as the world diverges into BRICS vs. Western economies. Russia's Saint-Petersburg International Mercantile Exchange (SPIMEX) has announced plans to sell gold futures contracts by the end of the year.

Clouding the precious metals complex even further from the normal price-suppression tactics was a tariff announcement from the Trump administration on Thursday (8/7), reclassifying 1 kilogram and 100-troy-ounce Swiss gold bars and placing a 39% tariff on them. Shipments of these standard bars were immediately halted by suppliers as the price on the COMEX shot to record levels over $4500 an ounce.

On Friday, the administration said it would issue a "clarification" in coming days. Reeking of blatant market manipulation, dealers in Swiss bars will not ship to the United States until they're assured of the tariff impact. Previously, those standard bars had been exempt from tariffs. The markets are not fond of disruptions such as this and if the Trump administration continues to toy with price discovery in such a manner, the entire structure of the COMEX and trading on the CME setting global prices will become extinct, which, after all is said and done, would be the preference of most gold and silver advocates.

Here are the most recent prices for common one ounce gold and silver items sold on eBay (numismatics excluded, free shipping):

Item/Price	Low	High	Average	Median
1 oz silver coin:	38.00	49.62	43.46	42.98
1 oz silver bar:	38.00	51.95	46.28	46.20
1 oz gold coin:	3,460.65	3,686.16	3,560.99	3,542.30
1 oz gold bar:	3,541.93	3,671.07	3,579.47	3,571.23

The Single Ounce Silver Market Price Benchmark (SOSMPB) rose over the course of the week, to $44.73, a gain of 82 cents from the August 3 price of $43.91 per troy ounce.

WEEKEND WRAP

Prepare. Buy as much gold, silver, ammo, liquor, cigarettes, seeds, gas, and storable food as possible. The levels of stupidity and gullibility have reached epic proportions in the United States. Inflation has not subsided and is not likely to any time soon. Hope is not an investment strategy.

At the Close, Friday, August 8, 2025:
Dow: 44,175.61, +206.97 (+0.47%)
NASDAQ: 21,450.02, +207.32 (+0.98%)
S&P 500: 6,389.45, +49.45 (+0.78%)
NYSE Composite: 20,524.24, +58.50 (+0.29%)

For the Week:
Dow: +587.03 (+1.35%)
NASDAQ: +789.99 (+3.87%)
S&P 500: +151.44 (+2.43%)
NYSE Composite: +256.55 (+1.27%)
Dow Transports: +236.17 (+1.56%)

The End of the Beginning or the Beginning of the End? Trump Tariffs and the America First Policy Institute; Dow Theory Says Bears are Hungry

Now that President Trump's tariffs have become actively enforced, the question on the minds of macro-oriented investors is whether this marks the end of the beginning or the beginning of the end.

On one hand, having global import tariffs in place suggests that the period of uncertainty that began in April has ended in August and that any further changes in trade policy will be incremental and/or inconsequential.

Peering out over the horizon of the remainder of the second half of 2025 and into 2026, weighing the effects of tariffs on countries exporting to the U.S., the federal government, and U.S. consumers would appear to indicate that of the three, there is only one winner, that being the almighty federal government, which will benefit from increased revenues.

Countries trading with the United States will undoubtedly suffer. From India to Switzerland to Brazil, officials are already bracing for a blow to employment among firms doing business with the U.S. and planning or already implementing policies to shore up affected businesses.

As far as U.S. consumers are concerned, tariffs - despite being told that inflation is close to two percent and tariffs won't raise prices - just about everything and anything that is imported, other than oil and gas, will cost more tomorrow than it did yesterday.

What's troubling about these implications is that while the government will be taking in possibly as much as $300 billion in tariff revenue this year, and maybe up to $500 billion next year, neither the president nor congress has shown any inclination toward controlling their own spending, which also contributes mightily to inflation. Whether the federal government gets its money from individual taxpayers, corporations, or tariffs, they still spend much more than they receive, making the idea that giving them more money will somehow work out towards a reduction in spending look incredibly naive.

Congress will just spend more on defense, social programs, pet projects of senators and house members and other associated nonsense, none of which benefits the American public, which would like to see small business prosper, roads and bridges repaired, and housing becoming more affordable.

None of those things will happen under the current regime and their trade wars, saber rattling, and actual mass destruction of various enemies.

So, this period of time, in which congress is away on a month-long vacation, should be considered the beginning of the end because conditions for average Americans are likely not to improve, but decline further. For those on the lower rungs of the wealth ladder, the poor and destitute, their lives have already become more miserable, with the government imposing work requirements on recipients of SNAP benefits (food stamps). That policy may actually be a blessing in disguise, forcing the terminally-needy to actually earn a living rather than live off the dole.

With more money in the hands of the government and, effectively, less in the hands of the people via inflation, the potential for misuse and mayhem is large. Everybody already knows - or should know - that the federal government and its massive bureaucracy is completely corrupt. The thought that those with their hands already in the cookie jar would stop taking treats now that there's more of them is ludicrous.

At the end of day, individuals will determine public policy, not some wonks at the America First Policy Institute, the non-profit think tank that formulates the president's policy agenda. These people spend their waking hours writing white papers that define and praise their own agendas, dining at the best restaurants in Washington, D.C., all on the dimes of wealthy contributors who fuel their obsessions.

From their perspective, President Trump can do no wrong, and all policy initiatives are spot on, great and wonderful benefits for the prosperity of their contrubutors the American people. Perusing the website linked above should be a duty of all Americans because these are the top-down people and policies shaping the future of America and consequently much of the rest of the world.

The president doesn't make policy. the people at the America First Policy Institute do. If they're right, and have the best interests of the United States and its people top of mind, great. Otherwise, well, we'll just have to wait and see, won't we?

Meanwhile, Wall Street churns along, though from a Dow Theory perspective, stocks are still enjoying what amounts to a sugar rush. after the initial announcement of the tariff policy in April, stocks fell quickly and were only revived when Trump announced a 90-day pause just a week later. Now that the tariffs are actually in place, shouldn't stocks return to those earlier depths. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the Dow Jones Transportation Average are the only two major indices that have failed to make new highs following the April selloff.

What that means in Dow Theory terms is that the primary trend has not changed, and that bear market conditions are still in effect. The transports confirm this in a rather large way. Except for a few days in July, the trannies have been in correction territory since the end of February. With the industrials dipping below 44,000 on Thursday, the stage is set for further losses and possible spillover effects to the S&P and NASDAQ.

So far for the week, through Thursday's close, the scorecard favors the bulls, with the Dow up 380 points, NASDAQ up 592, and the S&P ahead by 102 points.

Stock futures are up, gold and silver are bid after Trump slapped 39% tariffs on gold bars from Switzerland, and WTI crude fell below $64 on Thursday and is now trending lower.

(BTW: Suki, the dog with the tic, is fine. The tic was removed and killed.)

Fun week, huh?

At the Close, Thursday, August 7, 2025:
Dow: 43,968.64, -224.48 (-0.51%)
NASDAQ: 21,242.70, +73.27 (+0.35%)
S&P 500: 6,340.00, -5.06 (-0.08%)
NYSE Composite: 20,465.75, -23.31 (-0.11%)

Trump Carving Out Items in Tariffs; More Companies Reporting Positive 2Q Results; Dog has Tic (sorry)

Editor's Note: Apologies for the short post. Animal emergency. Tic on dog. Needs to go to vet.

Different Day, Same Story (DDSS).

Stock futures are ripping higher as companies report generally-positive second quarter results.

Companies that reported after the close Thursday include AppLovin (APP), Draft Kings (DKNG), and Jack In the Box (JACK). Before the opening bell Thursday, Lilly (LILY), Conoco Phillips (COP), and Sony (SONY) have reported and are in focus.

WTI crude oil is at $64.79, the lowest since June 24. Gold and silver are being bid. Gold, $3,456.70; Silver, $38.51.

Trump is carving out items from tariffs, like chips, coffee, etc. What's the damn point?

At the Close, Wednesday, August 6, 2025:
Dow: 44,193.12, +81.38 (+0.18%)
NASDAQ: 21,169.42, +252.87 (+1.21%)
S&P 500: 6,345.06, +45.87 (+0.73%)
NYSE Composite: 20,489.05, +31.96 (+0.16%)

Big Caps, McDonald's, Disney Show Gains while Tech Stocks Take a Hit on AI Hype Under-Delivering

Stocks took a turn for the worse on Tuesday, reacting to somewhat conflicting data from the July Services ISM Report On Business.

The key data was:

• Business Activity Index: 52.6%
• New Orders Index: 50.3%
• Employment Index: 46.4%
• Supplier Deliveries Index: 51%

While the overall business activity was well beyond the breakeven of 50%, it was lower than the reading of 54.2 percent recorded in June. New orders and employment also suggested that contraction might be on the horizon, with employment in contraction territory for the second month in a row and the fourth time in the last five months.

The key take-away, delivered by Steve Miller, Chair of the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) Services Business Survey Committee, was:

“July’s PMI® level continues to reflect slow growth, and survey respondents indicated that seasonal and weather factors had negative impacts on business. The Employment Index’s continued contraction and faster expansion of the Prices Index are worrisome developments. The New Exports (a 3.2-percentage point decrease in July) and Imports (a 5.8-point drop) indexes, which both moved from expansion to contraction, provided signals that tariff tensions are impacting global trade. However, continued expansion in the Business Activity and New Orders indexes, together with a slight improvement in the Backlog of Orders Index, highlight the resilience of the U.S. services sector. Some respondents noted increased transportation congestion that supported the ‘slower’ Supplier Deliveries Index reading, another sign that activity levels are expanding. The most common topic among survey panelists remained tariff-related impacts, with a noticeable increase in commodities listed as up in price.”

Since the ISM is not a government agency, Wall Street takes their surveys seriously, which, in this case, leaned negatively.

On the other hand, earnings from major companies continue to roll out, and they have been mostly bullish.

Disney (DIS), a Dow component, reported adjusted earnings per share of $1.61, beating the $1.46 expected by analysts polled by Bloomberg. Earnings increased from $1.39 from a year ago. Shares are flat heading into the open.

McDonald's (MCD), also a Dow 30 component, announced second quarter EPS of $3.19, better than estimates, sending shares higher by nearly four percent before the bell.

Shopify (SHOP) blew away analyst estimates, issued strong forward guidance, and is trading more then 18% higher in the pre-market.

UBER (UBER) announced earnings of 0.63 per share, narrowly beating estimates, and also announced a stock buyback, but shares are down slightly heading toward the cash open.

Snap Inc. (SNAP) continued to suffer, with a net loss of $263 million for the quarter, compared to $249 million in the prior year. Reporting after the close Tuesday, the company continues to struggle, losing 16 cents per share.

Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) is down five percent in the pre-market after beating on revenue but missing on EPS. Related, Super Micro Computer (SMC), is being absolutely slammed, down 16%, as cracks begin to widen in the AI narrative.

It appears, from these reports, that tech stocks are beginning to fade, while big cap, long-standing companies, as evidenced by the results from Disney and McDonald's, are better suited to navigate the current environment.

Futures are up for stocks. Gold and silver slightly lower. WTI crude hit $65.15 overnight, but is rallying back above $66, as President Trump’s deadline for Russia to make peace in Ukraine approaches, with more sanctions in the U.S. pipeline.

It's a very mixed bag, especially when factoring in the tariff situation and global politics.

At the Close, Tuesday, August 5, 2025:
Dow: 44,111.74, -61.90 (-0.14%)
NASDAQ: 20,916.55, -137.03 (-0.65%)
S&P 500: 6,299.19, -30.75 (-0.49%)
NYSE Composite: 20,457.10, -31.76 (-0.16%)

Stocks Shrug Off Jobs, Friday's Losses, Open Week with Massive Gains as Earnings Come into Focus

After stocks swooned Friday on the poor July jobs figure of 73,000 and massive revisions to May and June, stocks started off the new week Monday with massive gains.

Makes perfect sense in an imperfect world.

Here's Julia Louis-Dreyfus explaining Non-Farm Payrolls, GDP estimates, mainstream media, and politicians in general.

It being the height of earnings season, Wall Street actually could care less if people have jobs, are losing jobs, need jobs, or don't do their jobs. Profits matter and this week will see more than 100 of the S&P 500 post second quarter results.

There are simply too many reporting to adequately cover them all, but here are a few highlights from companies reporting after the close Monday and before the open Tuesday.

Palantir (PLTR), a Wall Street darling, set a revenue record, boosted guidance and is ahead by more than seven percent pre-market.

Pfizer (PFE) boosted its outlook based on cutting payroll and a strong second quarter. The stock is up two percent in early trading.

Dow component, Caterpillar (CAT) missed on the bottom line and suggested a $1.5 billion hit on tariff issues. Shares are lower, but only by less than one percent.

British Petroleum (BP) beat estimates and BP made its biggest oil and gas discovery in 25 years off coast of Brazil, sending shares up about one percent. At $32 per share, BP may be turning things around.

Chemical giant, Dupont (DD) exceeded estimates and is trading more than five percent higher before the opening bell.

Hotelier Marriott (MAR) posted net income of $2.78 per share. Earnings, adjusted for non-recurring gains, came to $2.65 per share, beating estimates by a penny. Investors are unsatisfied with soft guidance and have sent shares down by one percent.

Stock futures are modestly higher across the board. Gold is recovering from an early-morning setback, but trading around $3,420. Silver is up 21 cents at $37.54.

At the Close, Monday, August 4, 2025:
Dow: 44,173.64, +585.06 (+1.34%)
NASDAQ: 21,053.58, +403.45 (+1.95%)
S&P 500: 6,329.94, +91.93 (+1.47%)
NYSE Composite: 20,488.86, +221.17 (+1.09%)