Yesterday was an impressive session not just for coming back in the wake of a drubbing the day before, but for what the resolve saw throughout. I watched NASDAQ very closely; when it moved into the red column for the session, there was no reason to think it could finish the day higher. The index joined the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 rally passed early session high points.

Wall Street hates uncertainty but loves governmental largess. Cheers echoed throughout the canyons of Lower Manhattan as President Trump cut a deal with Democrats on governmental funding, kicking the debt ceiling down the road.  The sigh of relief was all some traders needed to spring into action.   Suddenly, there was a sense of urgency that perhaps the train was leaving the station.

The intraday reversal (while encouraging) didn’t lure enough sideline money for major indices to close at session highs. However, it was a good recovery from a session that had folks talking trash and misery again.

Keep on Trucking

Another source of buyer-inspiration yesterday was the Class 8 CV order report from ACT Research, which showed remarkable increases:

• +49% year-to-year
• +21% sequentially

There is an abundance of evidence that the U.S. economy picked up steam beyond the so-called green shoots we had become accustomed to over the past eight years.  One area of strength was in Class 8 commercial truck orders.  According to FTR research in October 2016, Class 8 orders soared 72% from a year earlier. 

It’s been on a blistering pace since, stalling slightly (but still higher on a year-over-year basis) in the spring. It was higher in August; 20,683 or 14% on a month-to-month basis, and 50% from a year ago. This data isn’t backward-looking but instead, it serves as a harbinger of business anticipation about near-term demand. We are also seeing a similar increase in business spending on durable goods as well. 

Today’s Session

The nation braces for Hurricane Irma as it continues to deal with the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey.

Interesting action continues in retailers, which are making moves that go beyond oversold to implying there will be brick and mortar winners.  One of our favorites, TJX caught a Wall Street upgrade this morning- I’m sure the rest of the street will jump on board once share price increases exponentially.

News out of the ECB, leaving interest rates the same, is sending the Euro higher and in turn the US Dollar lower.  This could have major implications for multi-national operators. 

Initial jobless claims spiked this morning.  We are digging for more details, but at the very least, it’s a yellow flag. 

I excited about this market because I’m excited about the underlying economy.  There is enormous room for growth for both.

Make sure you understand how to invest in this market.