The market had another batch of rather upbeat earnings results today. The Nasdaq Composite Index is currently up 9 points (0.1%) to 6357.39.

WTI Crude dropped drastically after a six session rally and it’s weighing on the energy stocks.

The Institute for Supply Management (ISM) showed that U.S. factory activity fell to 56.3 last month from 57.8 in June, which was the highest level since August 2014. This shows a near three-year high in July amid a drop in new orders.

The core PCE showed consumer spending increasing to 2.8%, showing consumption unchanged in June after a rise of 0.2 percent in May.

The S&P 500 traded near the best level of the day. The index is up 5.9 (0.2%) to 2,476, which is only slightly below its record close set last week at 2,484.04. Telecommunications Services and Financials are the two best performing sectors.

S&P 500 Performance

Investors are awaiting Apple (AAPL) earnings results; after the close of the market today. Apple is the S&P 500's largest component by market cap and it’s the last of the “FANG” stocks to report.

We are not going to force the issue. Have a wonderful afternoon.