Stocks Rally But With Notable Pockets of Weakness

[Click to view in browser](. Aug 3rd 2020 Dear InvestingChannel Reader, Financial markets picked up Monday morning where they left off Friday afternoon. Apple (AAPL), Microsoft (MSFT), and other big-cap tech names are leading the S&P 500 to a 25-point gain. The Nasdaq is seeing relative strength, up another 1.35%, while the Dow added 235. Yet, despite the gains in stock market averages, some sectors are notably weaker: real estate (-1.7%), utilities (-1.4%), consumer staples (-.4%). CBOE Volatility Index (.VIX) is up .35 to 24.81. Treasury bonds are modestly weaker after Fitch downgraded the United States' credit rating to AAA negative Friday afternoon and after the latest ISM Manufacturing Index printed at a better-than-expected 54.2 in July. Separately, however, data showed construction spending falling worse-than-expected .7% in June. Crude oil gained 75c to $41, while gold is holding recent gains after adding $1.30 to $1964. Focus is also on the next round of COVID-19 relief from Congress. Policymakers met over the weekend and reported meaningful progress, but the impasse continues over details of the plan, including extending the extra $600 of weekly unemployment payments that expired last week. In other stock news, Merck (MRK) added 3.7% after Goldman upgraded shares to Buy. Pitney Bowes (PBI) surged 47% after an analyst upgrade and reports the company signed substantial contracts with a government agency. Kodak (KODK) sank 22.75%, as the stock continues to pullback following a surge last week; shares are up more than 500% compared to a week ago. Moving forward, earnings and data will be in focus throughout the week, including monthly jobs numbers on Friday. Meanwhile, here are some of the other stories that caught our eye: - [Virus Relief Bill Remains Up in the Air as Negotiations Continue]( - [U.S. Manufacturing Shows Further Improvement in July]( - [Construction Spending Falls in June]( - [U.S. Treasury Bond Demand Raises Prospect of Whole Curve Yielding Less Than 1%]( - [Trump Gives Microsoft 45 Days to Clinch TikTok Deal]( - [7-Eleven To Buy Marathon Petroleum Convenience Stores Arm Speedway For $21B]( - [Goldman Updgrades Merck to Buy]( - [Coronavirus Pandemic and a Story of Survival]( - [With Loan Money Gone, Restaurants Are at the Mercy of the Virus]( - [Outbreak Hits Norway Cruise Ship, Could Spread Along Coast]( What's next for Bitcoin? [Deadlock Over Stimulus Keeps Trading Cautious]( [(Hedge Accordingly)]( Bitcoin began trading cautiously on Monday as US lawmakers struggled to finalize a stimulus plan following its expiry on July 31. [Click here to read more.]( [Man Who Predicted 2020 Gold Rally Issues New Call]( Gold expert explains why massive shift happening right now in the financial markets could create biggest opportunity in last 100 years. [Click here to know more]( Sponsored by Stansberry Research Hedge funds are actively buying this stock. [Square Makes Uphill Strides]( [(WhaleWisdom)]( Square (SQ) has seen relatively steady growth over the past few months, after a short-term dip in price in March 2020. [Click here to read more.]( Shares rally 23% following positive clinical readout. [Immunic Soars On Positive Mid-Stage Readout For Multiple Sclerosis Study, Q2 Beat]( [(Benzinga)]( The company said its Phase 2 study, dubbed EMPhASIS, met all the primary and key secondary endpoints. [Click here to read more.]( [Trade Commission-Free* with TradeStation]( Trade Commission-Free* Stocks, ETFs, Options, and Futures with The Award-Winning Technology of TradeStation. [Open An Account]( Sponsored by TradeStation [Top 5 Cloud Stocks to Buy According to Hedge Funds]( by [InsiderMonkey]( Finding stocks that would guarantee returns, let alone preservation of capital, seems like a herculean task. [Click here to know more]( [You're different. Research Different.]( Sponsored by [InvestingChannel]( Our distribution is rare. Our audience is rare. Join this elite Investing Circle. [Subscribe Now!]( [Top 3 ETFs for This Week's Earnings Reports]( by [Benzinga]( Second-quarter earnings seasons rolls along this week and here's to hoping there are some pleasant surprises, which, believe it or not, there have been plenty of. [Read more.]( Copyright 2020, InvestingChannel, All Rights Reserved | [Privacy Policy]( [InvestingChannel, Inc.]( P.O. Box 118 New York, NY 10018. To unsubscribe, [click here]( [Link](