U.S. Stocks Little Changed on Earnings Before Jobs Data
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-10-21/u-s-stock-index-futures-little-changed-before-earnings.html
1/ Employment DATA
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The Labor Department will tomorrow release the September jobs report, which was delayed from its original Oct. 4 date because of the 16-day partial federal shutdown that ended Oct. 17.
The data <b> will probably show employers added 180,000 workers in September, </b>the most since April, after a 169,000 gain in August, according to the median estimate of 93 economists surveyed by Bloomberg.
2/ Money FLow in to Funds
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Money has been <b> flowing in and out of financial markets more rapidly than ever before this year, a bullish signal </b> as the threat of a U.S. sovereign default fades.
Since Sept. 1, about $47 billion has gone to exchange-traded funds that track everything from stocks to bonds to commodities, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. That followed $18 billion pulled in August, $40 billion added in July and $11 billion pulled in June, making it the most volatile period on record for flows. Almost $7 billion went to ETFs on Oct. 17 alone.
3/ Earnings Forecasts
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Analysts have raised their forecasts for profits and now forecast an average increase of 2.5 percent for all companies in the S&P 500, according to estimates compiled by Bloomberg. That compares with an expected gain of 1.7 percent at the beginning of the month.
Earnings at the 108 companies that have reported so far grew 4.5 percent, while sales gained 2.1 percent. Some 70 percent of the companies have topped analystsâ profit estimates, while 54 percent have beaten on sales.
The Chicago Board Options Exchange Volatility Index, the gauge of S&P 500 options prices known as the VIX, climbed 0.9 percent today to 13.16, following three days of declines. The measure has fallen 21 percent this month.