July 20, 2018: Markets opened mixed Friday and never moved far from the break-even line after a short push higher in the mid-morning. The President complained again about the strong dollar and that was enough for investors to keep their hands on their wallets. Utilities, telecom, and real-estate were the day’s poorest performing sectors while consumer staples, up less than half a point, was the best.

WTI crude oil for August delivery settled at $70.46 a barrel, up 1.4% for the day but down 0.8% for the week. A weaker dollar usually supports higher oil prices, but that may not be what happens this time. The weekly oil rig count dropped by 5 this week, probably helping push crude prices up a little as well. August gold settled up 0.6% at $1,231.10, but down about 0.8% for the week. Equities were heading for a slightly lower close about 10 minutes before the bell as the Dow traded down 0.05% for the day, the S&P 500 traded down 0.11%, and the Nasdaq Composite traded down 0.08%.

Bitcoin futures (XBTQ8) for August delivery traded at $7,330, down about 1.8% on the CBOE after opening at $7,460 this morning. The trading range today was $7,280 to $7,710.

The Dow stock posting the largest daily percentage loss ahead of the close Friday was International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE: IBM) which traded down 1.81% at $146.54 in a 52-week range of $137.45 to $171.13. Volume was about 20% above the daily average of around 4.7 million shares.

Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT) traded down 1.46% at $137.36. The stock’s 52-week range is $105.11to $173.24. Volume was about 20% below the daily average of around 4.6 million shares. Revenue for the second quarter was a little light and guidance for the full year was not encouraging.

The Dow stock posting the largest daily percentage gain ahead of the close Friday was Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) which traded up 1.99% at $106.48. The 52-range on the stock is $71.28 to $108.20, and the high was posted today. Volume of around 48 million was about 85% above the daily average. The company reported solid earnings after the bell Thursday.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) traded up 1.33% at $111.36. The stock’s 52-week range is $88.08 to $119.33. Volume was about 15% below the daily average of around 13.6 million.

Of the Dow stocks, 10 were set to close higher Friday and 20 were on track to close lower.

Get Our Free Investment Newsletter

I have read, and agree to the Terms of Use