Friends
Well so much for the dog days of summer. August was a tremendous month for stocks as measured by the market averages. Yes, some stocks were much more fortunate than others, but considering the headwinds that the markets faced, it was another impressive monthly performance. As for today, the Dow and the S&P 500 did struggle just a bit, but the Nasdaq continued to push to new highs.
By the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 223 points to finish the day at 28,430. The S&P 500 was down 7 points to close at 3,500. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 79 points to close at 11,775. Gold was down $1 to trade at $1,973 per ounce, while oil was down $.13 to trade at $42.84.
We now enter a seasonal period that is sometimes challenging for stocks, but of course 2020 is anything but a normal year, so we can probably throw all those past tendencies out the window. As you know by now, I am somewhat amazed that stocks have done as well as they have considering the circumstances. With 2/3rds of the year behind us, we now enter a four month period that will include a Presidential election amidst a very difficult moment in time for our country. Buckle up! It’s likely to be a very interesting ride ahead.
Have a nice evening everyone.
