The Week on Wall Street
A late week sell-off sent stocks broadly lower as investors took some profits after stocks reached all-time highs earlier in the week.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 1.82%, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 slumped 2.31%. The Nasdaq Composite index dropped 3.27% for the week. The MSCI EAFE index, which tracks developed overseas stock markets, fell 0.62%.[1][2][3]
Gravity Reasserts Itself
Stocks hit a wall late last week as the technology companies, which had led the market higher, slipped in Thursday and Friday trading, dragging down the overall market.
The week began on an upbeat note as August momentum continued into the start of September. While participation in the rally on Tuesday and Wednesday was fairly broad, technology stocks continued to be the focus of market strength. But that sentiment changed quickly on Thursday.
With little warning and no obvious catalyst, it remains unclear whether the technology selloff last week was the result of market technicals or a fundamental change in investor outlook. The coming weeks may provide some clarity in this regard.
Labor Market Recovery Sputters Forward
Last week saw a series of employment-related reports that evidenced a continued labor market recovery.
The Automated Data Processing (ADP) employment survey showed that private payrolls increased by 428,000 in August, falling short of consensus expectations of over 1.1 million.News turned more positive as new jobless claims checked in at 881,000-an improvement from the over one million new claims the prior week. Americans receiving unemployment declined by 1.24 million to 13.3 million-half the peak number in May.[4][5][6]
Finally, the monthly jobs report indicated that nearly 1.4 million non-farm jobs were added last month, with the unemployment rate declining to 8.4%. The progress was predominantly attributable to government hiring, primarily of new Census workers, though the retail, leisure, and hospitality sectors saw gains in new hiring.[7]
THIS WEEK: KEY ECONOMIC DATA
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Wednesday: Job Openings and Turnover Survey (JOLTS).
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Thursday: Jobless Claims.
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Friday: Consumer Price Index (CPI).
THIS WEEK: COMPANIES REPORTING EARNINGS
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Tuesday: Lululemon (LULU), Coupa Software (COUP), Slack Technologies (WORK)
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Thursday: Chewy (CHWY), Peloton (PTON)
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Friday: Kroger (KR)
“Without labor, nothing prospers.”
– Aristotle
Recipe of the Week
Creamy Pasta Salad With Shrimp
For the Dressing:
- ¼ cup Greek yogurt
- ¼ cup chicken broth
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 2 ¼ tablespoons minced garlic
- Pepper
- 10 oz penne pasta
- Approx. 40 medium shrimp
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- Salt
- Pepper
- ½ cup scallions, chopped
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ cup shredded Cheddar cheese
- ½ thinly-sliced lemon
- Whisk the ingredients for the dressing together in a bowl until smooth.
- Boil the pasta until tender yet firm to the bite, about 8 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. When warm, toss the shrimp in 2 tablespoons of olive oil, season with salt and pepper, and bake in a glass baking dish for about 10-12 minutes or until bright pink and cooked through.
- Toss the pasta with the dressing in a bowl. Add the shrimp and scallions and season with salt and pepper.
- Refrigerate and garnish with the Cheddar cheese and lemons when serving.
Tax Tips
Treasury Bonds vs. Municipal Bonds
Golf Tip
What is Penetrating Ball Flight?
- Tee the ball higher if you want to hit it low. The sweet spot on your club face is likely higher, therefore a lower tee will make a penetrating ball flight harder to achieve.
- Tighten your right hand (for right-handed golfers) to give yourself more control
- Focus on your backswing and keep your swing path shallow.
Healthy Lifestyle
A Relaxing Breathing Exercise
Green Living
3 Tips to Minimize Food Waste
Shop Wisely – Go into the grocery store prepared with a list of everything you need. This will help you avoid buying items impulsively or buying things that you might not make in time.
Buy Imperfect Produce – Groceries stores usually have very strict standards on the produce they select, but many of these standards are just cosmetic. Foods that don’t meet the criteria are often thrown away. Save this perfectly good produce by shopping at local farmers markets or other shops that don’t care about a few little bumps and bruises.