After the Dow Jones Industrial Average
Durable-goods orders
At 8:30 a.m. ET, the Census Bureau reports February durable-goods orders, which includes the likes of aircraft, automobiles, machinery, appliances, and furniture. The report is seen as a leading indicator of the manufacturing sector, and the market is expecting a 2.8% increase from the previous month, which had been the worst in three years. Orders in January dropped 4%, and Boeing
Poor manufacturing reports out of Europe and China drove the market down last week and could be a foreboding sign for American manufacturers. In addition to Boeing, look for Alcoa
Other items to watch
The MBA Mortgage Index, a weekly leading indicator of home-sale activity, comes out at 7 a.m. The index is a four-week moving average of a number of housing-related indices. While last week's figure dropped 7.4%, mortgage rates have come up lately, which could be a positive sign. Yesterday, the Case-Shiller Home Price index reported that home prices fell by 0.8% in January.
Finally, at 10:30 a.m., the Energy Information Administration will release the Weekly Petroleum Status Report. U.S. crude oil inventories dropped 1.2 million barrels last week but were still above average for this time of year at 346.3 million barrels.
Today is also the last day of Supreme Court hearings on the Affordable Health Care Act. The wrangling has focused on the legality of the individual-mandate portion of the act, which would require all Americans to purchase health insurance or pay a penalty. Health insurers like UnitedHealth Group
Stay focused
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