Stocks Get a Nice Bounce

“We’re in a period of volatility.  We’re not out of the woods yet….. All of the things that bothered the market last week are still around….”

– Bill Nichos (subscription required), Trader, Bear Stearns 

After the brutal selloff last week, stocks stabilized and had a nice bounce.  The S&P 500 was up 1.03% and the broader Wilshire 5000 .97%.

Financials, Energy, Basic Materials, Industrials and Consumer Discretionary led the way, while Technology and Consumer Staples were weak:

S&P Financials (XLF): +1.89%

S&P Energy (XLE): +1.72%

S&P Basic Materials (XLB): 2.52%

S&P Industrials (XLI): +2.15%

S&P Consumer Discretionary (XLY): +1.43%

S&P Technology (XLK): +.35%

S&P Consumer Staples (XLP): +.23%

It was nice for everyone to take a breather from the torrid selling and have a chance to take a deep breathe and assess things more calmly.

That said, Joanna Ossinger aptly titled her daily summary of the action over at the WSJ Online “Stocks Rise Amid Uncertainty” (subscription required).  There wasn’t much news today and things will likely remain choppy going forward.