The Stock Market Prepares to Open High After 4th of July

An early close to the stock markets on Wednesday before the 4th of July holiday left the markets looking slightly elevated.

The S&P 500 hit a new all-time high and closed up by 0.51%. The Nasdaq Composite also set new records and closed with a gain of 0.81%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained just 0.05% before closing on Wednesday.

With all of Thursday to percolate, the market has been gearing up to today’s opening. We expect a busy day of trading, spurred by economic reports coming in later from the Federal Reserve as well as the Non-Farm Employment Change and Unemployment Rate data.

These reports should move the market somewhat, with unemployment expected to stay the same, showing mildly positive economic indicators. The Non-Farm Employment Change is expected to show significant change downward, which could hurt the market.

High Stocks Should Remain High

Overall, we expect a net positive day for the market with the closing bell to signal new record highs for several of the indices. Nvidia (NVDA) continues to perform well, up 4.57% from the previous day. Microsoft (MSFT) is still climbing, with a mild 0.16% gain that shows it is holding onto its earnings.

Apple (AAPL) has sharply climbed this month, staying in the top tech companies with its 0.04% gain from the previous day. Can Apple and other tech stocks remain high and keep climbing? We expect they will for at least a little while longer, anticipating that an elevated market will keep interest high in these stocks.

Stock prices should change rapidly as the markets open today, and many of those stocks that did well on Wednesday should continue to show growth today as well, heading into the weekend. Even if today’s economic reports are mildly negative, that may not slow down the market much until they have been further digested over the weekend.