The S&P 500 is back above the June 16 low of 3666. It plunged 2.4% today to a low of 3491 following the release of September's hotter than expected CPI report. It then rebounded 5.6% to a high of 3685 just after 3:00 pm before closing up 2.6% for the day.
It's possible that prior to the widely-feared CPI report, investors hedged their portfolios and scrambled to cover their shorts when the market dropped on the bad news. That forced unhedged shorts to cover too resulting in a reversal day.
The day's performance derby (below) shows that four of the 11 sectors of the S&P 500 outperformed the index: Financials (4.1%), Energy (4.1), Information Technology (3.1), and Materials (2.9). Four of the 10 best performing industries are in the Financials sector: Diversified Banks (5.5%), Asset Management & Custody Banks (5.4), Regional Banks (5.0), and Life & Health Insurance (4.4). That's impressive given that the big banks are set to report their Q3 earnings tomorrow.
