With no economic reports on Wednesday and bond markets closed for the Veteran’s Day, Wall Street was witness to a quiet trading session, but stocks managed to inch higher on expectations interest rates would remain at a record low for some time.  Also, strong Chinese manufacturing and retail sales data lifted investor sentiments.  Gold prices touched an all-time high.  

The Dow Jones industrial average, which hit an intraday high of 10,341, advanced 44 points, or 0.4%, to close at 10,291.26. The S&P 500 added 6 points, or 0.5%, to close at 1,098.51, and the tech-laden Nasdaq composite rose 16 points, or 0.7%, to end the day at 2,166.90.  On the New York Stock Exchange, 19 stocks were higher in price for every 11 that declined

Nine of the ten S&P500 industry groups ended in the green, with financials (+1.3%), basic materials (+1.0%) and technology (+0.7%) leading the gainers.  Utilities

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Why Did These Companies Cream the S&P 500?

Is the U.S. housing market truly at a turning point, as investors seem to increasingly believe? Or is this actually a false dawn, meaning that there are problems and pain ahead for those who turned bullish too soon?

New home sales jumped almost 10% in July, while the Case-Shiller home price index rose for the second successive month. Yet luxury homebuilder Toll Brothers lost $493 million in the quarter ending July 31, considerably worse than analysts had expected.

Housing stocks are certainly acting as if a recovery must be on the way. Pulte Homes Inc. (NYSE: PHM) has more than doubled from its low. Toll Brothers Inc. (NYSE: TOL) is up around 70% from its bottom. D.R. Horton Enterprises (NYSE: DHI) is up almost four times from its bottom. Lennar Corp. (NYSE: …

U.S. stocks advanced on Wednesday after data showed July new home sales rose at their fastest pace in almost a year, while durable goods orders increased, but less than forecast excluding transportation.

Sales of new homes rose for a fourth straight month in July and at their fastest pace since September 2008, while the inventory of unsold homes fell to the lowest level in 16 years, the government reported.

“These are great numbers, and they should definitely add fuel to the move higher in the market,” said Peter Kenny, managing director at Knight Equity Markets in Jersey City, New Jersey.

“It’s all very positive, not just because of the macro implications but because they will drive consumer confidence numbers (higher).”

The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> added 19.57 points, or 0.21 percent, to 9,558.86. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index <.SPX> rose 2.15 points, or 0.21 percent, to 1,030.15. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC>

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A rise in existing home sales last month shows things are getting better in the U.S. housing market, but the still-dire unemployment situation and the looming possibility of a jobless recovery may halt the rally by the end of the year. That makes the extension of an $8,000 tax credit for first-time homebuyers imperative.

Existing home sales rose 7.2% to a 5.24 million annual rate in July, the most since August 2007 and the fourth straight month the figure increased, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) said Friday. Year-over-year sales grew 5%, the increase since September 2007, just before the markets came crashing down the following month.

“The housing market has decisively turned for the better,” said NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun. “A combination of first-time buyers taking advantage of the housing stimulus tax credit and greatly improved affordability conditions are contributing to higher sales.”

Rising sales numbers

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Is housing hitting a bottom?

There's been a lot of talk in recent days that the housing bust may finally be about over. While no one is projecting a robust recovery in the housing market, there is hope that the worst of the slide may be behind us.

June new home sales rose 11% in May to 384,000 from 346,000, the largest monthly jump in 8 years. However, it was still well below last year's 488,000 sales.

New housing sales appear to be turning a corner. This is the good news. The bad news is that June's number was the lowest monthly sales total since 1982.

Of course, this upturn is taking place during the time of the year, the summer, when most home buyers are looking to buy (although the numbers are adjusted for seasonality.) The $8,000 first-time buyer tax credit also seems to be boosting sales.

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Here are the stocks added to the Zacks #5 Rank ("strong sell") List today:

Animal Health International Inc (AHII) Benihana Inc (BNHNA) BT Group Plc (BT) Carnival Plc (CUK) Cummins Inc (CMI) Delta Natural Gas Company Inc (DGAS) Dover Motorsports Inc (DVD) Eagle Materials Inc (EXP) Entertainment Properties Trust (EPR) Esterline Technologies Corp (ESL) First Advantage Corp (FADV) First State Bancorp NM (FSNM) FirstEnergy Corp (FE) FirstService Corp (FSRV) Gerber Scientific Inc (GRB) GlobalOptions Group Inc (GLOI) HEICO Corp (HEI) ING Groep NV (ING) Limco-Piedmont Inc (LIMC) Lodgian Inc (LGN) Mack-Cali Realty Corp (CLI) Nalco Holding Co (NLC) National Retail Properties Inc (NNN) Pitney Bowes Inc (PBI) Prospect Capital Corp (PSEC) Pulte Homes Inc (PHM) RBC Bearings Inc (ROLL) Republic Airways Holdings ...

New home construction fell in November by the largest amount in a quarter-century, as builders slashed production while facing the worst economic conditions since the Great Depression.

However, a new blizzard of government money may be coming to your neighborhood, and it promises to be a true bailout for the masses, not just for those in foreclosure or real financial difficulty.

Tight credit and lending markets, rising foreclosures, and surging unemployment figures have homebuyers on the sidelines, pummeling the fortunes of homebuilders such as D.R. Horton Inc. (DHI), Pulte Homes Inc. (PHM) and Centex Corp. (CTX)

“It is going to be a very cold winter indeed for homebuilders,” Joshua Shapiro, chief U.S. economist for forecasting firm MFR Inc., wrote in a note to clients Monday, MSNBC reported.

And the numbers are grim.

The U.S. Commerce Department yesterday (Tuesday) reported

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The following article discusses Pulte Homes, Inc. (PHM), D.R. Horton, Inc. (DHI), The Ryland Group, Inc. (RYL) and Beazer Homes USA, Inc. (BZH).In November, both housing starts and permits fell to record lows. I consider this to be good news, since it represents a decline is misallocation of resources and means we might eventually work off some of the huge inventory overhang and some day see an end to the housing mess that is ground zero of the economic turmoil.In the meantime, though, it means that economic growth will be even weaker in the fourth quarter than most are currently expecting. Building permits, the best indicator of future housing starts, fell to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 616,000, a 15.6% decline from the 730,000 rate in October and 48.1% below the 1,187 million rate of a year ago.All four regions of the ...

Expect more pain in the housing market next year, says Don Miller. Rising unemployment will keep the foreclosures coming. And as the backlog of inventories swells, Don says homebuilders still look ripe for shorting in this environment.

This from Money Morning:

The U.S. housing market is already being pounded by the “perfect storm.” And the outlook for the New Year is for the stormy weather to continue – and probably to get worse.

As if a locked-up credit market and tidal waves of foreclosures weren’t already enough, we’re now watching unemployment climb and consumer confidence plunge.

But even when the housing market is taking on water, there are ways to stay afloat. Indeed, investors nimble enough to maneuver can even make money.

The watchword on this market, though, is caution.  If an investor decides to test the waters, beware of the extraordinary financial undertow.

Here’s a look at what’s happening now, and

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Michigan is best known for its auto industry and its beautiful shoreline, which is also the largest freshwater coastline in the world. Although Michigan’s main industry today continues to be the manufacturing industry, the state government encourages different industries to locate in the state through its attractive incentive programs. Some interesting facts about Michigan follow:1. Michigan’s manufacturing industry produces 30% of the total state revenue.2. Recently enacted legislation mandates that by 2015, Michigan’s energy be produced from renewable sources.3. Michigan has a tax-free zone designed for the food processing industry, the forestry industry and the renewable energy industry.4. Michigan’s top agricultural products are dairy products, cattle and calves, hogs and chicken eggs.5. Michigan is the top producer of automobiles in the United States. Its production accounts for 21% of all automobiles manufactured within the country.6. In 2007 ...