ETFs Rally On Facebook, Econ Reports

Major markets rallied today as the S&P 500 rose .89%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average notched up .66%, the NASDAQ composite rose 1.22%, and the Russell 2000 rose 2.2%.  Index ETFs followed along as the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (NYSEAMEX:SPY) rose .88%, the SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF (NYSEAMEX:DIA) rose .67%, the PowerShares QQQ Series 1 ETF (NASDAQ:QQQ) rose .81%, and the iShares Russell 2000 Index ETF (NYSEAMEX:IWM) rose 2.15%.

Major market ETFs likely rose on improved economic reports released today.  January ADP Employment reported 170,000 new private sector jobs created which was less than the 290,000 jobs created in December; however, January’s statistic was still positive as no new private sector jobs were lost.  Today’s ISM report registered a near 1% increase which was off expectation however the index still grew nonetheless, indicating slow US economic growth.

The largest driver of yesterday’s markets and ETFs was likely the anticipation of Facebook’s IPO filing after market close.  The $5 billion IPO is the largest internet tech company filing ever – and gave Facebook Founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg a $28 billion “check” to party the night away with.  Tech sector ETFs will likely party hard today too, as the tech sector has already had a great start to the new year and a public Facebook will likely add to the euphoria.

In other news, bond ETFs declined alongside US Dollar ETFs and VIX ETFs, while Gold & Silver ETFs ticked up a few notches.  Meanwhile, the Baltic Dry Index reached its 25 year low due to slowing global demand for basic materials and commodities, plus too much shipping capacity and materials supply.  Keep in mind too that Europe still poses a serious threat to our livelihood and Iran could take oil prices through the roof; thankfully both Europe and Iran were quiet yesterday.

Bottom Line:  Major Markets and ETFs rallied yesterday after a lackluster “quiet before the storm” day Tuesday.  Markets and ETFs likely responded to relatively positive US economic reports and Facebook’s whopper of an IPO.  Although yesterday was good, today and tomorrow are unknown as Europe and Iran remain mysteries.

Disclaimer: Wall Street Sector Selector trades a wide variety of ETFs and positions can change at any time.