Positive News Today

Economic data was abundant today and the reports were slanted towards the positive side.

First up was the advanced reading for second quarter Gross Domestic Product (GDP) showing that growth in the quarter rose by a rather dismal 1.7%. That was better than the 1.1% that was registered in the first quarter and above the 1.1% expected. The 1.1% in the first quarter was revised lower from 1.8%. The 1.7% reflected an uptick in inventories and as consumer spending eased. GDP measures the market value of goods and services produced by labor and property in the United States.

Over in labor market news, ADP reported that private employers added 200,000 new jobs in July, above the 175,000 expected while the June number of 188,000 was revised higher to 198,000. The gains were seen across the board in businesses of all sizes. The ADP precedes the government's monthly jobs report that will be released on Friday morning.

The highly anticipated Federal Open Market Committee statement will be released this afternoon at 2:00pm ET and will be closely scrutinized by market watchers around the globe. In particular, players will be looking for any hints of an ease in the Bond buying program enacted by the Fed to accelerate U.S. growth and to support the labor markets and to keep interest rates low.

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) reported this morning that Pending Home Sales in June declined by 0.4% versus the -1.7% expected. The NAR said that higher home loan rates put a crimp in sales in June. The index hit a six year high in May. Pending Home Sales is a contract that has been signed, but that has not closed.

The trading week kicked off this morning and was met with quiet trading in the absence of any major economic data points other than Pending Home Sales. The rest of the week's economic calendar offers a plethora of data, which includes, Gross Domestic Product, housing data, the Federal Open Market Committee meeting and culminates on Friday with Non-farm Payrolls.

The regularly scheduled Federal Open Market Committee meeting will begin on Tuesday where members will discuss monetary policy and interest rates and ends with a policy statement on Wednesday at 2:00pm ET. There will be no press conference or economic projections associated with this meeting. The talks will most likely center around whether or not the current Quantitative Easing program will continue through this year or end before the year ends possibly sometime in the fall.