ForeCastle

Stocks open at new highs




Stocks pushed to new highs in early trading Thursday as the so-called "Yellen bounce" continues after yesterday's Federal Reserve meeting.

The Dow Jones industrial average, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq were all modestly higher in early trading, but they quickly returned to breakeven.

The gains come after comments from Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen gave stocks a boost Wednesday. The S&P 500 closed at a record high of 1,957 while the Dow Jones industrial average jumped almost 100 points to its fourth highest close in history. The Nasdaq finished at its highest level in 14 years.

Yellen bounce: Yellen said the Fed is optimistic about the future of the American economy, but it isn't planning to raise interest rates in 2014.

The outlook for continued easy monetary policy helped offset a number of simmering geopolitical concerns. Oil prices were down slightly even as Iraqi forces battle insurgents for control of the petrostate's main refinery.

But the gold market was sending a different signal. Gold futures gained $20.80, or 1.7%, to trade at $1,293 per ounce.

Stock movers -- American Apparel, Amazon, Blackberry: Meanwhile, shares in American Apparel (APP) rose after the company announced overnight that it fired its controversial CEO, though it didn't say why. Its shares, which topped $15 as recently as 2007, now trade for less than $1. Sources told the New York Post that the move could set the stage for American Apparel to be sold.

Amazon (AMZN, Tech30) shares edged higher after the online retailer unveiled the Fire Phone, a high-end, 3-D smartphone. It is the first smartphone Amazon has produced on its own.

Shares in Facebook (FB, Tech30) slipped 1% after an outage that prevented users posting to the social media site "for a brief period of time."

A number of companies are reporting results Thursday. BlackBerry (BBRY, Tech30) shares rallied 11% after the Canadian smartphone maker reported a smaller-than-expected loss.

Kroger (KR) shares jumped over 5% after the grocery store chain reported strong results and boosted its outlook. The stock hit an all-time high over $50.

Drug store chain Rite Aid (RAD) said net income fell in the latest quarter, sending its shares down slightly in early trading.

Markit IPO today: Markit, which provides information on bonds and derivatives for traders and is considered a rival of sorts to Bloomberg, said late Wednesday that it had raised $1.3 billion in an initial public offering. The stock, which was priced at $24 a share, will begin trading Thursday on the Nasdaq under the ticker MRKT.

Good day for Europe: European markets were all rising in midday trading, getting a boost from the Fed news. Spain's IBEX index gained more than 1%, making it one of the top performers in Europe. But that may be cold comfort for a nation in mourning. The Spanish national team was eliminated Wednesday from the World Cup after a surprisingly poor performance.