Apple Soars & Am Ex Surprises

Everyone was expecting Apple (AAPL) to post great earnings. And the company came through. The stock added over 3% during the choppy trading day and has packed on another 7% in after hours trading. I was really interested in Apple's earnings, not from the aspect of the company itself, but the mood of the market going into tomorrow.

Why? Apple is a tech bell-weather, much like Google. With both companies posting blow out earnings in the last week, investors in the technology sector will continue to pour the hot money in as the rest of the economy struggles.

But it isn't all rainbows. Texas Instruments issued guidance that the fourth quarter will be flat for them. The largest chip maker for cell phones doesn't see a rosy picture. The decision by Nokia to have other suppliers for their cell phones have clouded the picture for Texas. The companies issues (if you want to call it that) won't have a material effect on the overall mood with techs. Look out, they will continue to climb for the foreseeable future.

And just as a side note. It was good to see American Express put up a good quarter. The company was hammered the last time it reported as it raised it's loss provisions by 85%. No real news on that front means that the company is prepared to handle a more harsh climate as people struggle with house payments, lower equity, and inflation.