People stuck in the Stone Age who open up their newspapers tomorrow morning will see that the Nasdaq was down another 90 points and think it was more of the same old thing. But hip Internet readers will know long before then that it was not more of the same thing and that, in fact, the Nasdaq was up for much of the session until a late slide.
Remember when a 100-point gain in the Nasdaq really meant something? Nowadays, they seem commonplace.
"One man's misfortunes can be another man's gain." Or, in this politically correct period in which we live, change "man" to "person." Or, in the case of stock markets, switch "person" to "business."
The Internet sector was focused on the Federal Reserve during Wednesday's session and Amazon.com after the close.
Internet stocks rallied along with the rest of the technology sector, but without the gusto seen in the broader market.
Internet stocks remained as indecisive as the rest of the technology sector Thursday. Earnings news remained positive for the most part, but there were few other catalysts to drive prices up or down, and the sector bounced around before closing slightly lower.
Although not considered a pure Internet play, Qualcomm had perhaps more impact on the Internet sector Wednesday than traditional Net plays eBay and RealNetworks. And in tomorrow's session, Dell Computer Corp. could have as much influence as any Net stock.
Take a look at some of the big movers in the Internet sector today. Amazon.com closed up 13 percent. Drugstore.com closed up 20 percent. The first Internet IPO of the year, Neoforma, finished up an astounding 300 percent. And FreeMarkets.com ended up nearly 30 points.
Sell-offs like the one seen in the technology sector Monday often used to signal the start of something bigger and the beginning of a trend, but not anymore. Internet stocks and the tech sector bounced back with a late-day rally Tuesday as bears were unable to maintain Monday's momentum.
Tuesday's list of out-of-favor stocks was Wednesday's list of winners.
In a mixed day for Internet stocks, some of the sector's old names faltered, while others flourished.