Tuesday, August 31, 2021Market indexes are pressing pause this morning, following a 32nd record close in the Nasdaq and 53rd in the S&P 500 for the year so far. Seven of the past eight sessions, the S&P and Nasdaq have closed higher. The Dow dipped a tad into the close yesterday; it’s still up five of its past six trading days. All three major indexes look to bring in a positive August — for the S&P, it would be the seventh straight up-month.Hurricane Ida has past through Louisiana and, although the levees rebuilt after the devastation of Hurricane Katrina 16 years ago managed to keep flooding at bay in New Orleans, power has been knocked out for more than a million people. Entergy ETR, which supplies the region with energy, dropped 4% yesterday. Also, clean water and boarded-up grocery stores are immediate problems for residents there.It will take days to know the extent of damage the storm has caused, but authorities already say it could take weeks to restore power. Further, the region is a big one for oil refineries, of which some remain closed as of this morning, including one owned by Marathon MRO. For the most part, refineries look to have been spared major damage from the storm; again, the rebuilt levees look to have proved their mettle.The Case-Shiller Home Price Index for June came in at a new record, +19.1% — above forecasts for +18.5% and better than the previous month’s revised +17%. The usual cities topped the 20-City list with significant increases in home pricing: Phoenix +29.3%, San Diego +27.1% and Seattle +20.5%. For the 10-City, the June print is +18.6%, following +16.8% reported for the previous month.After today’s market open, Chicago PMI for August hits the tape, with 69.4 expected, down from the 73.4 put up last time around. Consumer Confidence for August is also expected later this morning, with an expected drop to 123.1 from 129.1 reported for July. As we have seen in these sorts of metrics, however, surprises do happen. We’ll see later today whether they may be positive surprises or not.Questions or comments about this article and/or its author? Click here>> Bitcoin, Like the Internet Itself, Could Change Everything Blockchain and cryptocurrency has sparked one of the most exciting discussion topics of a generation. Some call it the “Internet of Money” and predict it could change the way money works forever. If true, it could do to banks what Netflix did to Blockbuster and Amazon did to Sears. Experts agree we’re still in the early stages of this technology, and as it grows, it will create several investing opportunities. Zacks’ has just revealed 3 companies that can help investors capitalize on the explosive profit potential of Bitcoin and the other cryptocurrencies with significantly less volatility than buying them directly. See 3 crypto-related stocks now >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Marathon Oil Corporation (MRO): Free Stock Analysis Report Entergy Corporation (ETR): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report