Schaeffer's Today's Market Features: Procter & Gamble, Eastman Kodak, Biogen Idec, AMEX Oil Services HOLDRS Trust, and CBRL Group.

CINCINNATI -- Among the stocks featured in the October 31 edition of Schaeffer's Today's Market are Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG), Eastman Kodak (NYSE:EK), Biogen Idec (NASDAQ:BIIB), AMEX Oil Services HOLDRS Trust (AMEX:OIH), and CBRL Group (NASDAQ:CBRL). Schaeffer's Today's Market is just one of the many free market commentaries written every day at www.SchaeffersResearch.com - the home of Bernie Schaeffer and Schaeffer's Investment Research. Today's Market is written throughout every trading day by Schaeffer's financial analysts and traders. The entries are quick updates on the day's most notable market activity and news.

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9:03 AM Kodak Quarterly Loss Narrows

So, what do you think? Are we in for a trick or a treat this Halloween? Futures in the Dow Jones Industrial Average were up 13 points at last check, suggesting we might see a positive start when the opening bell rings. Futures in the S&P 500 Index are up 2.5 points, and Nasdaq 100 futures are up 3.5 points.

One small datum worth noting is that the Dow is currently showing a gain of 3.5 percent over its September close. On this final day of the month, you can be sure that the statisticians are scrutinizing this rather agreeable detail.

Earlier this morning, Dow component Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) announced that first-quarter sales rose 27 percent to $18.79 billion. The world's largest consumer-products concern earned a profit of $2.7 billion, or 79 cents per share, a penny better than the Wall Street analyst estimate. Income for the quarter was up 33 percent, so look for some action from the heavyweight today. The stock hit an all-time high yesterday.

Eastman Kodak (NYSE:EK) reported a third-quarter loss of $37 million, or 13 cents per share, down from a loss of $914 million, or $3.18 per share, in the year-ago period. Sales showed a 10-percent decline to $3.2 billion.

The Street will be treated to the employment cost index, the Chicago purchasing manager's index for October, and consumer confidence numbers for the month. Tomorrow brings the release of auto and truck sales for October, along with construction spending for September, October's Institute of Supply Management (ISM) Index for the manufacturing sector, and our weekly peek at crude inventories. Thursday holds initial jobless claims numbers, preliminary productivity, and factory order data. The week will come to a close with October nonfarm payroll numbers, unemployment, hourly earnings, average workweek statistics, and the ISM Services data.

9:54 AM Employment Costs Zoom Higher

The employment cost index, reported by the Labor Department earlier this morning, rose 1.0 percent during the third quarter, moving at its fastest pace in more than two years. This was slightly above the 0.9-percent increase expected by analysts. The increase, which reveals that a tight labor market is resulting in heightened employer costs, is likely to keep Federal Reserve officials' heads in the game about watching out for inflationary pressures. Delving into the numbers a bit, overall wages and salaries rose 0.9 percent, while benefit costs surged 1.1 percent after rising 0.8 percent in the second-quarter period. On a year-over-year basis, employment costs rose 3.3 percent during the quarter, the most rapid year-over-year growth since the first quarter of 2005.

In earnings news, Biogen Idec (NASDAQ:BIIB) announced third-quarter net profit of $156.6 million, or 45 cents per share, from $27.2 million, or eight cents per share, in the prior year. Excluding items, earnings surged 67 percent to 60 cents per share, or well above the consensus analysts' view of 49 cents per share. Total revenue at the biotech firm climbed 18 percent to $703.5 million. Looking forward, the company now expects full-year earnings per share of more than $2.20, outpacing Wall Street's current per-share view of $2.09. The stock has rocketed nearly six percent higher in the first few minutes of trading.

2:00 PM Oil Hits a 16-Month Low

A startling rise in the employment cost index has scared up some inflation concerns among investors, sending the major indices south today. With about two hours left until the closing bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA - 12,050.6) has dropped 36 points, the S&P 500 Index (SPX - 1,374.90) is lower by three points, and the Nasdaq Composite (COMP - 2,361.9) is down a fraction, slipping nearly two points today. The month of October overall, however, proved to be a profitable one, possibly the best October return in three years. The Dow is on pace to gain 3.5 percent for the month, the COMP rose 4.7 percent, and the SPX was 3.1 percent higher as of yesterday's close.

Crude oil is continuing to slip back today, with the front-month contract breaching the $58-per-barrel level for the first time in 16 months. Black gold is setting up to post a single-month decline of 10 percent by settlement time today. Contributing to the commodity's pullback is the news that North Korea agreed to rejoin the nuclear disarmament talks being held among six nations. At last check, December futures were off $0.76 at $57.60 per barrel; December unleaded gasoline futures were down 4.19 cents at $1.42 per gallon. Both the AMEX Oil Services HOLDRS Trust (AMEX:OIH) and the Select Sector SPDR Energy Fund (XLE) are modestly lower today

The National Association of Purchasing Management Chicago said this morning that its index of area business activity (PMI) revealed that the region's economy weakened sharply in October. The PMI dropped from 62.1 percent in September to 54.1 percent in October, which is the lowest reading since August 2005. Expectations were for a drop to 58.7 percent. This news was accompanied by data showing that the inventories index for the region rocketed to 67.2 percent from 63.5 percent. This reading is the highest since 1973.

CBRL Group (NASDAQ:CBRL) is moving against the grain today, tacking on nearly two percent after issuing sales numbers for October. Same-store sales at the company's Cracker Barrel chain rose 1.9 percent, while comparable-store sales at the Logan's Roadhouse locations slipped 0.8 percent. CBRL shares have enjoyed a sharp uptrend since mid-August, along the support of their 10-day and 20-day moving averages.

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