Daily State of the Markets
The Waters Remain Muddy at Best
The easiest thing to say this morning is that yesterday's action represented a case of "same song, different day" as the move up in prices really had little to no impact on the overall picture. The bottom line continues to be that there is still a fair amount of uncertainty in this market…
More Reasons For Uncertainty to Remain
In case you've been living in a cave or not watching the market at all this year, stocks continue to remain mired in a sideways trading range as uncertainty continues to be the name of the game. Yesterday, we pointed out that with more than 150 companies in the S&P 500 index reporting…
Waiting For Uncertainty to Dissipate
With more than 150 S&P 500 companies reporting earnings this week, no one could be blamed for wanting to hear "the message" from the week before making any new commitments. In short, this is a likely explanation for the ongoing sideways action in the stock market. The good news is tha…
The Cycles Say We Should...
Up until Friday morning at about 3:00 am Eastern Time, the U.S. stock market appeared poised to make a break for the border. More specifically, it looked like traders had put the worries about the earnings season, Greece, the economic data, and the Fed behind them. In fact, it looked like…
Poised To Break Up, Or...
The "discussion" in the market continues to revolve around four key areas: (1) When the Fed is going to raise rates, (2) The impact of the dollar's rally on earnings, (3) The state of the U.S. economy, and (4) The ongoing mess in Greece. To be sure, the primary focus on an intermediate-te…
The "Message" Is Beginning To Take Shape
With the earnings parade now underway, the "message" from the current reporting season is beginning take shape. So far at least, Q1 earnings have been largely in line with the reduced expectations. As has been the case for some time now, companies seem to find a way to beat EPS estimates …
Let The Games Begin
While the primary focus in the stock market continues to be the Fed and when the "liftoff" in rates will occur (the current consensus is for rates to initially rise in September), earnings will likely take center stage this week. Alcoa's report traditionally kicks off the earnings parade …
Pricing Equilibrium (For Now)
The Fed remains the focus at the present time, although with the earnings parade now officially underway, this could easily change in the near-term. But during Wednesday's session, the Fed was still the name of the game.
First, we had some additional "fedspeak" from Fed governors …
Searching For Clarity
To be sure, uncertainty remains the name of the game in the stock market these days. And while I run the risk of sounding like a broken record here, it is the uncertainty surrounding the current state of the economy, the upcoming earnings season, and what the Fed is going to next (and per…
A Severe Case of Bipolar Disorder
If the market was a patient in a doctor's office looking for an explanation of the recent up-one-minute, down-the-next behavior, bipolar disorder would be the most likely diagnosis. Also known as manic-depressive illness, bipolar disorder is a brain disorder that causes unusual shifts in …