Daily State of the Markets
Five Ways to Deal With the Changing Environment
While the world waits to hear what Janet Yellen has to say about Fed policy this morning, it is probably a good time to expand on the idea that the character of the stock market has changed and look at what investors can do about it.
Last week, it was suggested that moves in the m…
Sometimes Reading is Required
The talk in the markets on Friday was all about the jobs report. For the second month in a row, the headline nonfarm payrolls number was a big surprise - and not in a good way. For the second month in a row, the number of new jobs created in the U.S. came in well below expectations. And y…
Has The Next Worry Arrived?
You've got to love the stock market game. Just about the time you think you've got it figured out, boom - it changes. Or maybe it doesn't, who knows. Frankly, there are times when it is very hard to tell why Ms. Market is doing what she is doing. But since that's the stated objective or o…
The Key Question in the Market Remains...
One constant in investing is the game is always changing. One minute the focus is on Europe. The next it's on an earthquake in Japan, then the Fed, unrest in the Middle East, the economy, QE, earnings, commodity prices, inflation/deflation, the state of the economy, emerging markets, and …
Is It Time To Move Into Crisis Mode?
The title of yesterday's missive was, "Is There Really a Crisis in Emerging Markets? Or..." The primary point made was that although stocks are off their recent highs and things have become much more volatile this year, the charts of the greenback, gold and bonds did not seem to confirm t…
Emerging Markets Mess: Blame It On The Fed?
It is yet unclear as to whether or not the current mess in the emerging markets will morph into a full-fledged crisis (remember the fun of 1998?). However, it is safe to say that the focal point of the stock market remains the currencies, economies, and equity markets of places like China…
Will the Worries Stick?
What a difference a day makes! In Friday morning's market missive entitled "Is It Time To Worry?" the argument was made that the chart of the DJIA (NYSE: DIA) was not representative of the state of the overall market. While the vene…
Is It Time To Worry Again?
So, traders and their computers are back to worrying about China's growth rate. And about the state of the U.S. Economy. And whether the taper is a mistake. And about the health of corporate earnings. Or are they?
To be sure, the data out of China overnight got people's attention.…
The Market Math on Investor Sentiment
So far in 2014, the action in the stock market has been fairly sloppy. Despite the traditional strong seasonality (which ends shortly by the way) and the flow of new money that tends to occur at the beginning of a new year, there has been a great deal of intraday selling taking place this…