That was it? All that noise about Cyprus yesterday and that feeble end-of-day push deeper into the red is the worst the market can produce? If we are going to have a collapse, the market needs to do better than a -60 on the Dow when there is bad news. If we are going to have a major correction, the market needs to do better than -8 on the S&P 500 when Europe drops a bomb such as Cyprus. If the market really wants to shows us it is all ready for a big downturn, it cannot open up so strongly, especially after going down on such supposedly horrific news. It needs to put together a string of days in the red that shows us all it wants to go down. It needs some serious follow through. Simple as that.
Now, if we get a decent downturn today on both the S&P 500 and the Dow, that would be nice and it would show the world the market is serious about correcting. Now, it is possible that the market is correcting, has been correcting, and will continue to correct. Who says it has to drop 5 or 10% to correct? Oh, wait! Lots of people say that. Okay then, how about the market trades in a tight sideways range for say, two weeks? That would be a healthy consolidation in a market with solid valuations and decent P/E ratios. Yeh, I vote for that.
- Germany’s ZEW Expectations Conditions Index improved again in March. The index was reported at +48.5, which was well above the consensus estimate and also above the February level of +48.2 (January: +31.5). The current reading of the index is the highest in 3 years.
I suppose if the above survey were taken today, Germany might have a different view on the world, but then again, the Cyprus news was not exactly news over there. We tend to be somewhat isolated from the daily machinations of cobbling the EU back together, whereas in Europe, the media there deals with this stuff daily. No, here, say on Bloomberg News, we get sales pitches that pose as news.
- Chris Martenson is a world-renowned expert on identifying dangerous, yet hidden, exponential growth patterns in global economies, energy demand, and food consumption … And he is predicting a 60% stock market collapse will strike in the next three months. Martenson’s opinion isn’t to be taken lightly, as his research is highly regarded by the United Nations, UK Parliament, and Fortune 500 companies.
As well as Mickey Mouse and all of his Disney cohorts. Here, have some fear … It is good for you. Now buy whatever it is we are selling …
News that is larger for the market than Cyprus, but is barely mentioned, comes from China, you know, that failing economy that is producing growth at only 7.5% or so.
- China’s foreign direct investment rose for the first time in nine months in February, a sign confidence in the world’s second-biggest economy is improving amid optimism growth will keep rebounding.
And, what about that European record for Boeing aircraft that will translate into higher earnings for Boeing and more jobs for the US economy?
- Ryanair Holdings agreed to buy 175 Boeing Co. (BA) 737 jets worth $15.6 billion at list price to add discount flights in markets vacated by full-service rivals, and said it may opt to add 200 more by the end of the year.
And are you watching BofA? Better yet, are you trading it or investing in it? The US take on the news out of Cyprus yesterday carried the subtext that what was going on there was bad for bank stocks. As well, the recent news on the US banking sector portrayed JP Morgan’s tribulations with Congress as bad news for the entire financial sector. Again, are you watching BofA, or are you watching the news?
Trade in the day; Invest in your life …
