T’was the day before Christmas and all through the mart
Not a trader was stirring, nor viewing a chart.
The orders were placed by the exchanges with care,
Knowing full well the volume would never be there.
Some days, the words just flow out of me, good or bad. The weird part is that some days, I actually put them down on paper.
The year is coming to a close. It has been quite a good one for the market. As it turned out, again, the hilltop screamers, the naysayers, and all the other really smart folks who predicted doom were wrong. The 2013 market is bound for the history books. Even if the last week sputters and churns a bit (there is no reason for the market to do so), the year will produce huge returns for those who tracked the fundamentals and stayed the course.
The past year is important for the market for another reason as well. The economic transformation I have been writing about the latter part of this year approached critical mass. If it has not achieved it completely, 2013 brought it significantly closer. So close, in fact, that 2014 should be another great year for the market.
- Consumer sentiment hit a five-month high heading into the end of the year and spending notched its strongest month since the summer, the latest signs of sustained vigor in the economy that are fostering hopes of a strong 2014.
- The Commerce Department reported that orders for Durable Goods rose +3.5% during November which was above the consensus expectations for a gain of +2.1%. The reading was also above October’s revised reading of -0.7% (from -1.6%). When you strip out the volatile data for transportation, orders rose by 1.2% which was above the consensus for +0.6% and above last month’s +0.7%.
Aside from the politics arising in February around the debt ceiling and the off-year elections coming in November, the noise level should remain low. As it looks now, the breathless media will have little to drum about, but I am never one to sell the media short, so I suspect we will have a scare or two, which will provide reasons for the market to rebalance.
Given the spirit of this holiday season, and given that the market is about making money, here is a thought to have with you tomorrow –2014 is a gift from 2013.
- Next year is shaping up to be the better tomorrow we have wanted to see ever since the recession ended almost five years ago.
I hope everyone who enjoys Christmas has a merry one. As well, I hope everyone who has a holiday similar to, or around the same time as Christmas, enjoys their celebration and time with family and friends.
Trade in the day; Invest in your life …
