It is becoming clearer to me that market is just not happy. Its angst is making it unhappy. My advice to the market is: Stop twisting with each moment so much. This is a big world with lots going on, and to worry about its machinations to such a current degree is stressful. Just chill and let the world unfold. Well, once again, the market has no concern about me or what I say, so my advice will go unheeded, but it is still good advice, so anyone else is welcome to it …
Does anyone remember when Japan was the talk of the economic town? It seems that the country has lost its economic aura. It has struggled for so long now with its deflationary-tinged economy, and last year’s earthquake and ensuing tsunami struck such a crippling blow, the world seems to have forgotten its economic prowess. Yet, we should not forget that Japan is the third largest economy on this planet, just inches behind China, and when its economic engine is running fully, it, like China, can catalyze the global economy.
Japan’s exports rose in March from a year earlier for the first time in six months, mainly on the strength of U.S. sales. Exports to the United States grew but shipments to China remained weak.
The global economic recovery discussion always focuses on China and the US, with a smidgeon of Europe thrown in, but the truth is it will take all the players to get the engine running full throttle, and one of those players is Japan. So when I see it is beginning to arise from its dormancy, my economic antennae begin to twitter. An economically stronger Japan can only help the global economy, and when China begins its turnaround, the two Asian powers together will provide quite the boost indeed.
Spain goes to the auction today with 2- and 10-year bonds. Nothing much has changed since the last auction, so it is hard to see investors improving their appetite much, but as it always is with these things, so much flows underneath the current we see.
So far the earnings season has been better than expected, right on par with its normal +75% of companies beating expectations. Now, one can argue this statistic is meaningless, and to a degree, one would be right, but the fact is that the market uses a measuring stick for everything, and when it comes to corporate earnings, that stick is always out. The market likes to see profit, which is one reason to think that despite the current worries about Spain, the drive to move forward will continue.
Speaking of Spain (again), for about three weeks now, I have had a personal guide to the northeast region of this country, Catalunya. We have traveled to big cities, small towns, out-of-the-way spots in forests and hills, and we have eaten the local fare wherever we go, and the two things that stand out are the sense of medieval antiquity and the local pride. The area is quite different than the southern region in many ways. Both have mountains and both have the sea, but something is characteristically different and I can’t quite put my finger on it. Perhaps I need to spend as much time in the south as I have here to figure it out. That too sounds like good advice.
I guess that means I will just have to come back …
Trade in the day – Invest in your life …
