This morning, I woke up to steady rain and wind. Not a bad way to wake up, if one likes rain and wind. Well, the wind, I can do without, but the rain, now that is a different story. When you live in a climate designated “coastal desert,” rain is a good thing. The downside is the combination of wind and rain messes with my satellite Internet connection. This limits my research severely, and that is a drag.
So, did you catch the last hour of the trading day yesterday? I did while I was on the phone with my long-time mentor, talking about oh, you know, Europe, the market, recession, etc. Neither of us knew it at first, but we both were watching streaming market data. Along about 3:50 (EST), I hear him say, “Whoa! The Dow just went positive and it’s now up more than twenty.” For the next ten minutes, we both watched one of the most remarkable market turnarounds. It was like two guys watching the last few minutes of a football game, and I said so. We both laughed.
Despite my lack ability to research on the Internet this morning, the rain and the “fun” of watching the market close yesterday has kept me in a good mood, as does the bit of news I could find …
United States prosecutors said on Tuesday they had won three major cases against American clients of questionable tax shelters including ones used by a Dallas billionaire and Wells Fargo Co. and others designed by Citibank and accounting firm KPMG LLP.
As you know, I am big fan of government going after corruption in the market. Although the above does not directly relate to market corruption, it does speak to the mindset that leads to market corruption. In my mind, getting those who serve their greed at the expense of others is just as good, and tax dodgers get theirs at the expense of the American citizen.
Okay, so my morning high could last only so long I suppose, as my job is studying the market, and that means I cannot escape Europe. It appears increasingly likely that Greece will default after all. It seems the current strategy is to ease Greece through a “soft” default. To prepare for this, the ECB is setting up to re-capitalize the big banks in the Eurozone. Now, maybe I am wrong. I could be, but when one looks at the massive overall European debt, the politics of 17 countries (the politics of Germany and France in particular) around that debt, and the recession-laden, debt-stricken country of Greece reeling from massive protests and strikes, it seems hopeless.
I started my work this morning feeling pretty good, and now I am writing these closing words feeling not as good. I just don’t know what a Greek default, soft or otherwise would mean to the global financial structure. I don’t know if a Greek default would push Europe into a deep recession, which then brings down the rest of the global economy. I simply do not know.
What a gloomy day with the rain and all …
Trade in the day – Invest in your life …
