Friends
Stocks rallied early on news of China tensions easing (we get this one about every other day) and a benign CPI number. As the morning wore on stocks added to their gains, but of course met some resistance midday. The bulls were able to keep the averages above water, but after a 400 point advantage, a close that gave back more than half of those gains was somewhat unimpressive.
By the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 157 points to finish the day at 24,527. The S&P 500 was up 14 points to close at 2,651. Gold was up $3 to trade at $1,250 per ounce, while oil was down $.52 to trade at $51.13 per barrel WTI.
As we have mentioned, bear market rallies are sharp and quick, but then are sold into and faded rather quickly. The bulls have to break that cycle and convince skeptical market participants that the next rally can be sustained and built upon. Given the extreme negative sentiment permeating the market, that is going to be a difficult task. Today was a good one for the bulls, but the averages closed well off their highs. Let’s see if a real Santa Claus rally is in the cards as Christmas approaches. Stay tuned.
Have a nice evening everyone.
