Friends
It is amazing how quickly sentiment can turn. Today’s trading action is the kind that wakes up the bears. Oil prices falling, interest rates continuing to decline (bond prices rise), central banks around the globe in full accommodative/panic mode, fuel a tumbling stock market. What has changed since yesterday’s recover (from earlier in the week) rally- not much. As we have mentioned, we are in a bit of a data vacuum and earnings season is just going to swing into action next week, so that void is easily occupied by doubt and fear. Supposedly market participants, just today, decided to worry about global slowdown.
Now I am not saying that we shouldn’t give back some of those recent hard earned gains, I’m just always amazed at how quickly market sentiment can change, and the reasons/excuses the business media and market pundits give for a particular day’s move in markets.
As for today, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 174 points to close at 17,541. The S&P 500 was down 24 points to finish the day at 2041. Gold was up $18 to trade at $1,241 per ounce, while oil was down $.31 to trade at $37.44 per barrel WTI.
It’s been a see saw week with a negative bias. Trying to guess what tomorrow’s action will be like is a useless undertaking. As earnings season unfolds and a busier economic data calendar develops, it would make sense to expect more volatility in the near future. Oh, and yes, we have economic issues on a global basis (what do you think all the central bank intervention is all about?), but we’ve had those same issues when stocks were falling early in the year and when stocks were rising late February and March. Best advice- ignore all the distractions and buckle up.
Have a nice evening everyone.
