Friends
If you need an illustration of how crazy markets are these days just take a look at oil. WTI was $130 per barrel just last week, and today it was trading at $95 per barrel. And of course, we can’t forget that just 2 years ago oil traded down to a negative $37 per barrel when everyone was hidden away in their homes and the belief was that no one would ever buy a tank of gas again. While oil prices fell, stocks moved higher in today’s trading. Maybe things overshot on the upside for oil and maybe things overshot to the downside for stocks in recent weeks, but the situation in Ukraine is anything but settled, inflation is prominent, and the Fed will begin tightening monetary policy tomorrow, so once again we look at these counter trend moves with a bit of a skeptical eye at the moment, while trying to remain hopeful.
As for today, by the close the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 599 points to finish the day at 33,544. The S&P 500 was up 89 points to close at 4,262. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 367 points to close at 12,948. Gold was down $42 to trade at $1,918 per ounce, while oil was down $7.25 to trade at $ 95.76 per barrel WTI.
Remember, we get the Fed decision tomorrow. We expect a quarter point increase in the Fed Funds rate, but we are not sure how hawkish the Fed Chair will be in his press conference. For the time being, the market is “expecting” 7 quarter point rate hikes this year. We will see if they feel the same after tomorrow’s statement release and the Fed Chair’s presser. Stay tuned.
Have a nice evening everyone.
