Friends
As I have said for the last few Fridays, it’s pretty difficult to step in and do a lot of buying when just about anything can happen over the weekend. Stocks got off to a nice start today based on hopeful headlines about Ukraine, but as the trading session wore on buyers simply disappeared and stocks drifted lower.
By the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 229 points to finish the day at 32,944. The S&P 500 was down 55 points to close at 4,204. The Nasdaq Composite Index was down 286 points to close at 12,843. Gold was down $10 to trade at $1,989 per ounce, while oil was up $3.13 to trade at $109.15 per barrel WTI.
As we continue to monitor the events in Ukraine, market participants will also be keeping a close eye on next week’s FOMC meeting. Now that QE (asset purchases) is officially ending, we would expect to see a quarter point Fed Funds rate hike from the Fed. I’m guessing that Chair Powell will be cautious about committing to anything in his press conference on Wednesday given the global unrest. In the meantime, despite short-lived counter rallies, the bear market grinds on. We’ll keep our heads clear and get through it together.
Have a great weekend everyone.
