Still in a Fog

Still in a fog.  Stocks could not find their way on Friday as they veered on and off the path throughout a volatile session.  Stocks traversed the gain loss line throughout the day, ultimately giving up early gains and closing slightly in the red.  Though it may be uncomfortable for some, the best strategy for…

Better Late Than Never!

Better late than never!  Christmas showed up a day late for equities as they surged in record point gains.  The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose over 1000 points (+5%) in yesterday’s session which was the largest point gain as well as the largest post-Christmas rally in history.  From a percentage perspective, yesterday’s move on the…

Got Coal?

Got coal?  Investors hoping for a last minute Santa Claus rally got a big fat lump of coal on Tuesday as stocks had their worst Christmas Eve… ever!  Investors were still assessing the damage in the wake of the FOMC meeting last week, when Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin decided to let the world know he…

Humbug!

Humbug!  ‘Twas the week before Christmas and all was not calm, tensions were high, and then came the bomb.  The Fed said “two more” and that made traders sore.  And then from the hill came a clash over a wall, leaving markets no choice but to selloff and fall!  Markets sold off again on Friday…

Fear Factor

Fear factor.  Stocks fell in yesterday’s session as traders continued to protest the Fed’s less-than-supportive move on Wednesday.  Expectations were high that the Fed would provide a hero-like rescue for declining asset prices in what was shaping up to be one of the worst Decembers on record for stocks.  After all, the Fed has been…

Disappointment in Who-ville

Disappointment in Who-ville. Traders expecting Powell to usher in a late Christmas rally got the Grinch, and they didn’t like it.  Markets tumbled from daily highs after the Fed raised rates and lowered hike projections next year.  “Wait”, you say, “the Fed lowered expectations for hikes next year and markets didn’t like it?”  It seems…

Crude Behavior

Crude behavior.  Markets took traders on a wild ride yesterday as a market on edge before a Fed decision was hit with multiple rounds of information.  Equities opened with a positive rush in response to better than expected housing numbers, an apparent easing of the White House stance on a government shutdown, and some more…

Walking on Eggshells

Walking on eggshells.  Markets sold off yesterday over Fed rate hike fears, potential economic slowdown, and an increasingly more frequent use of the word “recession”.  Following Friday’s selloff traders could not quite get their emotions in check during yesterday’s session as all the major indices sold off leaving the small cap Russell 2000 in bear…

Checking Out

Checking out.  Traders headed for the exits on Friday as bad news from Asia and the EU heightened fears of an economic slowdown in the US.  China and the US made progress on their pursuit of deescalating the trade war announcing tariff cutbacks but that wasn’t enough to ease traders’ tensions about the global economy….

Ho Hum

Ho hum.  Announced the stock market in yesterday’s session as progress on trade talk with China was largely ignored resulting in a largely flat close.  Stocks began the day with a surge on the heals of good news from the Chinese government which has been not only talking positively but actually reversing some of their…