Bear Trap? Or Can the Markets Move Higher?

For all the sound and fury over the "fiscal cliff" this is a very orderly market, but that's what you get when there's no other asset classes worth owning (supposedly) and everything is neatly controlled and contrived by a select group of insider traders.

Perhaps this is just a well-conceived bear trap, set up perfectly (the Dow is up 522 points since the interim closing bottom on November 15) to ensnare the unsuspecting prey either with the release of tomorrow's non farm payroll figures for November (blame it on Sandy) or the congressional recess on December 14.

Bears can be very cagy. They may be lying patiently in wait. Tomorrow's number should be important, though this market - the levitational beast that it is - may not give a hoot. (OK, too many animal references for one day... good bye)

Dow 13,074.04, +39.55 (0.30%)
NASDAQ 2,989.27, +15.57 (0.52%)
S&P 500 1,413.94, +4.66 (0.33%)
NYSE Composite 8,280.96, +16.16 (0.20%)
NASDAQ Volume 1,680,487,250
NYSE Volume 3,176,728,500
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ Advance - Decline: 2814-2665
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ New highs - New lows: 99-56
WTI crude oil: 86.26, -1.62
Gold: 1,701.80, +8.00
Silver: 33.11, +0.157