Well, was it worth the wait?
Fed Chairman Ben Bernake delivered his speech at Jackson Hole, much to the delight, it seems, to the hordes of hungry bankers and investors wallowing around the money trough from which their riches are made.
The Chairman didn't say much, except what he always says: that the Fed would be ready to add stimulus when needed. The Wall Street parasites took this as a sure sign that more easy money, in the form of QE3, would be forthcoming, likely as of the September FOMC meeting in about two weeks.
In the meantime, stocks jumped, slumped and humped back to highs of just over 13,150 on the Dow, just in case anybody's interested heading into the long weekend.
As usual, stocks have to go higher on Friday, as they have in just about every instance since the end of May.
Anecdotally, Wall Street exhibits all the traits of wild herds, following wherever they are led, this time toward all risk assets, including stocks and commodities. It's been reported that food prices have already risen some 10-20% in poorer nations, which will eventually foment riots, panic and revolution, thoughthat doesn't matter a whit to the wizards of Wall Street or their political counterparts, Al that matters is a rising stock market, even though it may lead to the eventual destruction of the currency and the global economy to boot.
It's a sick game, with seemingly no end in sight.
Labor Day. What an odd name for a holiday. It should be called slaver day, because other than a few sporadic holidays and a week or two of annual vacation, americans and workers in the "civilized" world are nothing more than slaves to debt.
Try not to ponder that fate much over the next few days of what should be a relaxing, peaceful weekend.
Free houses for Everyone!
Dow 13,090.76, +90.05 (0.69%)
Nasdaq 3,066.96, +18.25 (0.60%)
S&P 500 1,406.57, +7.09 (0.51%)
NYSE Composite 8,014.93 +48.69(0.61%)
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ Advance - Decline: 3658-1811
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ New highs - New lows: 184-37
WTI crude oil: 96.47, +1.85
Gold: 1,687.60, +30.50
Silver: 31.37, +1.00
Friday, August 31, 2012
Thursday, August 30, 2012
Markets Edge Closer to Reality on Eve of Bernanke Speech
As has been ongoing for the whole week, markets took a decided turn negative today on strong sentiment and comments from a few Fed governors that Ben Bernanke's speech tomorrow at Jackson Hole will include no overt nor hidden message that the Fed is ready to commit to another round of QE, bond purchases or any kind of policy easing.
That's the current betting, and there's little more than that moving markets.
Here is a good summary of what Wall Street is expecting in advance of the speech, from the Wall Street Journal, along with excerpts from analysts from leading financial institutions.
Scheduled for 10:00 am EDT, the Fed Chairman's speech, "Monetary Policy Since the Crisis" has had the markets gripped for weeks.
At the very least, by 11:00-11:30 tomorrow, everyone will have an inkling of what the Fed plans to do, if anything, and possibly when.
Then, everything can return to normal - whatever that is - after the Labor Day holiday.
Dow 13,000.71, -106.77 (0.81%)
NASDAQ 3,048.71, -32.47 (1.05%)
S&P 500 1,399.48, -11.01 (0.78%)
NYSE Composite 7,966.24, -65.41 (0.81%)
NASDAQ Volume 1,218,830,750
NYSE Volume 2,534,874,500
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ Advance - Decline: 1481-3987
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ New highs - New lows: 118-54
WTI crude oil: 94.62, -0.87
Gold: 1,657.10, -5.90
Silver: 30.37, -0.47
That's the current betting, and there's little more than that moving markets.
Here is a good summary of what Wall Street is expecting in advance of the speech, from the Wall Street Journal, along with excerpts from analysts from leading financial institutions.
Scheduled for 10:00 am EDT, the Fed Chairman's speech, "Monetary Policy Since the Crisis" has had the markets gripped for weeks.
At the very least, by 11:00-11:30 tomorrow, everyone will have an inkling of what the Fed plans to do, if anything, and possibly when.
Then, everything can return to normal - whatever that is - after the Labor Day holiday.
Dow 13,000.71, -106.77 (0.81%)
NASDAQ 3,048.71, -32.47 (1.05%)
S&P 500 1,399.48, -11.01 (0.78%)
NYSE Composite 7,966.24, -65.41 (0.81%)
NASDAQ Volume 1,218,830,750
NYSE Volume 2,534,874,500
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ Advance - Decline: 1481-3987
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ New highs - New lows: 118-54
WTI crude oil: 94.62, -0.87
Gold: 1,657.10, -5.90
Silver: 30.37, -0.47
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
Yuck. Stocks Stuck, Seek Direction from Fed. Good Luck.
News flash: Tail wags dog.
The markets continued their perverse game of chicken with the Chairman of the Federal Reserve over whether he'll offer any hints of a new round of QE, but sentiment seems to be shifting toward the argument that the chairman is not going to be very accommodative, either toward the stock market, interest rate policy or further bond purchases.
Whatever the assembled genii on Wall Street care to think, Mr. Bernanke is likely to be of the opinion that it's time for the congress to get up off their duffs and do something about the stagnating economy since the Fed - for all intents and purposes - has done what it can, albeit with limited success.
Any sane person (and we can safely assume that Bernanke hasn't gone completely off the deep end) would think that the US economy needs now to pick itself up, dust itself off and get on with business.
Were it all that simple, and, it should be, but the meddlers at the Federal Reserve and in the halls of congress have seen to it that the US - and by proxy the global - economy is largely a function of interest rates and government policy, not the vaunted free market that so many believe could work out of this malaise, if given a chance.
So, there's a chance that Bernanke will deliver what the mortal villains on Wall Street want so desperately, but the chance seems slim. Stocks would have likely risen in anticipation of golden words from the Chairman were there widespread belief that he was indeed planning on more easy money for his Wall Street buddies, because, as anyone who's ever played with stocks or options knows all too well, it's not a good idea to be late to the party.
By the time Mr. Bernanke finishes his speech at Jackson Hole, most of the major bets will already have been placed. Those who wait and see will likely suffer like the poor suckers who think investing is easy.
Stocks followed their familiar pattern again today: a stumble at the start, ramp up and sell off into the close, though the Dow managed - as all the majors did except the Comp. - to eke out a tiny gain of just over four points. Everything moved in slow motion, as volume has nearly dried up completely.
Whoopie!
Bernanke is not going to rescue Wall Street for the sake of a few hundred points on the Dow. He's done it three times already (QE1, QE2, Operation Twist) and the players keep coming back for more. It's time for the Chairman to do what's right and take the punch bowl away.
The party should have been over a while ago. Only the chutzpah of the "masters of the universe" has managed to keep it going for so long.
Dow 13,107.48, +4.49 (0.03%)
NASDAQ 3,081.19, +4.05 (0.13%)
S&P 500 1,410.49, +1.19 (0.08%)
NYSE Composite 8,031.61, -2.24 (0.03%)
NASDAQ Volume 1,253,324,130
NYSE Volume 2,534,702,500
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ Advance - Decline: 3287-2178
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ New highs - New lows: 181-45
WTI crude oil: 95.60, -0.73
Gold: 1,658.50, -11.20
Silver: 30.70, -0.17
The markets continued their perverse game of chicken with the Chairman of the Federal Reserve over whether he'll offer any hints of a new round of QE, but sentiment seems to be shifting toward the argument that the chairman is not going to be very accommodative, either toward the stock market, interest rate policy or further bond purchases.
Whatever the assembled genii on Wall Street care to think, Mr. Bernanke is likely to be of the opinion that it's time for the congress to get up off their duffs and do something about the stagnating economy since the Fed - for all intents and purposes - has done what it can, albeit with limited success.
Any sane person (and we can safely assume that Bernanke hasn't gone completely off the deep end) would think that the US economy needs now to pick itself up, dust itself off and get on with business.
Were it all that simple, and, it should be, but the meddlers at the Federal Reserve and in the halls of congress have seen to it that the US - and by proxy the global - economy is largely a function of interest rates and government policy, not the vaunted free market that so many believe could work out of this malaise, if given a chance.
So, there's a chance that Bernanke will deliver what the mortal villains on Wall Street want so desperately, but the chance seems slim. Stocks would have likely risen in anticipation of golden words from the Chairman were there widespread belief that he was indeed planning on more easy money for his Wall Street buddies, because, as anyone who's ever played with stocks or options knows all too well, it's not a good idea to be late to the party.
By the time Mr. Bernanke finishes his speech at Jackson Hole, most of the major bets will already have been placed. Those who wait and see will likely suffer like the poor suckers who think investing is easy.
Stocks followed their familiar pattern again today: a stumble at the start, ramp up and sell off into the close, though the Dow managed - as all the majors did except the Comp. - to eke out a tiny gain of just over four points. Everything moved in slow motion, as volume has nearly dried up completely.
Whoopie!
Bernanke is not going to rescue Wall Street for the sake of a few hundred points on the Dow. He's done it three times already (QE1, QE2, Operation Twist) and the players keep coming back for more. It's time for the Chairman to do what's right and take the punch bowl away.
The party should have been over a while ago. Only the chutzpah of the "masters of the universe" has managed to keep it going for so long.
Dow 13,107.48, +4.49 (0.03%)
NASDAQ 3,081.19, +4.05 (0.13%)
S&P 500 1,410.49, +1.19 (0.08%)
NYSE Composite 8,031.61, -2.24 (0.03%)
NASDAQ Volume 1,253,324,130
NYSE Volume 2,534,702,500
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ Advance - Decline: 3287-2178
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ New highs - New lows: 181-45
WTI crude oil: 95.60, -0.73
Gold: 1,658.50, -11.20
Silver: 30.70, -0.17
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
Drip... Drip... Drip... Dow Bleeds from Small Wound; NASDAQ at 11 1/2 Year High
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times...
-- Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cites
So it goeth... in the best Dickensian sense, the NASDAQ and Dow have diverged of late, forming an odd dichotomy, reprising the 2000-era old/new economies.
As the Dow suffered its sixth loss in the last seven sessions, the NASDAQ returned to the halcyon days of 2000, when, on its way through one of the worst crashes in market history it closed above 3100 for the last time, on November 15, 2000, on its eventual way to a bottom of 1419.23 on September 21, 2001.
So, for the NASDAQ, it is an 11-year, three month high, give or take a few days.
While the Dow is still within hailing distance of its own multi-year closing high (13279.32, May 1, 2012), it is down roughly two percent from there with losses mounting since the 68-point drop on the outside day last Tuesday.
The difference between the two indices is probably is risk assessment, or the mere fact that Apple (AAPL) is not a Dow stock. Had it been for, say, the last two years, the Dow Industrials might today be sporting a 15,000 handle, but, alas, the riggers of the Dow 30 apparently see Apple as unfit for inclusion, despite being the world's largest corporation by market cap.
The makers of the Dow components have a history of not being exactly of the genius character. For instance, Ford Motor Company has never been an elite member of the Dow club, despite a stellar record of accomplishments and great gains through the 20th century.
Whatever the case, the differences in how the averages are structured and weighted makes for interesting interplay as the stodgy Dow companies, what with their dividend-paying stocks and generally long track records, grind slowly in one direction or the other, the NASDAQ offers more high-fliers, jocular IPOs (like Facebook, Groupon and Zynga, to name just a few) and many small niche players, thus being the desired place for the sport of day-trading and point-splitting by the HFTs, hedgies and other mindless market cyborgs.
Once again, as has been the case through almost the entire month of August, there was little in the way of data or news to shake traders out of or into positions. The Case-Shiller 10-and-20-city index of home values showed another smallish year-over-year gain, though the August consumer confidence reading of 60.6 - down sharply from last month's 65.4 - did arouse some traders momentarily from their checker-playing, book-reading or whatever worthless activity keeps them in attendance these days.
After a few moments of excitement, however, they'd had enough and went back to the business of not trading, allowing the computers to do their dirty handiwork behind the scenes and away from the incessant snoring.
It was, again, quite the snooze-fest, and one has to wonder if traders will be back on their toes after the Labor Day recess or whether this kind of low-volume, low volatility regime is all part of a new normal that precludes individual investors.
There is a bit of tension over Friday's speech by Ben Bernanke at the Jackson Hole economic symposium (how anyone, and especially an army of seasoned traders, can get excited about one speech is yet another matter) and the news that ECB president Mario Draghi - citing a "heavy work load" - bowed out from attending.
We're happy that Mr Draghi is working hard at whatever he's doing, purportedly hammering out a deal with the German Bundesbank to save Europe from imminent collapse, though one might also assume attending important economic events such as Jackson Hole has come to be known, should be on his agenda.
At least Mr. Draghi has a job, something roughly 20% of Greeks, Italians and Spaniards do not. It is everyone's hope that he and other Eurocrat leaders concoct a suitable rescue plan for Europe and the rest of civilization before the world ends on December 21, according to wild-eyed gloom-and-doom types eyeing the Mayan calendar, because, if they don't, it will be too late.
Perhaps its for the best that the markets and traders take August off, like their politician friends in Washington almost always do. Wall Streeters can join congress with an approval rating of under 10%. Nearly everyone else - about 9.98% of the population - could care less.
Dow 13,102.99, -21.68 (0.17%)
NASDAQ 3,077.14, +3.95 (0.13%)
S&P 500 1,409.30, -1.14 (0.08%)
NYSE Composite 8,032.72, -3.53 (0.04%)
NASDAQ Volume 1,335,361,880
NYSE Volume 2,499,501,000
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ Advance - Decline: 3147-2303
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ New highs - New lows: 152-51
WTI crude oil: 96.33, +0.86
Gold: 1,669.70, -5.90
Silver: 30.88, -0.17
-- Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cites
So it goeth... in the best Dickensian sense, the NASDAQ and Dow have diverged of late, forming an odd dichotomy, reprising the 2000-era old/new economies.
As the Dow suffered its sixth loss in the last seven sessions, the NASDAQ returned to the halcyon days of 2000, when, on its way through one of the worst crashes in market history it closed above 3100 for the last time, on November 15, 2000, on its eventual way to a bottom of 1419.23 on September 21, 2001.
So, for the NASDAQ, it is an 11-year, three month high, give or take a few days.
While the Dow is still within hailing distance of its own multi-year closing high (13279.32, May 1, 2012), it is down roughly two percent from there with losses mounting since the 68-point drop on the outside day last Tuesday.
The difference between the two indices is probably is risk assessment, or the mere fact that Apple (AAPL) is not a Dow stock. Had it been for, say, the last two years, the Dow Industrials might today be sporting a 15,000 handle, but, alas, the riggers of the Dow 30 apparently see Apple as unfit for inclusion, despite being the world's largest corporation by market cap.
The makers of the Dow components have a history of not being exactly of the genius character. For instance, Ford Motor Company has never been an elite member of the Dow club, despite a stellar record of accomplishments and great gains through the 20th century.
Whatever the case, the differences in how the averages are structured and weighted makes for interesting interplay as the stodgy Dow companies, what with their dividend-paying stocks and generally long track records, grind slowly in one direction or the other, the NASDAQ offers more high-fliers, jocular IPOs (like Facebook, Groupon and Zynga, to name just a few) and many small niche players, thus being the desired place for the sport of day-trading and point-splitting by the HFTs, hedgies and other mindless market cyborgs.
Once again, as has been the case through almost the entire month of August, there was little in the way of data or news to shake traders out of or into positions. The Case-Shiller 10-and-20-city index of home values showed another smallish year-over-year gain, though the August consumer confidence reading of 60.6 - down sharply from last month's 65.4 - did arouse some traders momentarily from their checker-playing, book-reading or whatever worthless activity keeps them in attendance these days.
After a few moments of excitement, however, they'd had enough and went back to the business of not trading, allowing the computers to do their dirty handiwork behind the scenes and away from the incessant snoring.
It was, again, quite the snooze-fest, and one has to wonder if traders will be back on their toes after the Labor Day recess or whether this kind of low-volume, low volatility regime is all part of a new normal that precludes individual investors.
There is a bit of tension over Friday's speech by Ben Bernanke at the Jackson Hole economic symposium (how anyone, and especially an army of seasoned traders, can get excited about one speech is yet another matter) and the news that ECB president Mario Draghi - citing a "heavy work load" - bowed out from attending.
We're happy that Mr Draghi is working hard at whatever he's doing, purportedly hammering out a deal with the German Bundesbank to save Europe from imminent collapse, though one might also assume attending important economic events such as Jackson Hole has come to be known, should be on his agenda.
At least Mr. Draghi has a job, something roughly 20% of Greeks, Italians and Spaniards do not. It is everyone's hope that he and other Eurocrat leaders concoct a suitable rescue plan for Europe and the rest of civilization before the world ends on December 21, according to wild-eyed gloom-and-doom types eyeing the Mayan calendar, because, if they don't, it will be too late.
Perhaps its for the best that the markets and traders take August off, like their politician friends in Washington almost always do. Wall Streeters can join congress with an approval rating of under 10%. Nearly everyone else - about 9.98% of the population - could care less.
Dow 13,102.99, -21.68 (0.17%)
NASDAQ 3,077.14, +3.95 (0.13%)
S&P 500 1,409.30, -1.14 (0.08%)
NYSE Composite 8,032.72, -3.53 (0.04%)
NASDAQ Volume 1,335,361,880
NYSE Volume 2,499,501,000
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ Advance - Decline: 3147-2303
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ New highs - New lows: 152-51
WTI crude oil: 96.33, +0.86
Gold: 1,669.70, -5.90
Silver: 30.88, -0.17
Monday, August 27, 2012
Despite Big Move By Apple, Stocks Have No Monday Lift
As has been the case for many weeks (as noted in Friday's posting), stocks could simply not find any meaningful reasons to move to higher ground, even in the wake of a big move by Apple after a federal jury awarded Apple $1 billion in its patent infringement case over rival Samsung.
Apple stock hit an all-time high of 680.87 in early trading, but drifted lower throughout the session.
Veteran tape-watchers (we're fairly certain there are a few left out there) must have dozed off from another in a seemingly-endless stream of low-volume, noiseless, motion-defying trading. All but the first and last hours saw any significant action. The trading range on the Dow amounted to less than 80 points from top to bottom, with stocks selling off in the final hour and closing near the lows of the session.
Of the major averages, only the NASDAQ finished in positive territory, though it was green by only three points. The Dow was the biggest percentage loser, off 0.25% on the day.
Otherwise, there was little to no interest in equities on first day of the final unofficial week of summer, prior to the three-day Labor Day holiday.
Traders may be asleep at the switch and/or holding positions until after the holiday and Ben Bernanke's speech to the assembled central bankers and key economists at Jackson Hole on Friday.
Many on Wall Street are expecting Bernanke to signal another round of quantitative easing (QE), as he did in his 2010 speech, though skeptics of that theory abound, citing politics (the elections are nearly just two months away) and the muddled and murky economic picture as reasons the chairman of the world's largest central bank will not offer specificity in his remarks.
Additionally, ECB president Mario Draghi will present at the symposium, though his record for signaling specific policy actions are spotty at best. Draghi, as well as most European politicians, seems always to be long on rhetoric and short on delivery of specifics.
Outside of some M&A activity and Apple's move higher, the week began with a dolorous thud and will likely end that way unless Bernanke can be convinced that the time for the Fed to act - once again - is now. The high degree of uncertainty and doubt in the markets and general economy will likely keep a lid on what have to be viewed as excessively overpriced stocks and accompanying indices.
Dow 13,124.67, -33.30 (0.25%)
NASDAQ 3,073.19, +3.40 (0.11%)
S&P 500 1,410.44, -0.69 (0.05%)
NYSE Composite 8,033.93, -13.94 (0.17%)
NASDAQ Volume 1,363,789,875
NYSE Volume 2,439,756,500
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ Advance - Decline: 2676-2833
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ New highs - New lows: 162-45
WTI crude oil: 95.47, -0.68
Gold: 1,675.60, +2.70
Silver: 31.05, +0.43
Apple stock hit an all-time high of 680.87 in early trading, but drifted lower throughout the session.
Veteran tape-watchers (we're fairly certain there are a few left out there) must have dozed off from another in a seemingly-endless stream of low-volume, noiseless, motion-defying trading. All but the first and last hours saw any significant action. The trading range on the Dow amounted to less than 80 points from top to bottom, with stocks selling off in the final hour and closing near the lows of the session.
Of the major averages, only the NASDAQ finished in positive territory, though it was green by only three points. The Dow was the biggest percentage loser, off 0.25% on the day.
Otherwise, there was little to no interest in equities on first day of the final unofficial week of summer, prior to the three-day Labor Day holiday.
Traders may be asleep at the switch and/or holding positions until after the holiday and Ben Bernanke's speech to the assembled central bankers and key economists at Jackson Hole on Friday.
Many on Wall Street are expecting Bernanke to signal another round of quantitative easing (QE), as he did in his 2010 speech, though skeptics of that theory abound, citing politics (the elections are nearly just two months away) and the muddled and murky economic picture as reasons the chairman of the world's largest central bank will not offer specificity in his remarks.
Additionally, ECB president Mario Draghi will present at the symposium, though his record for signaling specific policy actions are spotty at best. Draghi, as well as most European politicians, seems always to be long on rhetoric and short on delivery of specifics.
Outside of some M&A activity and Apple's move higher, the week began with a dolorous thud and will likely end that way unless Bernanke can be convinced that the time for the Fed to act - once again - is now. The high degree of uncertainty and doubt in the markets and general economy will likely keep a lid on what have to be viewed as excessively overpriced stocks and accompanying indices.
Dow 13,124.67, -33.30 (0.25%)
NASDAQ 3,073.19, +3.40 (0.11%)
S&P 500 1,410.44, -0.69 (0.05%)
NYSE Composite 8,033.93, -13.94 (0.17%)
NASDAQ Volume 1,363,789,875
NYSE Volume 2,439,756,500
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ Advance - Decline: 2676-2833
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ New highs - New lows: 162-45
WTI crude oil: 95.47, -0.68
Gold: 1,675.60, +2.70
Silver: 31.05, +0.43
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