Analysis Topic: Stock & Financial Markets
The analysis published under this topic are as follows.Tuesday, January 08, 2008
Stock Market Valuations Misleading, Signal Substantial Weakness for 2008 / Stock-Markets / Stock Market Valuations
This week in Outside the Box John Hussman of The Hussman Funds strives to shed light upon the tumultuous and perplexing state that is the stock market. Having metaphorically, as in the Greek tale, driven by curiosity, opened Pandora's Jar (Box) of financial fantasy and unleashed the evil that has come to pass in the guise of subprime, all that remained was hope. Hussman intertwines hope with caution as we venture into the new year.
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Monday, January 07, 2008
NASDAQ Rally Missing Momentum / Stock-Markets / Tech Stocks
If the Q's (NASDAQ: QQQQ) are on the verge of a major upside reversal, then shouldn't the buying power motor prices above the relatively minor near-term resistance between 48.50 and 48.65 into a confrontation with the 200 DMA at 48.88? Thus far, although the Q's have recovered most of this morning's follow-through decline, the underlying "umph" appears to be missing -- at least for the time being, which leads me to continue to look for another loop to the downside that retests and likely breaks this morning's low at 47.43 -- on the way to my optimal intermediate-term target zone of 46.50/00.Read full article... Read full article...
Monday, January 07, 2008
Contrarian Stock and Financial Market Forecasts 2008 / Stock-Markets / Financial Markets
With most investors it is usually sub-conscious convictions that ultimately determine the investment path chosen. Formed partly from experience but largely by their character, there is no escaping the veracity of this. To paraphrase Morpheus, "Investor's are slaves. Like everyone, they are born into bondage, born inside a prison that they cannot smell, taste, or touch. A prison for their minds."Read full article... Read full article...
Sunday, January 06, 2008
Stock Market Update: Reacting to Price Movements in Realtime / Stock-Markets / US Stock Markets
Back in January 2007, this update promised volatility for the new year and, now that it's in the history books, we know that promise was delivered: 2007 was the year of volatility. Last week's update said to expect the volatility will continue – it didn't abandon the possibility of new highs in the S&P, but did express some skepticism about the Dec. 30 rally, which suggested more work needed to be done on the downside. And, after the holiday celebration, the market got exactly that, with Friday's slide into the close erasing December's gains and again making good on the promise of volatility.Read full article... Read full article...
Saturday, January 05, 2008
Stock Market Oversold - Rally Expected Next Week / Stock-Markets / US Stock Markets
The good news is: The market is oversold and likely to rally from here.
Short Term - The Russell 2000 (R2K) rose for 6 consecutive days through December 26 then fell for 6 consecutive days as of last Friday. This is pretty unusual, having occurred only 6 other times since 1979.
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Saturday, January 05, 2008
Credit Crisis Deepens - ATM Withdrawl Limits Next? / Stock-Markets / Financial Markets
Citibank is now limiting ATM withdrawals in New York City , blaming it on “isolated fraudulent activity.” If the fraudulent activity is isolated, why punish all your clients in a given region? This is certainly causing distress among New Yorkers because of the high cost of living in that city. Why not simply increase security on the ATMs? It looks an awful lot like Citibank is experimenting with rationing their cash outflows.Read full article... Read full article...
Friday, January 04, 2008
Invest in Russia 2008 / Stock-Markets / Russia
I've long favored Russia as a destination for investment, building my case primarily around its energy sector. But I've also highlighted the increase in domestic demand and the infrastructure boom taking place there.
Russia is currently in a sweet spot: It's a net oil exporter, has good GDP growth, isn't dependent on foreign capital flows, is relatively stable politically, boasts reasonable market valuations and, above all, enjoys solid exposure to the biggest growth story of our time, Asia.
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Friday, January 04, 2008
Wall Street Eyes Wide Shut to Inflation and Impact of Sovereign Wealth Fund Investments / Stock-Markets / US Economy
As our economic ship continues to spring leaks, the goldilocks crowd still clings to the false belief that the Fed can easily keep us afloat with a few more rate cuts. This comfort has sustained many upbeat forecasts despite overwhelming evidence of an unfolding economic and monetary catastrophe of historic proportions.
On Monday we learned that Merrill Lynch, having just sold a $4.5 billion stake to the Singapore government, is again passing around the hat, this time wooing the Chinese and Saudi governments for badly needed funds. This of course follows similar moves by U.S. investment houses Citigroup, Morgan Stanley and Bear Stearns. These developments should be disconcerting on many levels, yet most seem unperturbed.
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Friday, January 04, 2008
US Financial Crisis Worsening as Consumer Loan Delinquencies Surge / Stock-Markets / Financial Crash
Mike Larson writes: Several weeks ago, I told you we were staring "S&L Crisis II" in the face. I said estimates of losses stemming from the mortgage crisis kept spiraling higher — from $100 billion ... to $250 billion ... to $400 billion and higher.
I wish I could say things are getting better. But they're not. In fact, the tally of charges, losses and write-downs across the financial industry continues to rise higher and higher.
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Thursday, January 03, 2008
Forecasts for 2008 - Stock and Financial Markets, Commodities, Housing and US Elections / Stock-Markets / Forecasts & Technical Analysis
Yesterday's review of predictions for 2007 wasn't nearly as good as the year before, but then the bar was set rather high back in 2006 . As it was, the results were again mostly A's with a few lower grades in areas where predictions probably shouldn't have been made anyway.
Of course, when three of the ten predictions are oil, gold, and the dollar, guesses of up, up, and down really are slam-dunks.
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Thursday, January 03, 2008
2008 - Break of the Financial System as PRIME Mortgages Go BUST / Stock-Markets / Financial Crash
The year 2008 will be the year that THINGS JUST PLAIN BREAK. It will be a truly deadly year, unavoidably lethal to the USEconomy and especially to the US banking sector. Nothing has been repaired. Some tangible solutions will be offered in the next section, all legitimate in a real world. However, we do NOT live in a real world, but rather in a Fairy Tale world of US Hegemony and Wall Street with a choke hold around the US entire system. Managed inflation is the policy never to be reversed, until total breakdown occurs. Treason is rampant, called simply Power Games.Read full article... Read full article...
Wednesday, January 02, 2008
Stock Market Cycle Investment Management and the Business Cycle / Stock-Markets / Cycles Analysis
Whatever happened to the Stock Market Cycle; the Interest Rate Cycle; Baby Jane? How did Wall Street get away with pushing these facts of financial life down the basement stairs? Most investors, I'm beginning to believe, and all financial advisors, media representatives, and market gurus have abandoned these fascinating curves for the comfort of a straight-edged twelve-month playing field... simple, yes; realistic, not. I have to wonder if things would be different with a more investor-friendly tax-code, but that would be far less lucrative for The Wizards...
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Wednesday, January 02, 2008
Credit Collapse Domino Effect to Send Stocks Lower / Stock-Markets / Credit Crunch
There's no reason to be short the stock market from a seasonal perspective anymore. And with all the giveaways these days, along with apparent ample money supply, again, if contemplating participation in the stock market, without a doubt the ‘rational man' would be compelled to be long given it appears authorities have the subprime mess under control – right? Correspondingly then, both short and put / call ratios should be falling, and in fact this is exactly what is happening as market participants get squeezed in a traditional Santa Claus rally. From a sentiment related perspective this is a bearish set-up along the lines of Dave's thoughts on the subject – The Grinch That Stole Christmas .Read full article... Read full article...
Wednesday, January 02, 2008
2008 Investment and Economic Forecasts / Stock-Markets / Financial Markets
The US EconomyThe American consumer has proven to be very resilient over the years. Rumors of their impending demise have been foretold since the beginning of the decade and here we stand at another crossroads. Consumer spending accounts for more than 70% of GDP so while everyone focuses on manufacturing, production, and service figures they overlook the one figure that matters most, retail sales.
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Tuesday, January 01, 2008
Stock Market Trends for 2008 / Stock-Markets / US Stock Markets
The year 2007 was marked by pessimism, doom and gloom, and a never-ending fusillade of fear. The mainstream press never tired of hypnotizing into believing the stock market would collapse, a downfall which never materialized.
With all the talk of the weak dollar and the predictions of a worsening liquidity crisis, prognosticators have all but written off the prospects for a bullish 2008. Calls for a recession in the year ahead are also on the rise. What these analysts have failed to grasp is that there never was a liquidity crisis to begin with. By definition, tight money is reflected by rising interest rates and falling money supply indicators. Just the opposite is the case today.
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Tuesday, January 01, 2008
2008 Epic Battle Between Credit Crunch and Central banks Liquidity Flood / Stock-Markets / Financial Markets
Martin Weiss writes: The year 2007 is closing — and 2008 is about to open — with an epic battle between two of the most powerful economic crosscurrents we've seen in a lifetime:
- An unprecedented credit crunch threatening to strangle the debt-addicted U.S. economy, and ...
- Equally unprecedented money pumping by a Federal Reserve determined to flood the economy with all the cash it needs to overcome the crunch.
Monday, December 31, 2007
Most Popular Financial Market Analysis of 2007 Dominated by the Housing Market Bust / Stock-Markets / Financial Markets
The analysis and forecasts for the commodity and financial markets for 2008 are coming through thick and fast as the New Year approaches. It is time to delve through the several thousand articles published during 2007 for the opportunity to return to the ten most popular articles of the year. The Housing market dominated peoples interest as the US Housing bust kicked into gear and fears of a similar collapse in other over extended housing markets such as the UK's.Read full article... Read full article...
Monday, December 31, 2007
Stock Market Trading 2008 - Resolved Price Interpretation / Stock-Markets / Elliott Wave Theory
"Who is the judge? The judge is God... Why is He God? Because He decides who wins or loses, not my opponent ... Who is your opponent? He does not exist.... Why doesn't he exist? Because he is a mere dissenting voice of the truth I speak."
The above quote comes from the film “The Great Debaters” directed by Denzel Washington. The Great Debaters was inspired by Wiley College, a traditionally African-American school in Marshall, Texas, with Melvin Tolson, its iconic debate coach.
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Monday, December 31, 2007
Stock Market Seasonal and Cyclic Forecast for 2008 / Stock-Markets / US Stock Markets
Current Position of the Market
SPX: Long-Term Trend - The 12-yr cycle is approaching its mid-point and some of its dominant components have topped and may be restraining the bullish effect of the 4.5-yr. This could lead to another period of consolidation in 2008 with an eventual bull market top in 2009-2010.
SPX: Intermediate Trend - The intermediate-term trend which had been in a correction since the index reached 1576 has now resumed its up move, but the corrective pattern could be extended if a new high is not achieved soon.
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Sunday, December 30, 2007
Lessons for High Yield Stock Market Investments 2008 / Stock-Markets / Dividends
There's still one trading day left in 2007. But for income investors, the key lessons from what was quite a tumultuous year are already in focus, as is how we can use them for a prosperous 2008.Once again, diversification paid off in spades. Some dividend-paying investments such as utility stocks were huge winners. More economy-sensitive fare like financial's and most real estate investment trusts were losers. But a balanced portfolio of a wide range of high-quality income-payers held its own, generating steady income with low overall volatility of principal.
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