In This Issue
Black Friday May Suggest A More Optimistic Outlook
Most Insiders Are Not Selling
Bear Market History: How We Compare
Get Paid While You Wait
The Bottom Line This Week
Last
week when everyone was stuffing themselves with turkey and other goodies, the
urge to consume in abundance spilled over to Wall Street. By the time the
market closed on Friday, the Dow and the Nasdaq were up an impressive 9.7% and
10.9% respectively. It was the first five day rally we've seen in over a year.
The
enthusiasm for stocks wasn't completely due to holiday cheer. Investors got
wind of the fact that Black Friday sales were likely to be better than was
first expected. As it turned out, instead of a miniscule 0.9% sales increase,
Joe and Sally MidAmerica gave the retail industry a 3% boost. Shoppers were so
eager to spend money, they trampled several people who got in their way, one of
whom died.
As
we are sure you know by now, the enthusiasm didn't survive the weekend. The
terrorist attack in Mumbai plus a dismal economic report sent the market down
680 points on Monday. Stocks recovered 442 points on Tuesday and Wednesday but
the rebound seems unlikely to last very long.
...