Daily Investment Interpretations

February 18, 2010

2010-2-18:  The markets rose again today, fetching up against the overhead resistance that Michael Ashbaugh described on Tuesday. 
    The markets rose modestly today. The NASDAQ Composite tacked on 15.42 points, (0.69%) to close at 2,241.71, the Dow added 83.66 points (0.81%) to close at 10,392.40, and the S&P 500 advanced 7.24 points (0.66%) to close at 1,106.75. Oil moved down to $78.39 a barrel. Gold was unchanged at $1,119. The VIX fell 1.09 to 20.63.
    The markets fell today when a plane crashed into the side of an office building in Austin, TX, on rumors that this was a terrorist act. In fact, it was one individual objecting to capitalistic greed and federal spending ("A pox on both your houses!")
    The U. S. Fedeal Reserve hiked its discount rate today from 0.5% to 0.75% in an effort to get banks to start loaning money again: Fed hikes discount rate. This has led to a "jump" in the dollar tonight, and to a sharp drop in stock market futures.
    I bought back into a couple of mutual funds today (just in time for tomorrow's pullback).