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The market opened lower and was much weaker this morning as WalMart’s weak December sales and reduced earnings outlook increased the fear of continued recession. WalMart’s number give a scary indication of slow personal spending. But the initial jobless claims dropped unexpectedly by 24K. That, and President-elect Obama’s urging Congress to pass a huge economic stimulus plan provided some support, and broad market indices closed either slightly lower or higher on the day.
Some of the stocks that have served contestants well recently, ACAS, ALD and FIG gave back a little ground today, but not much. I see today’s move today as fairly encouraging for a rally. Volatility jumped a bit on the selloff this morning, but not dramatically. And I didn’t sense the fear this morning that I saw a couple months ago. So, I think that we might continue to see some market strength. We’re also coming into January expiration next week, which may add to volatility, but I think the market bias might be higher.
Tom Preston
thinkorswim, Inc.
Member FINRA/SIPC/NFA
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