Stock Market Update -Apr 20th

Up one week, down one week, up the next week! Thats the kind of market we are in right now. The market rose this week in spite of higher oil prices, and more bad earnings and more writeoffs from the banks and brokers. On the bright side we did get good earnings from CAT, IBM, and GOOG (Google shot up $90 on Friday, while ISRG fell by $60!). We are seeing an uptrend develop from the March 17th lows, though the market is very volatile so you should use caution with any 'long' positions.



The inflation trend continues with Oil closing near $117, Natural Gas over $10, and Heating Oil (diesel) near $3.30. In the news, Delta and Northwest announced their intention to merge, Brazil announced a huge oil discovery, and Wall Street announced more job losses. The Euro climbed to a record high of just under $1.60 to the US Dollar.

Next week: We will continue to get more earnings reports, including MSFT. If the S&P 500 can break above the 1400 level like the DOW broke out last week, we could see the bullish sentiment continue for a while longer.

News stories:
Stocks rally on Citigroup, Google earnings results
Google gets big lift as market cheers report
Five signs the stock market has bottomed
Wall Street braces for tens of thousands of pink slips
Buying Brazil
Brazil Oil Find May Be World's 3rd Largest

Fears of long recession rising
Diesel weasels its way into costs, supply-chain strategy
Oil Rises to Record on Signs Stronger Economy May Boost Demand
Soybeans Rise as Record Oil Prices May Boost Demand for Biofuel
Rice Gains to Record on Concern Trade Curbs to Spread

Other stories:
Some Mutual Fund Numbers Look Great, but for Whom?
World's food crisis deepens
Stocks and Indexes mentioned in this blog are for educational and illustration purposes only.