Stock Market Update -Mar 21st

The market was up again this week, though we saw a drop on Friday, which raises a caution flag. The market has been up almost non-stop since the second week of February, and now that Options and Futures expiration has passed, we could see a break in that rally.

Some new all time highs this week: BIDU, ESRX, MCD, NKE, GMCR, TEVA
PALM shares tanked this week! So did UNG.


New unemployment claims were down, coming in at 457,000.
And seven more banks were shutdown by the FDIC this week! (list).

Next week: Not much in the way of events, except for the pending Health Care Bill, along with a few economic reports. Also, more government borrowing next week to the tune of around $118 billion in Treasuries (stocks down, treasuries up??).

Market commentary: The DOW did catch up to the January highs as I expected, and I believe we will see the market begin to turn around this week, after a solid one month rally. Friday flashed a turnaround signal in all the indexes, so this could turn out to be a short term top. We could also be seeing a double-top here. Likewise for HYG and JNK.

For the brave of heart out there, now may be a time to finally look at some of those inverse ETF trades (SRS, SDS, QID, TZA, etc.). Also, if you anticipate an increase in volatility, the VXX may be a good product to trade now.

Remember however to do your own due diligence, and to always use stops with every trade.

Commodities:
Oil prices were up and down, closing the week just over $80 per barrel.
Natural Gas dropped even further, closing around $4.16
Gold prices were both up and down, closing around $1107.
The US Dollar index was up late in the week, closing around 81.
30 year Bond prices were up a bit, closing around $118.

News:
Santoli: Pullback or Crash?
S&P 500 in ‘Air Pocket,’ Could Reach 1,225
The Bears Are Dead Wrong
Full-steam ahead for the economy
Euro Collapses, Dollar Jumps, Markets Sleep

Waiting for silver's big break
Treasurys add to gains after Fed sticks to low-rate stance
China in Midst of ‘Greatest Bubble in History,’ Rickards Says
Corporate Debt Coming Due May Squeeze Credit