When Three Strikes Is a Home Run

In the game of baseball, there are rules, immutable and unchanging. Three outs per inning. A caught fly ball is an out. Three strikes and you're out.

The world of high finance, as demonstrated daily on the trading platforms, carries no such rules, other than simple casino-style paradigms. Make the right bet, at the right time, and you're a winner, after the various parties to the trade take their respective cuts, of course. The broker gets theirs, the government, another. It's more about timing and luck, especially these days, when nothing much matters other than the directionality of the various computer algos plying and playing the indices.

So it is that in stocks, you have situations like today, wherein three strikes equates to hitting a home run. Prior to the opening bell, three different sets of economic data were presented, and, against expectations, all were swings and misses, except maybe the seasonally-adjusted building permits, which could be weighed as a foul tip into the catcher's mitt, a strike by any other name.

First came the May CPI, up 0.1%, on expectation of a rise of 0.2%, well short of the Fed's annualized two percent inflation target. Strike one. Next up, housing starts, which banked 914K, well below expectations of 950K. Strike two. As mentioned above, building permits, which mean nothing other than somebody is planning to do something, like put up a fence or remodel a bathroom, were just under the expected annualized rate of 975K - at 974K. Strike three.

The market response was as expected, with deference and possibly blissful ignorance toward the headline numbers, straight up all day, a veritable home run, even as auto sales in Europe reached 20-year lows and an agent of our very own secret police, the NSA (No Such Agency, to wise guys) testified to congress that the wholly unconstitutional massive spying program that filters every American's phone calls, emails and internet activity, prevented the bombing of the NY Stock Exchange by some nefarious, insidious suspect known only as "the doctor" in 2008. The NSA says more than 50 terrorist plots were uncovered by their spy programs since 9/11/2001. Not even the best Hollywood script writers could have come up with a better narrative to deprive citizens of their fourth amendment rights. Those NSA guys hire only the best, you know.

Thus stocks ended the day close to all-time highs once again. The Dow Industrials are within spitting distance - less than 100 points - of the May 28 closing high of 15,409.39 as the Fed ponders what to do next, wrapping up their two-day FOMC meeting on Wednesday. A policy decision is due out at 2:00 pm EDT, followed by a reading of the statement and press conference, by everybody's favorite "doctor," the dis-honorable Ben Bernanke, balding, bearded, wizened Chairman of the Federal Reserve.

With recent jawboning efforts pointing toward some tightening of Fed policy, the markets seem to be expecting no change in course for the every-easy Fed, and, while there's some nervousness over the wording of the statement, one might suspect that an even more important date - expiry of June options contracts on Friday - may be what's really driving the markets higher this week.

With baited breath we await the words of fearless leader the Chairman. Can't wait.

Dow 15,318.23, +138.38 (0.91%)
NASDAQ 3,482.18, +30.05 (0.87%)
S&P 500 1,651.81, +12.77 (0.78%)
NYSE Composite 9,399.63, +61.74 (0.66%)
NASDAQ Volume 1,593,283,375
NYSE Volume 3,392,735,750
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ Advance - Decline: 4430-2051
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ New highs - New lows: 327-76
WTI crude oil: 98.44, +0.67
Gold: 1,366.90, -16.20
Silver: 21.68, -0.081

Nowhere to Run for Suckers

There was nowhere to run for anybody who bought into today's "rally" - and how can it be called a rally if the only people participating are pumping futures from some back office in Hoboken just to get an imaginary boost in the equities markets, shooting everything higher right at the open only to close below that starting point.

Around 2:00 pm EDT there was a major selloff, telltale of the gutless rip-off merchants which have been roaming the canyons of Wall Street the past decade or two. All the markets gave ground, only because those who had bought in the morning, pushing stocks to artificially-inflated levels (they've only been doing it for the past five years, without pause, so they should know what they're doing), decided that it was time to skin some of their own clients, and those of other firms, such is the nature of the game they play.

The equity markets are a sick, tired, stupid joke. One would think that after five years of stimulus by the Fed, the US economy, and maybe even the world economy, would be cranking along at a better clip than what amounts to the "new normal," which is nothing but vapor and badly over-managed economic data that is so far off the mark from reality to be laughable if only it wasn't so sick and perverted.

Speaking of sick and perverse, those who run the show on Wall Street and in the central banking cartel that is destroying the global economy - mostly alumni of Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan - are nothing but small, twisted creatures, afraid primarily of their own shadows.

But, it matters none to them, because the people they deal with as clients are smaller, and more frightened, and venal and ignorant and important only to themselves, so the narcissism carries through the entirety of the upper crust, as does vanity and pride and probably a whole of of more than just the seven deadly sins.

These people think their money has value in a better regard than say, friendship, honesty, morality, decency or truth, but, as they have learned from their role models in the political vein, those values don't matter. At the end of the day, everyone is supposedly measures in dollars. And if you ain't got 'em, you ain't nothing.

It's too bad. Seriously, because their pride will bring a fall, as sure as the sun follows the rain and bees make honey. These folks - the bankers and politicians - are nothing but cheap criminals, skimmers, really, who would steal the diamonds off their mother's engagement ring if in dire straits. The people who get nozzled into the game through IRAs, 401ks, pension and other products of financial scammery are suckers only by their willingness and play along because they have not an original idea in their heads.

They might as well just crash the whole thing and start over, The current flimflam that poses as wealth creation or preservation or management is nothing but a semi-sophisticated game of three-card monty. The dealers take their percentage, as does the house, and players chasing the dough generally end up with less on the way out than they had on the way in.

Tough. Win, lose, or go home. Somebody needs another dollar.

Dow 15,179.85, +109.67 (0.73%)
NASDAQ 3,452.13, +28.58 (0.83%)
S&P 500 1,639.04, +12.31 (0.76%)
NYSE Composite 9,337.89, +74.20 (0.80%)
NASDAQ Volume 1,580,505,125
NYSE Volume 3,464,888,250
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ Advance - Decline: 4272-2241
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ New highs - New lows: 259-47
WTI crude oil: 97.77, -0.08
Gold: 1,383.10, -4.50
Silver: 21.76, -0.196

Stocks Finish Lower; Dow, S&P Down 4th Week of Last Five

Bears took back control on Friday, sending the major averages to their fourth session loss of the week. Thursday was the only up day for the markets.

In case anyone wants to figure out what's going on, good luck. Between Fed jawboning and interest rate speculation, VIX movements and the Fed's relentless bond-buying, it's a mixed bag, but the bears seem to have an edge during this period between economic data and second quarter earnings releases, which begin in just over three weeks time.

The Dow and S&P registered their fourth weekly loss in the last five. The strangest indicator came in the form of new highs vs. new lows, where the string of wins by the new 52-week lows was cut off at three, Friday's tape showing the new highs with an unusual advantage on such a largely lower day. Those are telling signals, but more will be revealed about direction upon the conclusion of the FOMC meeting, Tuesday and Wednesday of next week, culminating in Bernanke's press conference.

Bias still remains to the downside.

Outside the market, continuing scandals are rocking the capitol, and the US has committed "something" to the Syrian rebels, though details thus far have been sketchy.

As they say in the old school of hard knocks, "another week, another half a dollar."

Dow 15,070.18, -105.90 (0.70%)
NASDAQ 3,423.56, -21.81 (0.63%)
S&P 500 1,626.73, -9.63 (0.59%)
NYSE Composite 9,263.69, -67.69 (0.73%)
NASDAQ Volume 1,422,469,500
NYSE Volume 3,241,179,500
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ Advance - Decline: 2534-3951
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ New highs - New lows: 161-53
WTI crude oil: 97.85, +1.16
Gold: 1,388.10, +10.30
Silver: 21.96, +0.377

Only Banksters Like Rigged Markets

Japan's Nikkei was down more than six percent on Thursday, the US$/YEN carry trade busted as that fell below 94. Stocks in Europe were down hard. By all indications, US stocks should have taken another serious leg lower, but instead, we got an algo-driven, out-of-the-blue hockey stick magic rally that erased the declines of the past two days on marginal volume.

This is why individual investors don't trade in or trust the stock markets. They are rigged - and broken - beyond anyone's wildest imagination.

Dow 15,176.08, +180.85 (1.21%)
NASDAQ 3,445.37, +44.94 (1.32%)
S&P 500 1,636.36, +23.84 (1.48%)
NYSE Composite 9,331.37, +141.93 (1.54%)
NASDAQ Volume 1,548,629,625
NYSE Volume 3,840,153,500
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ Advance - Decline: 5176-1318
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ New highs - New lows: 155-395
WTI crude oil: 96.69, +0.81
Gold: 1,377.80, -14.20
Silver: 21.58, -0.213

Stocks Erase Early Gains; Dow Down Three Straight for First Time in 2013

Equities took another shot to the ribs on Tuesday as bears took control of the trading.

After an initial gain of 119 points on the Dow, sentiment turned radically negative for really no apparent reason, as selling into strength became the preferred strategy after months of buying dips.

The Dow posted its first three-day losing streak of 2013, with the other major averages following suit. Today's closing numbers put the S&P and the Dow dangerously close to their 50-day moving averages: 1610 for the S&P; 14970 on the Dow, and, any troubling signs from Thursday's initial unemployment claims could shoot the averages right through support and into a proverbial no-man's land.

Trading volume was rather tepid, but losers outnumbered gainers again, by a roughly 3:1 margin. The major indices now have entered an area that is decisively below the midpoint between recent highs and lows, trending lower, as has been the mantra for most of the month of June.

The dark lining inside the silver cloud came in the form of WTI crude oil prices, which hit a three-week high.

Bias remains bearish short-term, as new lows outpaced new highs for the second straight session and are deteriorating.

Where this goes from here is anyone's guess, though most are placing their wagers toward continued weakness in stocks as interest rates bumped up slightly again today, the 10-year closing at 2.23%, but that's what makes gambling investing so interesting.

Dow 14,995.23, -126.79 (0.84%)
NASDAQ 3,400.43, -36.52 (1.06%)
S&P 500 1,612.52, -13.61 (0.84%)
NYSE Composite 9,189.42, -66.06 (0.71%)
NASDAQ Volume 1,501,521,500
NYSE Volume 3,677,878,750
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ Advance - Decline: 1675-4828
Combined NYSE & NASDAQ New highs - New lows: 129-428
WTI crude oil: 95.88, +0.50
Gold: 1,392.00, +15.00
Silver: 21.80, +0.15