Money Watch: Weekly Wrap
Animal spirits are rising on Wall Street -- Friday marked the seventh straight week of gains for the S&P 500 (cue the Judy Garland version of "Get Happy"). The upbeat feeling isn't seen or heard on Main Street, where consumer sentiment remains at levels associated with recession levels, but two polls of investors tell a different story:
- American Association of Individual Investors index: Bulls = 52.3% bulls, Bears = 23.4%
- Investors Intelligence Investment Advisor poll: Bulls=57.3%, Bears=19% bears
One last thing: the municipal bond market continues to tumble, as nervous investors worry that state and local municipalities will be unable to repay their debts to bondholders. Prices dropped to levels not seen since the height of the credit crisis.
- DJIA: 11,787, up 0.9% on week, up 1.8% YTD (highest level since June 2008)
- S&P 500: 1293, up 1.7% on week, up 2.8% YTD (up 91% since March 2009 lows)
- NASDAQ: 2755, up 1.9% on week, up 3.8% YTD (highest close since November 2007)
- February Crude Oil: $91.54, up 4% on week
- February Gold: $1361.40, down 0.6% on week
FACTOIDS OF THE WEEK:
- Consumer prices up 1.5 percent from a year ago, 0.8% without food or energy
- In 2010, there were over 3.8 million foreclosure filings reported on a record 2.87 million properties, an increase of nearly 2 percent from 2009 and up 23 percent from 2008
- As Congress returns to business, the national debt will be back in the news. Here's a neat stat: From 1960-2007, US government debt-to-GDP ratio=36%. At the end of 2010, it was 62%. The CBO forecasts that it will be 100% by 2020 unless current tax and spending policies change
- The biggest holders of US debt (67%) are American individuals, institutions, and Social Security. In other words, the Chinese don't own us just yet...they own 7.5% of US debt
IN THE WEEK AHEAD: Earnings from some of the largest financial and institutions and technology companies will dominate the holiday-shortened week.
Mon 1/17: US MARKETS CLOSED MLK DAY
Tues 1/18:
Apple, Citigroup
8:30 Empire State Manufacturing
10:00 Housing Market Index
Weds 1/19:
eBay, Goldman Sachs, Wells Fargo, Bank of NY/Mellon, State Street
8:30 Housing Starts
China's President Hu Jintao and President Barack Obama meet
Thurs 1/20:
AMD, Google, Morgan Stanley, Southwest Air, United Health
8:30 Weekly Claims
8:30 Existing Home Sales
10:00 Philly Fed Survey
Fri 1/21:
Bank of America, General Electric, Schlumberger
