Money Watch: Weekly Wrap

The Federal budget, disputes over state budgets and inflation dominated the financial news last week. For all the hand-wringing about those topics, not to mention unrest in the Middle East, stocks continued to march higher. The Dow has now rallied in 11 of the past 12 weeks; the S&P 500 has doubled from its financial crisis intra-day low of 666, though is about 15 percent from its all-time closing high of 1565 in October, 2007; and the NASDAQ is just a mere 0.9 percent from its October, 2007 multi-year high. Bruised tech investors will be quick to remind us that the NASDAQ remains over 40 percent lower than its all-time high of 5048, reached nearly 11 years ago on March 10, 2000.

• DJIA: 12,391, up 0.9% on week, up 7% YTD (up 4.8% in past 3 weeks, highest close since 6/5/08)
• S&P 500: 1343, up 1% on week, up 6.8% YTD (up 5.2% in past 3 weeks, highest close since 6/17/08)
• NASDAQ: 2833, up 0.8% on week, up 6.8% YTD (up 5.4% in past 3 weeks, highest close since 10/31/07)
• March Crude Oil: $86.20, up 0.7% on week
• April Gold: $1388.60, up 2% (best week since week ending December 31, 2010)

FACTOIDS OF THE WEEK: There will be a number of reports on housing this week, so here are some facts to keep in mind as we digest the data:

• Nationally, house prices doubled between 2000-2006
• Prices are now 31 percent below the peak
• Weak sales plus ramped up foreclosure activity could spell lower prices. Some are expecting new post-bubble lows in the coming months. The MBA reports that 12.85 percent of mortgage loans were either one payment delinquent or in the foreclosure process in Q4 2010
• Buyers need to prepare for a changed mortgage landscape: 20 percent down and a high credit score will get the best rates. 60 percent of conventional mortgages originated in 2010 had a FICO score of at least 780, compared to just 25 percent in 2005
• Average 30-year rates = 5.12 percent with 0.85 points; average 15-year rates = 4.34 percent with 0.85 points

Mon 2/21: MARKETS CLOSED FOR PRESIDENTS DAY
Tues 2/21:
Home Depot, Hewlett-Packard, Wal-Mart
9:00 S&P Case Schiller Home Price Index

10:00 Consumer Confidence

Weds 2/22:
Limited Brands, Saks, TJX, Toll Brothers
10:00 Existing Home Sales

Thurs 2/23:
Gap
8:30 Durable Goods

8:30 Weekly Claims

10:00 New Home Sales

Fri 2/24:
8:30 GDP Q4 2^nd estimate (originally reported as +3.2%)

9:55 Michigan Sentiment

Jill Schlesinger

Jill Schlesinger, CFP® is the Emmy-nominated business analyst for CBS News. She covers the economy, markets, investing and anything else with a dollar sign on TV, radio (including her nationally syndicated radio show), the web and her blog, "Jill on Money." Prior to her second career at CBS, Jill spent 14 years as the co-owner and chief investment officer for an independent investment advisory firm. She began her career as a self-employed options trader on the Commodities Exchange of New York, following her graduation from Brown University.

Twitter