Monday, stocks rose 0.3% in Europe but were little changed in Asia and the U.S. on light volume. Precious metals shot up 2.5% while their miners blasted 5% higher. Tuesday, Asian stocks gained 1.3%, stocks in Europe gained 0.3%, and in the U.S. they gained 1.2% on light volume. The VXO dropped 8% to close at 14.69. Crude oil continued its rise above 41 while the 10-Year U.S. Treasury Bond yield gained 3% to close at 1.78. Stock buybacks continue holding this turkey up by a thread.
Wednesday, Asian stocks shot up 2%, those in Europe rallied 2.6%, and stocks in the U.S. gained 1.2% on moderate volume as fear evaporated as evidenced by the VXO falling 7% to close at 13.66. IBM stepped above the 150 line again as the three major indices climbed ever closer to major benchmarks. Something’s up at the Federal Reserve. JP Morgan reported worse performance than the previous year, but apparently the report buoyed the broad market to a euphoric day.
Thursday, Asian stocks continued marching up the stairway to heaven with another 2% gain. In Europe, stocks gained a modest 0.3% and in the U.S. they stalled on light volume. Precious metals fell 1% and their miners dropped 4%.
Friday, Asian and U.S stocks ended the day little changed on moderate volume. European stocks closed down 0.3%. Here’s an interesting article to those who wonder whether the Fed moves the markets. It’s particularly telling to recall that Jamie Dimon CEO of JP Morgan made a major purchase of his company’s stock the day of these mysterious phone calls.