Monday, stocks in Asia closed just slightly lower as they also did in Europe. In the U.S. “bargain hunters” nudged stocks just slightly higher on abysmal volume, but clueless buyers powered Facebook up nearly 5% to move it above 20 while tanking the VXO 9%. Perhaps the Veteran’s Day holiday can explain the lack of volume. Only Ben Bernanke can explain the lack of investor sense. The increasingly negative mood among traders pushed Asian stocks down 0.7% Tuesday. Stocks in Europe rose about 0.3% on hope. U.S. stocks dropped 0.4% on low moderate volume. This is a clear breach of the 200-day moving average. From the turkey stock-watch department, Facebook again fell below the $20 per share mark—still about three times its true value.
Wednesday, stocks in Asia rose about 0.4% for no particular reason. Stocks in Europe dropped about 0.8%. U.S. stocks tanked 1.6% as hopes faded on a quick agreement on the fiscal cliff. Everyone’s favorite, Facebook, made another inane big move upward, rising nearly 12%. Thursday, stocks in Asia dropped about 0.6%. In case you didn’t notice, economists now confirm that the Eurozone has again slipped into recession. Stocks in the U.S. meandered but turned down just slightly on low moderate volume. Here’s a cheery perspective from Rick Ackerman and here’s one that tells it like it is from Zero Hedge.
Friday, stocks in Japan rose sharply on hope for more central bank easing there, buoying the Asian markets overall to a 0.4% gain for the day. This brought the Nikkei index again above the 9000 mark. Stocks in the U.S. matched that gain for a similar non-reason on solid moderate volume. Speaking of non-reason, Facebook gained another 6% to close at the ridiculous 23.56 mark. European stocks moved more in tune with reality, dropping about 1%. For the week, U.S. stocks dropped another 1.5%, clearly below the 200-day moving average, led by big-cap stocks, and precious metals shed about 2%.