Boy, would I be a whole lot richer today if I had listened to my own advice of last Thursday:
Here’s what happened.
And according to one chartist, we have “breakdown.”
The theory is that if and when the mess in Washington — the shutdown and the debt ceiling — is solved, the market will explode, and I’ll recoup all my losses of the last week or so. Especially yesterday which was my worst day ever in the market.
My friends tell they have money on the sidelines and they will buy big-time when there’s a solution in Washington. Maybe.
There are all sorts of theories on why Washington can’t do its job. Gigantic egos. Grandstanding. Frustration. Free TV time. It’s fun. In short, way beyond your and my meager understanding.
What’s most fascinating is the argument that not raising the debt ceiling will cause a gigantic worldwide economic. That theory has seen a big sell-off in the important one-month treasury.
More on the chart here.
My friends at a big bank tell me there’s “only” a 10% probability of the U.S. defaulting. You can read “Deadlock Worry Jolts the Market for T-Bills” here.
Meanwhile earnings season has started. Early earnings are too soon to tell. Alcoa did better. Yum over-guided and earnings dropped. This morning Costco missed its forecast.
Capital expenditures are tight. That will have to change since many businesses are sitting on antique capital stock.
No one is expecting a return to boom times in the present fourth quarter.
My intelligent friends tell there’s even room for another sell-off.
It’s hard to figure this all out.
Apple is getting a lot of buzz. It’s announced its new phones will be available in many new countries. And Digital Photography Review did a 11-page review of the new camera in the iPhone 5S and concluded:
The iPhone 5s features a very good camera that’s easy to use and delivers strong results with little user intervention. It’s a logical extension of the Apple design philosophy, with evolutionary performance increases and feature extensions. iPhone photographers looking to trade up will find much to like in the 5s, but it’s not likely to lure users who prefer larger screens or are committed to other mobile operating systems.
Looting pension funds. All across America, Wall Street is grabbing money meant for public workers. Read Matt Taibbi’s latest Rolling Stone piece here.
The most honest 3 1/2 minutes of TV, ever. Worthwhile watching. Click here.
Harry Newton who saw the movie Enough Said last night after he couldn’t get decent seats to Gravity in 3D Imax and Captain Phillips hadn’t opened yet. Enough Said is a very LA movie, with appeal to women. Not enough action for my twisted taste.
Harry Harry Harry – I think you have an inner conflict – Your new found trader nature is fighting your old time investor nature – I put some cash on the table back in August & early Sept. Spotted some opportunities and did some bargain shopping this morning – added to 3 issues. IF they go down another 10-15% I will add more – opportunities are out there now and this corruption in D.C. will go away. I can’t resist a MLP – CEF retailing at 10% under NAV and yielding over 7% – capt.bill – Ò¿Ó¬
“…we didn’t scare so easy…” and our presidents didn’t govern only through crisis…
The images in “Gravity” are awesome. Despite the cast, this is not a chick flick. Not much story line. The major critique from “experts” is that her hair didn’t float when she was weightless. Yes, but her tears did! Excellent and DO see it in 3D.
Harry – Lots of seats available for “Gravity” in 3D at the Crandell. ‘course – you’re there and the Crandell is here. It was good……….