MARKET
COMMENT
April 2, 2007
They’re both trying to find face-saving ways out of this
mess.
The latest is the Iranians have
said they’ll no longer consider trials for their captives.
More troubling is that Debka.com is suggesting that there’s a move by
the Iranians and Saudis to sign a mutual defense treaty.
Should that occur then options against any
military strikes are off the table.
There were two major headlines today: more merger activity
and, not that it’s a big surprise but former subprime
mortgage king, New Century filed for Chapter 11 today.
Is this just the start of something?
Could be.
Why do utilities continue to soar?
Is it a sign of investor desire for
safety?
Or are more mergers on the
horizon?
I don’t know, but this is
pretty impressive since dividend yields are now below 3%.
What else caught my eye today?
Not too much other than “selective” strength
overseas.
Other than what’s been outlined today, not much has caught
my attention.
Will the mortgage contagion spread?
The major insiders say no.
The market is not quite sure.
New ETFs are being issued with an
active management focus by Bear Stearns [Bonds], Schwab [Actively Managed
indexes similar to PowerShares quantitative models]
and State Street
[Emerging Markets].
Of the three the State Street series
are intriguing, but I’m still awaiting historical index data that I hope to
load soon.
Remember, this is a “trust
but verify” business.
Perhaps volume will pick up as this short week wears
on.
It will with news.
The only positives [and it remains a large
one] going for the stock market is money--lot’s of it.
The negatives are with Iran and
housing related issues.
Have a pleasant evening.
Disclaimer:
Among
other issues, the ETF Digest maintains long or short positions in:
DBE, GLD, UDN, KBE, XHB, IEF, XLU, EWW, EWY
and EWO.