The Market On Friday

Good morning and welcome to the weekend. It is 31 degrees and there is warming sunlight coming through my window as I sit at the dining room table typing, here in Upstate NY. The ultra cold of the last few days is breaking a tad. My relatives in Las Vegas would not agree, to them 31 degrees is beyond beyond in terms of coldness. Not true we would say because from 5 degrees, 31 degrees is balmy. Its balmy out.

At 8:15 a.m. futures are modestly higher, the dollar is up, and oil is up gaining ground I might add over $100 per barrel. That price would be the cutting edge of more inflation if it continues to rise.

The word today is jobs. In a few the government is going to release the all important job growth numbers at 8:30 a.m.

That number will bring with it a lot of attention and the direction of the market for at least a few hours, okay maybe one hour. In truth if the number is good, the market could very well rally today. Once again its about recognizing or seeing the slightest improvement in our belly up or otherwise crumbling economy. Now some would disagree with that last statement, but I am talking about the 99%. That percent is struggling.

CNN: Stocks: All about jobs

Investors will be tuning into the government's monthly employment report at 8:30 a.m. ET...


The Labor Department will also revise its data on the unemployment rate, going back the last five years.