The Market On Tuesday

Good morning. It is 34 degrees, sunny, and windy here in Upstate NY. The sore throat has descended along with the heavy eyes and fatigue. It's been a while since I had a cold, I guess I'm overdue. The thing of it is, I really don't mind resting. Resting is a delicious thing in and of itself.

At 8:30 a.m. futures are moderately higher, the dollar is down against major world currencies, and the price of oil is slightly down.

The center of the investment universe, oil, is back in the headlines. The price per barrel has risen dramatically in the past week and today the price is easing slightly. Gas prices are one of the main ways we experience inflation as you know, and so the inflation alert is on serious standby. Speculators push oil prices higher, make a bundle of dough, allow the price to settle to a more normal $70 to $80 a barrel, and then start pushing the price up again. That's how its done. You can read about Iran fears, blah blah blah, its about making huge profits.

Otherwise there seems to be a general sense that the economy is on a better footing right now. No doubt a bump is in the near future but right now the DOW and S&P are bubbling.

CNN: Stocks to advance as oil prices pause

The rise in oil prices has translated into higher gas prices, with the national average rising 21 straight days.


...crude futures eased for a second straight day Tuesday...


...optimistic ahead of the European Central Bank's second so-called long-term refinancing operation...


...Case-Shiller releases its home price index at 9 a.m. ET.