The Market On Wednesday

  Good morning. It is a blistery 18 degrees with snow expected here in Upstate NY. The streets are quiet with little traffic, many people are extending their holiday. It's gone to Winter really fast around here, the last few days are clearly taking on that wintery feel. One wonders if this Winter will be mild and almost non existent like last year's or if we get really cold with lots of snow. One of the topics of yesterday's dinner conversation was a discussion of the various blizzards that have hit the area. It's on people's minds. Either way, the days are getting longer little by little and the Sun is slowly returning to a higher position in the sky. The next stop is June 21st.

  At 8:00 a.m. futures are slightly higher and the price of oil is slightly higher. The market is poised to open slightly higher.

  There's not much to say here. We are in the middle of a holiday week and trading will be low with the accompanying possible high volatility as many investors are out and on vacation. The basic point remains the same, investors are waiting for fiscal cliff negotiations in Washington to begin again today and tomorrow and ideally solve the question that has baffled Americans for months and solve it before the year ends.

CNN: Stock subdued as wait for Washington continues

...concerned that Congress and the administration will be unable to break the deadlock in talks to resolve the looming fiscal cliff crisis.

...Wednesday could turn out to be another day of low trading volume, which can lead to volatility in the markets.