The Market On Monday

  Good morning. It is 48 degrees, overcast, and drizzly here in the Upper Hudson Valley. The forecast predicts that the temperature goes into the high 50s this afternoon, that it rains today, and that the rest of the week will be very similar with lots of rain and similar temperatures. It is getting greener and greener out there by the minute, and the plants can really use the water. I hope you had a good weekend. On this end of the computer screen the possible high mark was seeing Jon Snow literally come back to life on Game Of Thrones. If you're not into Game Of Thrones, well that's okay, but on this end of the screen we are hooked. The internet is ablaze this morning with comments and stories about Jon Snow's resurrection from the dead.

  At 8:50 a.m. ET futures are modestly higher and the price of oil per barrel is up. The market is poised to open higher.

  April was overall a bit of a flat month with a few days of tremendous market gains followed by equal days of losses. May is starting out on a brighter note as data out of the EU seems fair. Tech stocks took some hits last month with weaker corporate reports. Notice that oil continues to climb, now at the $46 per barrel level. More and more oil reports indicate that the price per barrel will hit $55 to $60 later this year. Get ready for gas prices to go up and up.

CNN: Stocks: Four things to know before the open by Ivana Kottasova

In China, the (ISM - Institute For Supply Management) index edged down to just above 50, while India posted 50.5. Any number below 50 indicates a deceleration in the manufacturing sector. Eurozone countries posted a better than expected reading of 51.7 -- another positive sign from Europe after surprisingly good GDP data last week.