Posted by: Allison Franklin
Wall Street cautiously optimistic this week
By IEVA M. AUGSTUMS – 17 hours ago
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Wall Street knows it shouldn't get ahead of itself.
So traders and investors are likely to go into the new week cautiously as they wait to see if last week's rally was a sign of a turnaround or just a blip.
The market has gotten used to false starts since stocks began their collapse last September. And as Wall Street ran up its biggest weekly gain since November, many analysts warned that this rally would soon fizzle, with stocks pulling back again rather than staging a lasting recovery. Rallies before it have evaporated — most notably the big comeback in late 2008.
Last week's surprising rally came on what looked like the start of something positive. Better-than-expected retail sales figures helped stocks, as did upbeat corporate news. First, there was word that Citigroup Inc. had operated at a profit the first two months of the year. There was also improving news from four other Dow Jones industrials: Bank of America Corp., General Electric Co., General Motors Corp. and Pfizer Inc.
"We have seen a positive change here," said Michael Sheldon, chief market strategist at RDM Financial Group, of the market's sentiment. "It seems like the mentality has changed a little bit."
The coming week has a series of economic reports that aren't expected to show significant improvement. But the market may get another lift if there are more signs that the economy is at least not getting any worse.
Perhaps the greatest possible influence this week will be the Federal Reserve's assessment of the economy that will accompany its decision on interest rates after a two-day meeting that ends Wednesday. The Fed is widely expected to hold interest rates steady. Its federal funds rates is already almost as low as it can go, set at a range of zero to 0.25 percent.
"All the Fed can do at this point is be clear about the role they are playing and say that they are going to do anything it takes to prop up this system," said Tommy Williams, president of Williams Financial Advisors in Shreveport, La.
Last week, the Dow gained 9 percent, rising 597.04 points to 7,223.98. The Standard & Poor's 500 ended up 10.7 percent, rising 73.17 points to 756.55.
By IEVA M. AUGSTUMS – 17 hours ago
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Wall Street knows it shouldn't get ahead of itself.
So traders and investors are likely to go into the new week cautiously as they wait to see if last week's rally was a sign of a turnaround or just a blip.
The market has gotten used to false starts since stocks began their collapse last September. And as Wall Street ran up its biggest weekly gain since November, many analysts warned that this rally would soon fizzle, with stocks pulling back again rather than staging a lasting recovery. Rallies before it have evaporated — most notably the big comeback in late 2008.
Last week's surprising rally came on what looked like the start of something positive. Better-than-expected retail sales figures helped stocks, as did upbeat corporate news. First, there was word that Citigroup Inc. had operated at a profit the first two months of the year. There was also improving news from four other Dow Jones industrials: Bank of America Corp., General Electric Co., General Motors Corp. and Pfizer Inc.
"We have seen a positive change here," said Michael Sheldon, chief market strategist at RDM Financial Group, of the market's sentiment. "It seems like the mentality has changed a little bit."
The coming week has a series of economic reports that aren't expected to show significant improvement. But the market may get another lift if there are more signs that the economy is at least not getting any worse.
Perhaps the greatest possible influence this week will be the Federal Reserve's assessment of the economy that will accompany its decision on interest rates after a two-day meeting that ends Wednesday. The Fed is widely expected to hold interest rates steady. Its federal funds rates is already almost as low as it can go, set at a range of zero to 0.25 percent.
"All the Fed can do at this point is be clear about the role they are playing and say that they are going to do anything it takes to prop up this system," said Tommy Williams, president of Williams Financial Advisors in Shreveport, La.
Last week, the Dow gained 9 percent, rising 597.04 points to 7,223.98. The Standard & Poor's 500 ended up 10.7 percent, rising 73.17 points to 756.55.
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