26Dec2018 Midday Update: In Midday Trading, Wall Street Has Soared, DOW Up Over 500 Points, WTI At 45.70, Growth Fears Still Weigh

Here is the current market situation from CNN Money

North and South American markets are mixed today. The S&P 500 is up 2.40% while the IPC gains 0.38%. The Bovespa is off 0.82%.

Oil bounces after steep slide, but growth fears still weigh

Oil surged on Wednesday, erasing some of the steep losses that have taken crude benchmarks to lows not seen in 1-1/2 years on perceptions the price slide has gone too far, too fast.

Stocks and oil rebound after pre-holiday thumping

Stocks and oil prices rebounded on Wednesday as the Trump administration attempted to shore up confidence and markets welcomed a report on strong U.S. holiday spending.

U.S. stocks attempt rebound

U.S. stocks were attempting a modest rebound on Wednesday, boosted by technology shares and an Amazon-led jump in retailers, following four sessions of steep losses that pushed the S&P 500 and Dow Industrials near bear market territory.

U.S. holiday shopping season best in six years: report

Sales in the 2018 U.S. holiday shopping season rose 5.1 percent to over $850 billion, the strongest in six years, according to a Mastercard report on Wednesday, as shoppers were encouraged by a robust economy and early discounts.

Morgan Stanley unit to pay $10 million fine for anti-money laundering violations

Wall Street’s industry funded watchdog fined the U.S. brokerage unit of Morgan Stanley $10 million on Wednesday for compliance failures in the firm’s anti-money laundering program, the regulator said.

Lawsuit against Boeing over Lion Air crash demands Chicago jury trial

The family of a man who was killed when a Lion Air flight crashed in October has sued Boeing Co, alleging the 737 MAX 8 aircraft was “unreasonably dangerous” and demanding a jury trial in Chicago, where the U.S. manufacturer is based.

Facebook shares could hit $160 in 2019: Citron

Short-seller Citron Research on Wednesday backed Facebook Inc, saying the stock could hit $160 in 2019 as the company’s revenue and user base have seen little impact from the reported data scandals and privacy issues this year.

Rusal board chairman quits as part of U.S. sanctions waiver deal

Russian aluminum company Rusal said on Wednesday that board chairman Matthias Warnig resigned as part of a restructuring it agreed to implement in exchange for a waiver from U.S. sanctions.

Exxon continues drilling offshore Guyana despite Venezuela incident

Exxon Mobil Corp said on Wednesday its oil drilling and development activities offshore Guyana were unaffected despite neighboring Venezuela’s navy stopping two seismic survey vessels the company had hired.

Das: The World Will Pay For Not Dealing With Debt

Authored by Satyajit Das via Bloomberg.com,

Inventive policymaking has only made the problem worse, guaranteeing that any eventual restructuring will be all the more painful…

Markets, to paraphrase Nobel prize-winning economist Thomas Schelling, often forget that they keep forgetting. That’s especially true when it comes to the intractable challenges posed by global debt.

Since 2008, governments around the world have looked for relatively painless ways to lower high debt levels, a central cause of the last crisis. Cutting interest rates to zero or below made borrowing easier to service. Quantitative easing and central bank support made it easier to buy debt. Engineered increases in asset prices raised collateral values, reducing pressure on distressed borrowers and banks.

All these policies, however, avoided the need to deleverage. In fact, they actually increased borrowing, especially demand for risky debt, as income-starved investors looked farther and farther afield for returns. Since 2007, global debt has increased from $167 trillion ($113 trillion excluding financial institutions) to $247 tr …

Insider Stock Purchases Surge To 8 Year High

In the latest indication that the market is due for a rebound, buying by corporate insiders – who are best known in recent years for aggressively dumping their shares to corporate buyback programs – surged in the past two months, and according to data from the Washington Service, has outpaced insider selling by the most in eight years, or since the US downgrade in August 2011 which prompted a market-wide rout.

The last time insider buying soared as much as it has in recent months, in August 2011, the S&P 500 was in the middle of a comparable 19% retreat before staging a 10% rally in each of the next two quarters. A similar spike in insider buying took place in August 2015 during the ETFlash crash following the China currency devaluation when stocks also tumbled only to see a sharp rebound.

As Bloomberg notes, the increase in demand from companies’ highest-ranking employees “will likely be seen as a vote of confidence in stocks” which on Monday briefly entered a bear market, even as anxiety rises over Federal Reserve rate hikes and political turmoil in Washington.

“Insiders are pret …

Stocks Are Panic-Bid

It seems everything is awesome again…

Low key you fools! And lay off the Pina Coladas.
–Mnuchin to PPT

— Eric Scott Hunsader (@nanexllc) December 26, 2018

US equity markets are exploding higher – with Nasdaq up a stunning 3.5% – tagging Monday’s cash opening level…

With Dow futures up over 600 points…

Thanks to ano …

JCPenney Is Now Known As Sub-Dollar General

For the first time in its 28 year history,JCPenney stock just tumbled below $1.00, dropping to a record low JC 99 Pennies.

This is the 5th down day in a row for the lagging retailer. How long before the retailer’s suppliers start pulling lines?

From now on Sub-Dollar General seem more appropriate.

4 critical questions to ask during a market downturn — and how financial advisers answer them

Most people know not to panic sell, but what other questions do investors have? Will they be able to retire?

The Tell: These U.S. stock benchmarks are already in a bear market — and the S&P 500 isn’t far behind

The S&P 500 is lingering on the doorstep of a bear market, a move that would end the second-longest bull run in history.

Market Snapshot: Dow up more than 400 points as stocks attempt rebound from Christmas Eve meltdown

Stocks attempt to bounce back after the worst Christmas Eve performance in Wall Street history left the S&P 500 on the cusp of falling into a bear market.