F on Wednesday, 19 June 2013

[wijram]

Think Tank & All~

Hopefully, today is the day that the madness surrounding the Fed and the "Tapering" of QE3 ENDS!

My we be so lucky!

At this early hour, the numbers published for the pre-market indexes are almost meaningless, yet it is nice to see the DJIA futures presented as being UP 17 pts and the S&P UP 2.25 pts.

Of course, dominating today's economic news will be news release and forecast (@ 2:00 PM ET and Uncle Ben's comments following the end of the FOMC (@ 2:30 PM ET), but there are other reports due out today, including:

MBA Purchase Applications @ 7:00 AM ET
EIA Petroleum Status Report @ 10:30 AM ET

That being said, here are the results from Tuesday's game:

Somehow the Old Relic had a pretty good day for himself.  While nsrb tied him for the best CLOSE, and John had the best HIGH and tied the Old Relic for the best OPEN, the ol' boy managed to have the best LOW and the best total variance with a most respectable deviation of only $.10.

Congrats, ol' boy.

      nsrb         John      wijram     Actual

O:  $15.55     $15.54*  $15.54*   $15.54

H:  $15.73     $15.68*   $15.65    $15.71

L:  $15.51     $15.46     $15.44*   $15.44

C:  $15.69*    $15.52    $15.61*   $15.55

v:   $   .14     $    .18    $    .10*

[wijram]

Think Tank & All~

Housing not able to lead the way:

----

MBA Purchase Applications Released On 6/19/2013 7:00:00 AM For wk6/14, 2013 Prior Actual Composite Index - W/W Change 5.0 % -3.3 % Purchase Index - W/W Change 5.0 % -3.0 % Refinance Index - W/W Change 5.0 % -3.0 % Highlights Right when housing is emerging as the economy's biggest strength, rising rates look to hold back the sector's momentum. The purchase index, which has been up and down the last two months, is down again, 3.0 percent lower in the June 14 week. Higher rates are also crimping the refinancing index which is also down 3.0 percent in the week. The average rate for conforming loans ($417,500 or less) is up 2 basis points to 4.17 percent, which is nearly 60 basis points higher from early May when rates started their climb.

[notsorichbob]

O  -  15.63
H  -  15.72
L  -  15.56
C  -  15.69

A mild day for Ford, and a picture perfect day for John in the Apostle Islands.

[wijram]

Think Tank & All~

Hummmm....  Not looking great with the DJIA futures at DOWN 9 pts and the S&P DOWN .25 pts.

But my rose-colored lenses provide a much better view, so I go with that:

Therefore, my early numbers for the day (will almost certainly REVISE before the OPENING) are:

O:  $15.62

H:  $15.76

L:  $15.51

C:  $15.74

[notsorichbob]

Stocks fell 1 percent in a volatile session on Wednesday, with losses accelerating after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said a reduction in the rate of stimulus could occur this year if the economy continues to improve.

I put a few more shares on margin, after all, if the economy continues to improve, more people will give up driving and walk to work.  Ford will sell fewer cars.  I think I'm beginning to understand this market.