Good news for anyone participating in pensions, 401k's, 403-b's, IRAs, college savings accounts, etc.  

Nasdaq, S&P 500 have best first quarter since Clinton years... NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stocks closed lower Friday, although the major indices all posted strong quarterly gains, with the S&P 500 scoring its strongest first-quarter gain in seven years, after new data pointed toward a resilient economy. . . . For the first quarter the Dow had its best first quarter since 2002, scoring a 3.7% quarterly gain. The Nasdaq Composite rose 6.1% during the priod, marking its best first quarter since 2000. The S&P 500 increased 3.7%, its best quarterly gain since the first quarter of 1999.

It's all Bush's fault.

Damn you Macallan!!  There you go letting the facts get in the way of a damned good media shitty outlook story!  

Its about time the Clinton recession was over!!!

The stock market's a wonderful place to be if you are money right now.

Summer seems to always be stagnant for the stock market though, and things either pick up or go off a cliff in the autumn.

the housing market has peaked and is beginning to decline in some areas.    we will begin to see money flowing from  housing into equities.  i agree that the stock market is probably a good place to be right now.

don't be too quick to thank bush for this.  the president really doesn't have the power to influence the economy a whole lot.  you can ascribe this to the federal reserve, which has been raising rates steadily to deflate the housing boom, which means that more money will flow into the stock market rather than into real estate.

Quoted: the housing market has peaked and is beginning to decline in some areas.    we will begin to see money flowing from  housing into equities.  i agree that the stock market is probably a good place to be right now. don't be too quick to thank bush for this.  the president really don't have the power to influence the economy a whole lot.  you can ascribe this to the federal reserve, which has been raising rates steadily to deflate the housing boom, which means that more money will flow into the stock market rather than into real estate.

With appologies in advance to those of you who own homes at the moment, I hope to God the housing market crashes HARD. I need a good deal on a house.

Quoted: Quoted: the housing market has peaked and is beginning to decline in some areas.    we will begin to see money flowing from  housing into equities.  i agree that the stock market is probably a good place to be right now. don't be too quick to thank bush for this.  the president really don't have the power to influence the economy a whole lot.  you can ascribe this to the federal reserve, which has been raising rates steadily to deflate the housing boom, which means that more money will flow into the stock market rather than into real estate. With appologies in advance to those of you who own homes at the moment, I hope to God the housing market crashes HARD. I need a good deal on a house.

It is going to.  People are defaulting on mortgages at record rates.  This will only increase at the Fed increases rates.  And the rate increases may be more than outsiders predict.  The new chair is very serious (maybe overly so) about keeping inflation very low.

So in what year did the market first reach these heights? The frog in the well.

Quoted: So in what year did the market first reach these heights?

Did you read the article? It's all right there.

Quoted: The frog in the well.

Que?

Vanguard 500 Index Fund Return: 1 year: 11.57%  3 year: 17.07% 5 year: 3.84%

There is a fly in my soup.

Quoted: Vanguard 500 Index Fund Return: 1 year: 11.57%  3 year: 17.07% 5 year: 3.84%

Point being?

Quoted: There is a fly in my soup.

You need the meat.

NO! It's back-lash from all the good things Clinton did in office! It just takes time for it all to work!

WSJ (owned by Dow Jones) has hosed its true believers royally with their market vs. real estate advice.

I was called a "snake oil salesman" when I urged my brother and Dad to take the beaucoup cash they had in the market and buy coastal CA real estate (5 years ago).

Millions and millions of dollars in lost appreciation later "I told you so/you were right" doesn't provide much satisfaction.

I'm hoping the illegal amnesty tanks CA real estate (I mean Hollywood/Feinswine/Boxer deserve it for their votes). I can't imagine many Connecticut/NY/NJ Baby Boomer retirees want to jump into that "mosh pit" right about now. I'm thinking Prop 13's days are numbered too, when the needs  12 million La Raza folks hit the fan and their votes hit the ballot box.

Quoted: the president really doesn't have the power to influence the economy a whole lot.

Maybe lesser Presidents didn't have the power, but GWB has the Halliburton Economy Machine.

It does not matter, because according to the democrats we don't have enough money to invest in the stock market.

Quoted: NO! It's back-lash from all the good things Clinton did in office! It just takes time for it all to work!

AW!!  You're gonna burn in hell for that one!!  

hahahaha  -CBS news just "corrected" the story title. What else would you expect from CBS...

I love hearing how poorly the economy is doing as the Dow creeps ever higher.

I find it more than a little disturbing the way these sorts of threads go, somebody mentions the market is up and within a couple posts people are talking Bush, Clinton, and Haliburton?

The stock market hasn't gone up since 2000, the value of your money has gone down.

Commodities have outperformed stocks every year for the last several years, including this one.

Dow 3.7%
Gold 10%
Silver 30%
YTD

Metals have significantly outperformed the market THIS YEAR. Silver is up 150% over the last three years against the weakening dollar, gold 100%, oil 100%+, food 100%+, housing 100%+ in many markets, mine included, base metals are also outperforming stocks.

The M3 and fed repurchase numbers are no longer public information as of this month. Why this isn't the topic of all discussion at the moment escapes me, I can only assume most of the people either don't know about it or don't understand what it means.

Our new Fed chairman is quite possibly the most dangerous economist on the planet, he makes Keynes look like Mises. Our last treasury secretary left the post because he couldn't stomach "deluding the people, pandering to the lowest common denominator" His words, and so we got somebody who didn't mind, John Snowjob.

We're borrowing  30% of GDP every year in new debt, public and private inclusive.

The money supply has doubled since the  2000 bubble bath.

Real wages are declining, that's a fact. Debt to income ratios are rising from already record levels in every sector of this economy. We croseed into uncharted territory on this metric in the 90's, breaking the record set in 1929. This fact has been offset by the asset inflation we've seen, but the moral hazard involved is staggering if you really understand what's happening.

Stocks may well be a decent place to put your money (some stocks more than others!), certainly better than debt instruments or coastal RE this year, but lets keep the big picture in mind. You can live beyond your means for a long while if the bank is willing to raise your credit card limits continouously, but eventually somebody gets shafted.

Quoted: Real wages are declining, that's a fact. Debt to income ratios are rising from already record levels in every sector of this economy. We croseed into uncharted territory on this metric in the 90's, breaking the record set in 1929. This fact has been offset by the asset inflation we've seen, but the moral hazard involved is staggering if you really understand what's happening.

proof?

examples?

It's been going on for a couple of years.  My 401k funds are going thru the roof, not just because of price appreciation but because the companies are paying big dividends, which they didn't do much in the 1990s.

Quoted: don't be too quick to thank bush for this.  the president really doesn't have the power to influence the economy a whole lot.

According to the liberals all a President has to do is "care" and all will be well.  Remember the 1992 election?

GunLvr