US Stocks Close Higher, Paced By Industrials

Another round of buying in industrials, including Caterpillar and General Electric, spurred stocks higher Wednesday, while an upgrade for SanDisk helped keep tech stocks in the green.

Overall, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed up for the fourth straight session, rising 49.88 points, or 0.53%, to 9547.22. Leading the index, Caterpillar tacked on $1.44, or 3.1%, to $48.41, while General Electric increased 37 cents, or 2.6%, to 14.87.

Investors had come into this week seemingly on edge. Given the Dow was up more than 45% in the past five months with only slight pullbacks, there was concern a bigger slide could be in the cards. So far this week, however, the only thing on the decline has been the dollar. In turn, commodities have pushed higher while global industrials and many other sectors have spent much of Tuesday and Wednesday's trading on the climb. (more)

Wall Street Journal Europe September 09 2009

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Gold, the Dollar, Commodities, & Special Ways to Make Money in this Depression

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Why Are Corporate Insiders Selling Their Shares?

Any time corporate executives and directors are heavily selling their company's stock there's reason for concern. And lately they've been doing just that.

The last time insider selling was as high as it is now was in the period from late 2006 to late 2007. It was right after that insider-selling surge that the stock market began its long painful decline, says Charles Biderman, CEO of TrimTabs, an independent institutional research firm.

Biderman believes that insider trades shoot higher when there's a disconnect between broad market opinions and what business executives feel in their gut. "When [insiders think] things are going better than most people think, they buy stock," he says. "When things are going worse than people think, they sell." (more)

Super Major Bull Market” in rare earth metals ???

James Dines: predicted a “Super Major Bull Market” in rare earth metals (REM) on May 22nd of this year (which has already made tremendous amounts of money for his subscribers)... first time in 9 years he has issued a call for a new “Super Major Bull Market.”... in this (Part I) interview Mr. Dines covers gold, silver, oil & the US$... sees incredible bull market in rare earth metals (REM), bigger than the Internet & the uranium bull markets.

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U.S. Stocks at Risk for 20 Percent Decline: Technical Analysis

The U.S. stocks rally is “maturing” and the risk of a 20 percent retreat in the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index increased after sellers became more aggressive than buyers, Bank of America said.

Mary Ann Bartels, an analyst at Bank of America, said her volume intensity model, used to capture the market’s money flows, showed investor buying peaked last week and selling gained strength. That’s signaling the 50 percent rally in the S&P 500 from a 12-year low on March 9 may be near an end, she said. Technical analysts study chart patterns to predict prices.

Selling pressure was the third of five indicators watched by Bartels to signal increased probability of a 15 percent to 20 percent “correction” in the benchmark for American equity, she said. Two others were triggered last month when China’s Shanghai Composite Index began a 16 percent slump and Investors Intelligence said bearish sentiment among newsletter writers shrank to less than 20 percent. (more)

The present crisis is turning into HYPERINFLATION

More US wealthy opt to surrender their citizenship

As offshore havens comply with transparency demands, a growing number of ultra-wealthy Americans are handing back their passports

Private client lawyers and relocation specialists are reporting a surge in wealthy Americans living abroad who are prepared to give up their citizenship to avoid the scrutiny of US tax authorities.

Although such a move means they have to pay an exit tax, lawyers say this is a price people have become more willing to pay this year, now the fall in asset values has reduced the size of the imposition. (more)

Senate must raise debt ceiling above $12T

The Senate must move legislation to raise the federal debt limit beyond $12.1 trillion by mid-October, a move viewed as necessary despite protests about the record levels of red ink.

The move will highlight the nation’s record debt, which has been central to Republican attacks against Democratic congressional leaders and President Barack Obama. The year’s deficit is expected to hit a record $1.6 trillion. (more)

Option ARM Disaster Arrival:$134 Billion Recasting in Next Two Years

Option ARMs, the dubious name for a mortgage product of financial destruction, are back in the limelight showing that they have not gone away. Everyone by now has heard about option ARMs. These toxic mortgages allowed borrowers a buffet of payment options. However, in recent data released this week we are told that things are much worse than we had initially thought. Option ARMs have now become an oxymoron. In fact, they should be called minimum payment mortgages because 94 percent of those who took on these mortgages elected to go with the minimum payment.

These loans are having default rates comparable to subprime loans. In states like California with a decade long housing bubble, option ARMs were a lucrative and inviting mortgage for quick talking mortgage brokers chasing big yields. But one thing is certain and that is these mortgages are here for the next few years and will cause additional problems. (more)