THE BARRONS WEEKEND

Quickly- Barrons articles bullish on CPB BAC HES but the most interesting articles cover other topics;

Mike Santoli on everyone craving a correction and even sited the blogger sentiment poll:

The blogger sentiment poll on Birinyi Associates' Ticker Sense blog last week showed 50% bears to 33% bulls -- almost as many bears as at the early-March lows. In late January, just as the market was ready to roll over hard, 65% of the bloggers were bullish.

Note that the poll keeps losing participants and it is kind of useless now as there are too few participants.

Strategist Jason Trennert of Strategas Partners sums up a common stance: "Simple valuation analysis leads us to be skeptical about the potential of the market to rally from these levels. The problem, it seems, after spending the last week on the road and looking at recent short-interest data, is that we have a lot of company -- very few of our clients believe the rally is real."

Trennert was always a bull until the market crashed and he has been bearish since.

John Roque, the technical strategist at Natixis Bleichroeder who has been in synch with the rally and the preceding collapse, detects an upside "breakout" on the chart of investor frustration, because they have doubted the rally and owned too little of the stuff that has run the most.

He has been excellent- period.

A fine article about the auditors- hate to say it but this fish in a CPA and did work at one of the firms mentioned in the article-

In investor lawsuits filed in recent months, BDO Seidman and McGladrey & Pullen stand accused of shoddy audits and signing off on the books of fraud-ridden businesses and investment funds. The cases, together with a string of earlier ones involving the two firms, raise unsettling questions about the level of confidence investors can put in financial audits.

The two audit firms say they stand by their work, and there is, in fact, some murkiness about auditors' responsibilities for detecting fraud. The firms are supposed to "obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free from material misstatement, including misstatements caused by fraud," according to the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, the federal entity that supervises auditors of public companies. The gray area centers on what is reasonable, an issue that often plays out in the courts because accounting firms can be one of the only solvent players left when a company goes down.

OK -breaking news- accountants like most people depend on a continuing stream of income from clients who pay lots of money to have their books audited- Yes - kind of a conflict of interest to pay some one to tell the world that your books are clean- so of course the accountants bend over backward to find reasons to justify what is in your financial statements- if firm X won't give you a clean opinion - generally firm Y will.

Auditors are supposed to have professional skepticism and a stream of income - and when the two meet which one do you think wins- and that is why they have liability insurance.

And Rosie back in Abelson's column - after he just wrote his last piece for BAC- as mentioned he is skeptical of the green shoots:

Looking ahead, David scoffs at the idea that the "jobs data are about to get better because the markets have enjoyed a nice two-month rally." Among the reasons he's skeptical: the still record-low workweek, at 33.2 hours; the 66,000 downward revision to the back data (which, he avers, tends to feed on itself); the 63,000 slide in temp-agency employment; and the high levels of both initial and continuing jobless claims.

All of which, he believes, foreshadow a further 550,000 payroll plunge when the May data roll out early next month.

To David, as to us, the present buoyant mood on the Street is obviously more the result of rose-colored glasses than of green shoots

THE SUCKA

The SPX closed yesterday at/near the high of the day and near the highest level since January 6- and I must confess I don't remember that ramp as it came crashing down prettty quickly.

Anyhow, lots of folks expecting the markets to race back to those levels and then retrace - leaving a perfect set up for dip buyers to get into the rip roaring bull- no doubt it isn't going to work out exactly that way-however, do note all that over head resistance and the SMA 200- smackdown-

Rosie going out thinking this rally isn't the real thing sucka - and he is pretty good;

BESPOKE- CDS fear trade;

WSJ on all those stressful tests;

GOLF experiencing some economic issues;

When do these guys ever learn;

Maybe some resolution soon;

More difficult times in the middle east;

Long the NAT GAS;

Cramer and friends on the UPTICK letter- dopey - have they not noticed the market has gone straight up without the uptick rule- and the one penny spreads;

And after seeing all the Yankee third baseman this season - which Yankee fan will ever complain again about AROD and his 554 meaningless home runs and awful clutch hitting?

NEAR THE HIGHS

Markets are riding high and closed near the highs on the SPX/DJIA/RUT while the NAZ/NDX continued to struggle - Semis and tech may be signaling the end of the rally is near as its tough to go straight up without them.

Strongest sectors- banks, reits, real estate, brokers, homies, energy and small caps while retail, semis, tech and telecom lagged.

SPX- 405 up and 95 down;

NYSE- 2200 net green;

NAZ- 1300 net green;

NDX- 60 GREEN;

OEX- 80 GREEN;

VIX- down 4% at 32 and bill with some thoughts on where this index may be going;

My trades today included DIG IYR and a little short in QID which I am still holding as I am expecting some weakness next week-

RSI (2) levels as follows:

SPX 81

DJIA 79

NDX 28

NAZ 55

RUT 76

Finally - check out this poll from Gallup -

EARLY DIG

More crazy action as the open gets sold yet again led down by the NQ and the techs/semis- SPX currently +9, NAZ +1 and the DJIA +88.

Strongest sectors ENERGY, real estate, fins, brokers, ags and homies while semis, retail, tech and internets lag.

SPX internals- 350 green 140 red;

NYSE- 1500 net green;

NAZ- 900 net green;

TRIN- .97 with up volume almost 4x the down;

VIX- down 1 at 32.5;

Looks like rotation is the name of the game - out of tech and the NAZ stocks and into energy - and this has been happening for a few days so if you want to play along - DIG/QID may be a nice trade for a while.

Tough to get a major down draft in the major indexes while the internals are as strong as they are this morning - so if you want to play dips its probably wise to buy the SSO/DIG - I tried SRS earlier and was stopped - still short QID and long DIG.

HIGHER FUTURES

Futures are up and little changed since the NFP jobs report which showed a loss of 539k jobs and a jobless rate of 8.9%- March also revised to be worse at 699k from 663k.

My take - lets see how the NQ responds during the regular trading hours - that has been the weakest index of late and curious to see if they hold these gains -

Manny finally showed the true being Manny- and if you believe any of his dopey excuses - well -

Fari also watching the NQ for direction;

Lots of traders looking for hints with the rates and if the Chinese will demand more interest from us- could lead to lower equities;

Consumer credit - also cant be good for equities;

Burn baby burn;

The Ugly;

And a snorting BULL;

THE PERFECTION

Markets closed lower but well off their worst levels - and note the QQQQ above- tech lagged in the morning but in the afternoon the NDX hit the SMA 200 and bounced nicely-

SPX -12, NAZ 43 and DJIA 102.

Strongest sectors- drugs, biotech, ags and retail while real estate, homies, shippers, semis and telecom lagged.

NYSE- 1,000 net losers;

NAZ - 900 net losers;

SPX- 135 green and 360 red;

NDX -20 GREEN;

OEX- 30 GREEN;

VIX- higher by 3% at 33.4;

Markets held in the afternoon as the SPX 900 level came into play - also QQQQ at/near 34 was picked up by the bulls at the SMA 200-

Tomorrow we have NFP at 8.30 and the ADP number -even though it was good yesterday was sold - market only came yesterday when the stress test info leaked - so we may see a similar reaction regardless of the number - SELL THE NEWS;

RSI (2) levels rational once again:

SPX - 48

NDX 12

OEX 54

NAZ 17

DJIA 44

RUT 23

This fish traded DIG and SRS today and both were pretty good- tomorrow another day.

WFC announces a secondary for $6 b shares and lets see how many fins follow suit and - lets watch the reaction- Dougie Kass saying they are now priced to perfection.

THE DIP

Markets in sell off mode as higher prices every single day is not all that sustainable - note the leader on the way down the NQ which was the leader on the way up.

Strong sectors- banks, biotech, metals, ags and energy while semis, telecom, homies, real estate and tech lag.

NYSE- 150 net losers;

NAZ- 300 net losers;

NDX- 25 GREEN;

OEX- 40 GREEN;

SPX- 175/325 green to red;

RUT 2K 670/1160 green to red;

VIX - higher by 5% at 34;

TRIN .75 with up and down volume about equal;

NQ leading the way down just like yesterday and persistent low ticks this morning - just the opposite of yesterday afternoon- and just when everyone capitulated to the upside it looks like Mr. Market has finally got them - and now lets see how anxious the dippers are to buy-

RSI (2) level on SPX already down to 63 after hitting near 100 this AM - this could be an ugly day but dippers also lurking.

And dougie may get the last laugh after all;

Bear markets;

Probably a bit too late for this picture;

MORNING USUAL

Looks like we are off to the races again as the equity futures and over seas markets are higher yet again and the RSI (2) levels have hit the magic 100 level.

Top calling everywhere and in one location where one typically doesn't find it - so maybe he is on to something;

Another fade;

Dividend yield BPS;

YTD best sector of course;

Smarter Americans;

The Leak;

Not so confident;

I like this woman;

NBC again;

Hamzei with a bullish picture;

More technical topping;

Better than expected;

ADP- hah;

The Underwater;

Another bust;

Finally- every one bashing the President as the market dropped in his first few weeks in office - well look now - since inauguration day the SPX is +14.2% - and if you look at how the last guy did - who was universally loved by business - 8 year return on the SPX -40%.

THE CLOSE

One of the wackiest days in a long time as the Markets closed near their best levels as the SPX was +16, NAZ +5 and the DJIA +102.

Strongest sectors- banks, fins, energy, metals, shipping and real estate while homies, biotech, retail and drugs lagged.

NYSE- 1200 net green;

NAZ- 220 net green;

SPX - 288 209;

RUT - 963 886 ;

NDX- 50 GREEN;

OEX - 65 GREEN;

VIX - down one point at 32.4;

TRIN .71- with up volume about 3x the down and heavy;

Futures ramping in the after hours as folks seem to be happy with CSCO - not sure what brings the end to this rally but - yikes - it just seems to never stop what ever the news - just like in Feb when it refused to stop going down regardless of the news.

Just doing the day trading thing for now and have some longs which I keep forcing my self not to sell- today UYM was a break even and SSO was a little bit of a money maker.

And FWIW the markets are over bought again as always and supposedly Whitney has a new sell on the financials - lets see if she has any juice after the break with Oppenheimer - which was near the bottom in the fins.

THE INTERNALS

The SPX/DJIA indexes are trading up while the NAZ/NQ/RUT are all lower - as the fins out perform all but energy-

Market internals also wacky-

NYSE- 600 net green;

NAZ - 150 net red;

SPX 225 green and 275 red;

RUT - 375 net red;

TRIN -.75 NYSE upside volume 2x the down;

NAZ downside a little ahead of up;

Should be an interesting final hour- with all the cross currents;

MORNING TAKE DOWN

Equity markets gapped higher this morning on the heels of some good news from the ADP jobs report- the pre market traders loved it the RTH traders - not so much.

SPX +3 NAZ -17 and the DJIA +18.

Strongest sectors- banks, fins, energy, ags, and shipping while homies, biotech, retail and internets lag.

SPX - 45% GREEN;

NYSE- 280 net green;

NAZ 300 net red;

NDX - 15 GREEN;

OEX- 50 GREEN;

VIX - flat at 33.5;

Gold up $12 and crude higher by about $1.6;

The NQ was the tell this morning that real traders wanted to fade as it lagged the early morning gap higher and turned down and red real quick - question now - Big cap tech led this market off the low - will it now lead the general market lower - I suspect the answer is yes - also the RSI (2) levels on the pre mkt futures hit the 99 area - hard to go a lot higher from there.

TO THE RACES AGAIN

Its off to the races again as the ADP numbers have made traders happy again-

ES +6;

NQ +3.5;

YM +58

TF+3.3;

On the news front:

Historical Breadth;

Howard on the Inconceivable rally;

Bill Gross outlook;

2009 Correlation;

Jason on a major buy signal;

GS as usual the big winner;

The Ord;

The 20% under water;

THE USUAL

The bears tried today to get this markets down and they made some progress at mid day - but in the final hour holy cow the bulls showed and took it up yet again - although not quite to break even - but close enough.

Strong sectors- internets, junk, drugs, homies and retail while real estate, energhy, ags, semis and banks lagged.

NYSE - 325 net losers;

NAZ- 320 net losers;

NDX- 55 GREEN;

OEX- 40 GREEN;

SPX- 215+275 RED;

VIX- down 1 at 33.53;

TRIN- .75 up and down volume about equal with 1.55 B shares traded;

Calling it a draw as markets closed a little below their best levels and way off their worst- RSI (2) levels a bit better than 80 on the SPX;

Dayrading it for now as the smart trade for now is buying early afternoon weakness and selling near the close- has worked for about 2 months now.

EARLY CHOP

Markets are open and I will call this a mixed open as the DJIA is up a hair while the NAZ is down a little less than 1%- Bernancke is speaking as I type so things could change quickly.

Strongest sectors- metals, internets, junk, retail drugs and ags while energy, real estate, banks and semis lag.

NYSE/NAZ about 500 net losers on each;

NDX- 35 GREEN;

OEX - 50 GREEN;

VIX- flat at 34.65;

Gold higher by about $8 at $910;

Markets just churning for now but a move higher this afternoon is probably in the cards as lots of folks want in on any dip- SPX monthly R2 resistance at around 912 may be a target for late in the day or later in the week.

MORNING STRESS

Futures are trading down this morning ad below fair value on the heels of more stress test leaks-

Supposedly at least 10 banks do not pass-hmmm.

ES -4;

NQ- 2.5;

YM -27;

Checking some interesting stuff of the morning:

Expecting not to pass;

Rosie with his parting BAC thoughts;

VIX + MORE with stocks above the SMA 200;

DR. BRETT on the TREND key;

Trader Mike charts;

Streaking with Jason;

The Quant on the trend;

Adam on the not weak VIX;

BIG on the overbought levels;

AT THE HIGHS

There it was - Gary Shilling claims CNBC talking heads are bullish - shocker - and therefore sentiment is positive - let him tell me when they are all bearish-

SPX closed up 30 at 907 and the NAZ +44 at 1764 while the DJIA was up a mere 214 at 9427.

Strongest sectors- banks, fins, shipping, real estate, homies and energy while junk, ags, internets and drugs lagged.

NYSE- 2100 net winners;

NAZ- 1500 net winners;

NDX/OEX-175 GREEN shoots;

VIX- down 2.5% at 34.5;

TRIN- .28 with up volume 20x the down;

Everyone excited with SPX solidly over the 900 level and RSI (2) levels at near 98 on ES NQ YM - so not that much higher it can go- and was there any doubt that this market was going to close at the highs today-

This fish- got long SSO in the final hour and did ok with that- and sold some longs DIG - and keeping it tight on other material longs such as FCX -

Anyone for Turnaround Tuesday?

THE AUSSIE

Watching and waiting for a dip to buy but in the mean time - looking at some country ETF's-

EWZ - Brazil higher by 56% off the low and a year to date number of +39%

EWA- Australia - higher by 48% off the low and a year to date number of +11% - also a 6% dividend;

SPX - almost flat year to date and a whopping 11% off the inauguration day close- not bad for a POTUS universally disliked by the investment community;

SPX - about 34.5% off the March 6 low - and almost flat year to date;

THE WRONG

Markets ripping higher yet again on the heels of some good news out of the real estate sector - plus who wants to be left behind in a rally like this -

SPX +19, NAZ +31 and the DJIA +169.

Strongest sectors- shipping, energy, banks, homies, trannies and metals while junk, biotech, drugs and brokers lag.

NYSE-2000 net green;

NAZ- 1400 net green;

NDX/OEX- 90 green on each;

TRIN- .34 with upside volume about 20x the down;

Gold higher by $21 at $907;

Markets clearly over bought and no one seems to care TODAY- tomorrow turn around Tuesday of course- Art Cashin has been expecting a decent sell off for a while and he has been wrong- wrong-

Jeff Saut out with his short term bearish view - also not working out that well for now-

This fish- not going to fight the tape as this is would be a typical day when the close is at the highs- have some shorts - but not going to cover into this - as a sell off is en route - just not today.

WONT BACK DOWN

It is 8.30 PM eastern time and futures continue to trade higher although off their best levels of the night- Some interesting items from the blogosphere:

Tickerville on the markets that won't to back down;

Trade Studies on bullish closes;

For all the VC investors- go away;

Blodget on Bear Market rallies;

Some GOLD commentary;

Hamzei with his very technical take;

World's numbers not quite what we thought;

She won't go away;

Latest on the interrogation;