Tuesday December 23, 2008
Navivest

While it is possible we could see a holiday rally and stock futures are currently indicating a slightly higher open at 6 AM, there is still a very bearish overcast on the markets.

Volume will be light and we will be hearing how much of a poor retail environment this is this holiday, which could put pressure on retail stocks. Walmart is the one bright spot, as consumers look to stretch their spending dollars.

Today, we get more economic news that will show the fragile state of the economy. Among the economic news due out, are GDP and New and Existing Home Sales numbers.

On an annualized basis, forecasters are looking for existing homes sales of 4.93 million and 420,000 for new homes.

Mortgage rates have been trending downward, with the curve steepening in the last month. So there is a chance that that could have drawn buyers into the market. However most gains in home sales of late have come from the foreclosure market so perhaps it might be too much to hope for that we get an upward surprise in the numbers.

Tags: Existing Home Sales  New Home Sales  Stock Market  Trading Day