Bear Mountain Bull

It’s time again for a little BMB R&R, especially with the market behaving as bizarrely as it’s been. Maybe if we stop watching it start to behave a little better…

Posting will be very light and variable over the course of this week, but we’ll put up an open thread each market day for our readers to comment on the day’s market activity or to post any interesting links they might run across.

Check the space below for whatever the latest might be during this ‘off’ time, and please visit the various sites in the ‘Links’ and ‘Regular Stops’ for up-to-date market news and analysis.

BMB will be back in full swing by next weekend.

Well, they’re definitely right about the “vicious” part. We’ll have to wait and see if they’re right about it being a “correction”.

The market started out with a bang today, but whimpered early and never really recovered. The Dow was left hanging on to the 10,000 mark by its fingernails, the Nasdaq dropped 4 points and the S&P lost 8. Crude oil prices might have had some impact, since they started the day around $51.50, but closed back up at $53.64. Again, many of the leading stocks took a hit today, with energy and materials stocks giving back even more of their recent gains. Particularly hard hit were copper stocks - Phelps Dodge (PD) dropped almost 10%. One bright spot was the semiconductors, riding Intel’s earnings to a 1.7% gain.

Update: Looks like the afternoon move back up in oil prices might be due to an pipeline explosion in Mexico. As of 8PM ET, oil futures trading at $53.90.

Timothy Middleton, a columnist for CNBC on MSN, presents an example of how an investor might go about building a portfolio around exchange-traded funds, rather than mutual funds or invidividual stocks. Of course the funds you choose would be up to you, but the idea is one that is gaining traction, as ETFs offer many of the benefits of mutual funds without some of the limitations and fees.

If you really want to get the straight scoop on what’s happening in the markets, BMB would recommend you find some time to listen to one of his favorite radio shows: Investor’s Edge with Gary Kaltbaum.

Gary’s name might be familiar to regular viewers of Fox News Channel’s Saturday morning Business Block, as he is a frequent guest on shows like Bulls and Bears and Cashin’ In. What you may not know is that he hosts a daily 2-hour radio show of his own, where he gives probably the most candid market analysis and perspective you will find anywhere. He points out important market movements, tells you which stocks are breaking out and which ones are sinking and analyzes the markets with the eye of a seasoned technician.

Even if you don’t buy any of the breakout stocks he mentions, you will still get a very good idea of where the market is going (or not going, as seems to be the case right now!). But by far the most important lesson you will learn is one of trading and investing discipline — how to make better decisions on when to buy stocks and, just as important, when to sell them, or when to do neither.

If there isn’t a radio station in your area that carries the show (M-F, 5-7 PM ET), you can listen live over the internet or download archived shows from the past two weeks (MP3 format) and listen at your leisure. Go to Gary’s web site and click on “Gary’s Radio Show” on the left side panel.

Update: As of 10/16/2006, Gary’s radio show is one hour long, beginning at 6 PM ET. All the same good stuff, but in a more compact package.