This is The Wall Street Digest Hotline Update for Friday, March 30, 2007, at 6:00 p.m. EST.
First-quarter window dressing offset good economic news this morning. At the close, the Dow gained 5 points, closing at 12,354, while the Nasdaq rose almost 4 points, closing at 2,421. Oil fell $0.16 to $65.87 per barrel, and gold closed up $1.40 at $669.00 an ounce.
Stock prices opened higher this morning on good economic news. However, the Dow Industrial Average dropped 100 points after the U.S. placed tariffs on China’s paper imports. China is selling a $1,000 roll of glossy paper below cost at $800 to the U.S. market. The Dow then recovered and closed flat for the day.
End of the quarter window dressing also contributed to the confusion and volatility of today’s trading. I would not base any investment decisions on today’s market action.
Record global liquidity, including record liquidity in the U.S., should keep stock prices in a trading range before moving higher this year. The U.S. stock market is still substantially undervalued at 34 percent. Stay close to our telephone/e-mail/website Hotline Updates.
The next Hotline Update will be on Tuesday, April 3, 2007, at 6:00 p.m. EST.