Chinese Internet Companies Climbing

A number of Chinese Internet companies are outpacing the rest of the market higher with Netease (NTES) reaching a new 52 week high at the highest point today. Other companies to watch include Shanda (SNDA), Baidu (BIDU) and Sina (SINA).

Amazon (AMZN) and Microsoft (MSFT) Both Rally Afterhours

In a very mixed session today with the direction of the markets not clear until the final 1/2 hour, shares of Microsoft rallied late to lift the indexes and then gave only a decent report afterhours. Amazon reported afterhours with better numbers which initially caused a slight dip but then the stock moved higher. Microsoft finished the afterhours session up 3% from where it closed the regular session while Amazon improved 2.7% from 4 pm to 8 pm EST.

Volatility Index Continues to Fall

In another sign that the markets could extend the current rally into something longer term, the CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) has fallen to a new three month low to $33.94. Sometimes called the fear index, the VIX shows the amount of hedging in the markets to ward against a downturn and rises when the markets begin to turn south. The drop the VIX over the past two weeks resembles the fall in the S&P 500 that we saw just before the current rally began. There was a break of resistance at $40 on the 3rd on April and the index has continued to fall fairly steep since.

Research In Motion Has Growth

In this market it is hard to find companies with growth in both revenue and earnings but Research in Motion (RIMM) is one of the larger organizations with good growth that has broken out of a negative trading pattern and begun to climb. You may have missed some of the move as it has risen from around $35 a share to a recent $68.35 a share over the course of the last month and a half. But if the markets continue to perform and the economy improves along with the markets, there is more upside with RIMM.

No Economic Data and Little in Earnings (Literally)

It's a tough week to believe in the new bull market will next to no economic data coming out and little in the way of earnings. I still think the markets can move higher with the help of a couple good reports next week and a few earnings surprises by some of the bigger companies. Goldman Sachs has been holding steady with it's earnings to be released next week with Johnson & Johnson only failing slightly the last two days.

US Indexes Are Clearly in the Green

I didn't think we would see the pullback for the classic W formation in the indexes but we did get the gap lower this week and then the new short-term high. So now the indexes are clearly in the green across the board for the Nasdaq Composite, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the Russell 2000, and the Standard & Poors 500. The markets will continue to rally or we will get a hold signal after a number of down days. So being long until the hold signal is met is a decent play.

US Economic Forecasts for the Week

The week has a fairly good stream of economic data coming up with mostly positive news and the possibility of a couple of poor numbers. Monday is free of data which is currently allowing the Automotive industry to steal the headlines with their poor performance and the new Obama Administration stepping in to mandate a quick turnaround on new government funding.

Markets Give Buy Signals

The big news this week is the major indexes all giving buy signals with break outs to the upside on the S&P 500, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the Nasdaq and the Russell 2000. I also like the number of stocks breaking to the upside with their 13 day moving averages moving above their 50 day moving averages. For the complete market according to ClearStation.com 185 stocks broke out on Friday with only 21 stocks breaking to the downside.

The US Dollar, Gold and Aluminum

Late Wednesday the Federal Reserve put in place a plan to add $1 trillion dollars to the US economy to help consumer and small business lending in addition to buying long-term government bonds. The recent action of the government helped boost the markets Wednesday but has led to a quick downturn in the US Dollar and strength in commodities traded in dollars.

US Dollar - Powershares US Dollar Index Bearish (UDN)

You can play the US Dollar downturn with the Powershares US Dollar Index Bearish ETF (UDN). This fund moves in the opposite direction of the US Dollar. The ETF is up 1.2% today and has broken out of a tight range in the beginning of March to rally from $24.5 a share to it's current level of $25.5. The ETF does not make quick moves with large percentage gains but is a more conservative investment for a longer term hold.

Us Markets Rally Despite Being Overbought

I was holding onto Short S&P 500 Proshares (SH) shares last week and until today feeling there would be a leg down before a bottom formation was created. But the action today with a strong run at the end of the day even with the markets already overbought, changed my mind and I got rid of the SH shares. A housing report and a strong financial rally led to the optimistic day.