Stocks suffer worst year's opening in quarter century

[Whitecorvette]

The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended the first week of January under 13,000, at 12,800.18, down 256.54 points on the day.
Friday was the second day in the three trading days this week since Jan. 1 in which the market lost 200 points or more, making it the worst year's opening in a quarter century.

This past week also saw records with crude oil touching briefly the $100-a-barrel mark and gold traded briefly at $868 an ounce for February futures contracts. That's close to the all-time high of $875 an ounce that gold reached in January 1980 during the Iranian hostage crisis.

Meanwhile, the dollar reversed its upward trend, ending the week at 75.82 on the USD index, just off the all-time low of 74.48 in November.

The stock market dive today was triggered by a U.S. Department of Labor report that unemployment rose to 5 percent in December, the highest level in the last two years.

(Story continues below)

http://worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=59542

[Whitecorvette]

This is serious.

[frodo82801]

Some of it can be explained by the results in Iowa. Neither winner is seen as good for the economy.

[SnoDog]

This is a great time to buy stocks for the long haul. We havent seen P/E ratio's this low in a long time.

[Bernardd]

This is serious.

We'll see what happens next week.

[sojourner]

Probability says,,,when you have the first day of the year, and the first week of the year, down,,,the whole year will finish down,,,,,,way down.

Stocks become undervalued p/e etc., to the extreme, before "buying opportunities"........when absolutely NOBODY wants stocks,,,then buy.
Just contrarian.........

This economy and these markets have a WAY long way to fall before there will be any buying opportunities, except in commodities and precious metals................

JMHO

[sojourner]

I think you are right Polaris. But with the dollar falling, ANY investment, invests in a bad dollar scene. So, your capital is reduced by that alone without anything else happening,,,and this is what foreign investors are beginning to figure out.
The time to "buy" is when nobody, but nobody would touch stocks......

[sojourner]

I just have a few gold shares and some small energy stocks...they haven't done too well the last couple years............so I am not what you would call a credible advisor.........:faint

[sojourner]

quite honestly, from my reading of economic history, and terminal stages of inflation / hyperinflation,,,we are on the very verge of global economic collapse,,,,,and other things that we "begin to see" as in Luke 21:25,,,,,and I do not see how the year 2008 can end happilly on the economic front. The central banks are backed into the corner,,,,,,inflate or die,,,and that means hyperinflation coming, as in Weimer deutchmark-type chaos. I truly do believe that the Lord is coming soon, for so many of His people will not make it for many months into the future, with lost jobs, houses, cars, etc.
So, our treasures are in heaven,,,,,,where we truly are "shareholders" in the coming Kingdom of His. Meanwhile, per James chapter 5, the rich men and central bankers of this world can "weep and howl for the miseries that are coming upon you" (in the tribulation years........)
My puny little gold shares do not compare to the glory that we shall see,,,in the very near future IMHO.......:yeah

[Waiting...]

I think you are right Polaris. But with the dollar falling, ANY investment, invests in a bad dollar scene. So, your capital is reduced by that alone without anything else happening,,,and this is what foreign investors are beginning to figure out.
The time to "buy" is when nobody, but nobody would touch stocks......

I was thinking about your last statement. The time to buy is when the price is low. I think that you are right. I am by far NOT a financial expert, but I was wondering why people are buying gold now when it is at a record high? If they are banking on a system collapse for it to go any higher, wouldn't that be pointless?:scratch