Busy Week for Housing, Earnings

Last Week saw equities hit 12-month highs across the globe, including in Australia, Hong Kong, India, Russia, Europe, England, Brazil and of course the US. The Dow hit the 10,000 mark mid-week but closed under that psychological threshold on Friday. The S&P 500 gained 1.5% overall, pushing the gains since early March to an astonishing 59.4%.

Meantime, WTI crude oil has jumped 120% from its February low of $34 per barrel. A 2009 peak was hit last week as it rose 9.4% $78.53. Never mind 2009 highs, Spot Gold hit an all-time high at $1,070.40 per ounce last Wednesday, though on Sunday night it had fallen to $1049.95.

“Upgrades to the global growth outlook and seasonal weakness in the US dollar during December will set the stage for another powerful rally in commodity prices as the end of the year draws near,” said Michael Lewis, commodities analyst at Deutsche Bank.

Equity Market: Comments from the Weekend

Tobias Levkovish, chief US equity strategist at Citigroup: 

“The sheer magnitude of the gains in seven months (relative to average market rebounds off of recession lows) and stretched upward earnings estimate revision trends suggests for some caution, in our view. “With a major change in sentiment and valuation from March 2009 levels, the rally argument gets more difficult, though not unprecedented,” he added.

Robert Kavcic, economist at BMO Capital Markets:

“The Dow broke above the 10,000 level to modest fanfare, with the celebration tempered by the realization that we’ve thrown this party a few times before: Last year, five years ago, eight years ago and, for the first time, a little more than ten years ago. That’s right, a decade of buy-and-hold investing in U.S. equities has produced nothing, and the 10,000 mark is a healthy reminder that we are probably still living life in a secular bear market—though now enjoying a much-gratifying cyclical upswing.”

Key Q3 Earnings Reports This Week:

Texas Instruments, Apple (Monday); Caterpillar, Yahoo, Pfizer (Tuesday); Boeing, Wells Fargo, eBay, Freeport (Wednesday); UPS, 3M (Thursday); Microsoft (Friday).

Key Events This Week:

Monday:

1:00 â€