The above is.....LITERALLY.....all that is happening in the markets today. In other words...NOTHING. We appear to be in a little Summer doldrum. We are becalmed at sea. Lets see if this NOTHING market is going to last for a few days or if it is going to linger for a while. I suspect that EARNINGS will be a catalyst to move the markets....soon. We will see the first earnings....bank stocks as usual.....starting Next week on Tuesday, July 15. Actually earning reports are already happening this week....but they are being mostly ignored.
One of my kids will be participating in the search effort at the Camp Mystic area today and this week. Anyone reading this....PLEASE.....do not go to the area to help with the search without prior authorization....it is mostly PROFESSIONALS and authorized people only. The river area is very dangerous with all the debris.
That is about it for today. Perhaps there will be something interesting to talk about later in the day. For now...I will just give up.
I see this today......for what it is worth....since I do not ivnest according to Wall Street expectations or speculation. Wall Street is getting more bullish on stocks as trade uncertainty lingers https://finance.yahoo.com/news/wall...s-as-trade-uncertainty-lingers-143107383.html (BOLD is my opinion OR what I consider important content) "Fresh trade threats aren't stopping Wall Street strategists from raising their bets on stocks. Goldman Sachs (GS) raised its year-end S&P 500 (^GSPC) target to 6,600 late Monday, up from a prior estimate of 6,100, citing deeper Fed rate cuts, lower bond yields, and investors' willingness to look past near-term earnings weakness. Bank of America (BAC) followed with its own upgrade, raising its year-end S&P 500 target to 6,300 from the prior 5,600, a shift meant to catch up to what strategist Savita Subramanian described as the market's "meteoric run." But the new target reflects just 1.1% upside from Monday’s close, with Subramanian warning, "It's hard to identify a positive catalyst for the S&P 500 to continue its meteoric run into Q3." She pointed to mixed signals from earnings guidance and economic data, adding, "The meat of corporate profits, tech company earnings, are slated to decelerate." The bullish revisions come as Trump reignites global trade tensions, threatening 25% tariffs on imports from Japan and South Korea. The renewed trade concerns sent stocks broadly lower on Monday Stocks have staged a historic comeback since Trump's initial "Liberation Day" tariff threats in April, which briefly triggered a sharp sell-off after he pledged sweeping duties on some of the US's largest trading partners. The White House later softened its stance, first granting a 90-day extension and then pushing the deadline again on Monday to Aug. 1. "I'll actually believe these [tariff] numbers when I see them," Adam Johnson, portfolio manager at Bullseye American Ingenuity Fund, told Yahoo Finance on Monday. He said the extension of the tariff deadline to Aug. 1 showed that the Trump administration is trying to negotiate. "It's the art of the deal playing out in real time," he said. "So we throw something out there that scares everybody, gets them off guard. It's a way of effectively trying to get a better deal from our trading partners. In other words, as Johnson was alluding to, that's the so-called TACO trade at work, an acronym for "Trump Always Chickens Out." The phrase captures a belief among some investors that the president often talks tough on tariffs but rarely follows through. That assumption has helped fuel a tailwind for markets in recent months as traders increasingly bet on last-minute policy pivots. But uncertainty still looms. "The shifting tariff landscape creates large uncertainty around our earnings forecasts, which are roughly in line with consensus in 2025 but below consensus in 2026," Goldman Sachs strategist David Kostin wrote in the firm's upgrade. "The key downside risk to our EPS forecasts is the ultimate level of tariffs and their impact on corporate profits." The uncertainty has been exacerbated by mixed economic signals, including a downward revision to first quarter GDP growth, a slight uptick in PCE inflation, and continuing jobless claims reaching their highest level since 2021, indicating some labor market softness. "There are some yellow flags in the economy but no clear red flags yet," Aditya Bhave, senior US economist at Bank of America, said on a call with reporters last week. "We're at a fork in the road," he said. "If something is going to break, it's going to break soon." MY COMMENT About the only thing that is slightly relevant above........is the increase in the SP500 targets. Of course I dont really care.....my SP500 target is STILL 6800 to 6900....by year end. AND....that is just a little game that I play with myself....I NEVER invest or do anything based on financial..... "targets".
I made back most of what I lost yesterday. Neither day had much excitement or enthusiasm. I had a small gain today. Compliments of three stocks in the green....NVDA, PLTR, aand AAPL. If I have to only have a few stocks up in a day...it really helps for two of them to be PLTR and NVDA. I also beat the SP500 today by 0.21%. Moving on......it is now basically a three day week.....since the first two days were a "push" for me.
It is always hard for many beginners to get started investing. That is one BIG GOAL of this thread to encourage people to start investing. PLEASE....if you are a new investor....you are TOTALLY welcome to come on here and ask questions. WE....can be a good resource for you. Here is some other good content for you if you are thinking of starting out on your investing journey. 11 of the Best Investing Books for Beginners The best finance books for beginners break down important investing concepts in simple terms. https://money.usnews.com/investing/articles/best-investing-books-for-beginners (BOLD is my opinion OR what I consider important content) "Books can hold decades of earned knowledge in the span of a few hundred pages. When it comes to understanding finances, fewer decisions are easier, cheaper or more impactful than the move to educate yourself with a great investing book. Money touches everything we do, so learning how to properly invest early in life can make a huge difference in your ultimate success. It's important to learn investment terminology. You'll want to understand the difference between a stock and a bond, how cryptocurrency works, how inflation affects investments, the role of risk tolerance and how tax efficiency can increase a portfolio's return. It's equally important to understand what money does and doesn't do for a person seeking to grow wealth for future life events. That includes how we interact with money, how family experiences can shape our investment outlook and how significant debt can be a drag on our ability to achieve life goals. To assist you in this endeavor, here's a list of 11 great books that address multiple aspects of the investing process. The authors range from leading financial gurus of their time to female, minority and next-generation authors who shape new perspectives. Here are 11 of the best investing books for beginners: "The Intelligent Investor" "Poor Charlie's Almanack: The Essential Wit and Wisdom of Charles T. Munger" "The Little Book of Common Sense Investing: The Only Way to Guarantee Your Fair Share of Stock Market Returns" "A Beginner's Guide to the Stock Market: Everything You Need to Start Making Money Today" "Investing QuickStart Guide: The Simplified Beginner's Guide to Successfully Navigating the Stock Market, Growing Your Wealth & Creating a Secure Financial Future" "Rich Dad Poor Dad" "How to Money: Your Ultimate Visual Guide to the Basics of Finance" "Get Good With Money: 10 Simple Steps to Becoming Financially Whole" "Broke Millennial Takes on Investing: A Beginner's Guide to Leveling Up Your Money" "The Total Money Makeover: A Proven Plan for Financial Fitness" "The Psychology of Money: Timeless Lessons on Wealth, Greed, and Happiness" MY COMMENT Any or all these books will help to get you educated. BUT.....there is no need to delay or wait till you think you are educated. There is no reason you cant start out with a brokerage account invested in a simple SP500 ETF.....while you are learning. If you click on the first book you will be taken to a very good summary of each book.
In case you care. How major US stock indexes fared Tuesday, 7/8/2025 https://finance.yahoo.com/news/majo...NjkhKeeD921JNsfT7Iwaj_I5aN1VhcSltGk41SkL6KN6I
