Will The Dow Jones Hit 14,000

It’s tough to go out on a limb and predict the future, but it does seem likely that Dow 14,000 will be achieved in a reasonable time span. Despite gloomy economic news, the Dow has remained relatively stable and continues to grow.

One thing seems likely, in order for the Dow 14,000 barrier to be crashed, it will require the retiring of the bear by skittish institutional investors. A lot is made out of all the ‘little guys‘ in the market but it will take a move by the big boys to push the overall market higher. Institutional investors hold a large concentration of wealth. Money is concentrated also in the hands of options traders.  In the current stock market, it has paid for people to remain defensive rather than getting too aggressive.  That moderate behavior has helped stop people from losing money, but it hardly helps push the overall market to new heights.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average will likely pierce the 14,000 mark when the economy has rebounded, people are optimistic about their country and economy, and investments in the stock market look like a great idea who’s time has arrived again.

What do you think? Will the Dow Jones Industrial Average hit 14,000 or will Financial Armageddon stop it from happening? Sound off below.

This is obvious, even to the casual observer. The car lots in my local neighborhood have less stock on the showroom floor, and a few more cars seem to be gone everyday.

The “Cash For Clunkers” program has already exhausted 1 billion dollars and the Senate is expected to vote for an additional 2 billion dollars in funding for the program.

Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F) recently reported improved sales, with this new program partly responsible. Ford stock is currently trading for $8.21 a share.

The filing applies to the company’s Big West refining and Longhorn Pipeline subsidiaries and doesn’t apply to other business units or affiliates or their operations in Canada, according to a press release at the company’s website.

The company cited the “precipitous drop in the price of oil” and lack of available financing through traditional methods as factors in their decision to file for bankruptcy protection.

Flying J. has over 250 state of the art travel plazas and fuel stops in 41 states in America and 6 provinces in Canada. They employ over 16,000 people within the company.

Flying J stated they hoped to work through the reorganization process as quickly as possible to address their short-term liquidity needs and allow them to meet their past obligations in full.

During the reorganization, the company said that Flying J’s will remain open and will conduct “business as usual.”

Mr. Levinson’s windfall — which was alluded to in a May filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission — highlights the quandary of publicly traded private-investment outfits. On the one hand, they must compensate elite traders and dealmakers richly enough so they don’t leave for a competitor or start their own firms. The heads of large private hedge funds such as Citadel Investment Group and Paulson & Co. can — and have — earned billions of dollars in a single year.

Definitely nice work, if you can find it.

Oil futures trade in quantities of 1,000 Barrels (42,000 gallons).
They trade on the NYMex – New York Mercantile Exchange
Their symbol is: CL
Prices are quote in price per barrel.

The most commonly traded oil future is “”Light Sweet Crude Oil.”

Light Sweet Crude Oil is trading at record prices as more investors have flooded the market, looking for safe investments with high returns to offset losses in the Dollar. This trend has taken on real speed in the last few months, and there’s no telling just how high crude prices will go before the “bubble” pops.

Many experts feel a bubble has indeed occurred because the fundamental value of oil hasn’t changed as much as the price has. In fact, investors are being blamed for much of the increase.

“We’re in a little bit of a bubble state,” said Ehud Ronn, director of the Center for Energy Finance Education and Research at the University of Texas at Austin. “We’re just too high relative to fundamentals.”

It’s up to individual investors to decide if the bubble is real, of if the prices of oil will continue to rise behind growing demand and scarcity of supply. The oil sector has been extremely lucrative for those involved, and will likely continue that way for at least some time to come.

For more information about investing in Crude Oil Futures:

• About.com
• WTRG

If you plan on investing in the Indian Stock Market, you’ll want to investigate stocks sold on the National Stock Exchange of India Limited in Mumbai. The NSE is where the largest volume of shares is traded in India.

The main drawback for an individual investor advertising in the Indian Stock Market is lack of knowledge. It’s tough for American investors to have a great grasp of just what’s going on in Mumbai. Despite the dreams of a high return, it’s also important to be prudent with your capital.

For investors who are cautious, but still want to try the investments, it might be worth checking out on the new Indian ETFs like EPI.

The Indian stock market has cooled off a bit in recent months, so now might be a good time to enter a “stock market play” like EPI. If you think the direction is up for the whole market, such an investment could easily pay off, while limiting your downside as ETFs tend to retain value better than individual stocks.

Of course adventurous investors can trade in commodities themselves, but they’ll be at a clear disadvantage against the “big boys” in the trading pit. There are obvious drawbacks to trading commodities yourself.

“Futures can have unlimited risk,” said Kevin Kerr, a commodities trader and founding partner of Kerr Trading International. “Futures can get expensive.”

Instead, investors can choose to purchase an ETF, such as DBA, which is the Deutsche Bank Agriculture ETF.

DBA has seen a one year low of $26 and one year high of $42, so investors who made a careful entrance are doing quite well for themselves. DBA was up 19% from January to April of 2008, greatly outpacing the market. With $2.6 billion in capital, the fund looks poised to cash in on a long term positive trend for agricultural products.

If you’re interested in looking at the short side of agricultural commodities, a number of ETNs, or “exchange traded notes” have sprung up in order to satisfy your craving. ETNs tend to be more risky of an investment because they are treated differently for tax purposes than ETFs, and and they carry credit risks, which ETFs don’t.

Right now, I think a Commodity ETF like DBA could supplement just about anyone’s investing diet, especially if commodity prices continue to rise, like it appears they will.

The current idea is that BBI will acquire Circuit City for around $1 billion.

Circuit City shares climbed 60 percent in premarket trading.

Blockbuster Chief Executive James Keyes said a deal would create a chain that could sell portable devices and entertainment for them, much like Apple Inc.’s stores.

So far Circuit City is not sure about the deal, and whether BBI can pull off the financing. Their shares went up 55% in today’s trading on the news.

It’s tough to say how people will view the trade. These are two struggling companies in a slow economic period facing competition who has been beating them. Whether a merger will help, or actually hasten their demise is unknown.

“Overall, I’m getting the sense here that the Street is starting to focus on fundamentals and the timing of a potential recovery in the economy, and trying to move past the credit crisis,” said Craig Peckham, market strategist at Jefferies & Co.

In big news today, Washingto Mutualis close to being bought out by takeover company TPG Inc. Washington Mutual was one of the most aggressive companies in the mortgage industry.

Kinetic offers advanced wound care and therapeutic support systems.

Kinetic offered $51.00 a share. LIFC’s shares were trading above $50.00 at pre-market today.

“This combination allows us to accelerate our strategy to increase KCI’s presence in the operating room and will leverage our broad global market reach to drive future growth of LifeCell’s products.” KCI Chief Executive Catherine Burzik said in a statement.

The boards of both companies unanimously approved of the transaction.