Douglas Altabef

Clearly you're seeing conflicting signs about the economy and the market reacting to that.

Clearly you're seeing conflicting signs about the economy and the market reacting to that.

Earnings have been good, but what you're starting to see is a return to the attitude about earnings that we read more

Earnings have been good, but what you're starting to see is a return to the attitude about earnings that we saw in the late 1990's, where you're seeing more talk about whisper numbers, higher expectations, and a more punitive reaction to numbers that disappoint.

You'll see markets continue to do the Cha-Cha, moving higher, but paced by brief retrenchments. It's not going to be read more

You'll see markets continue to do the Cha-Cha, moving higher, but paced by brief retrenchments. It's not going to be as good as last year, but I think 2004 will still be a good year for the stock markets.

Below the current, the economy has been improving far more than the market reality would indicate. And all things considered, read more

Below the current, the economy has been improving far more than the market reality would indicate. And all things considered, the market is really behaving quite well today [Thursday]. But there's still tremendous anxiety; the market is held hostage to individual corporate news and accountability.

What companies report now is less influential than what they say about future quarters.

What companies report now is less influential than what they say about future quarters.