Douglas Altabef

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.

The forecasts for the second-half of the year for the most part seem to support a recovery, but to some read more

The forecasts for the second-half of the year for the most part seem to support a recovery, but to some extent, that's already priced into the market, so you're not seeing that much stock reaction. There's not a lot of conviction and some people will take profits. But I think there will continue to be a moderately upwards bias for the remainder of the year.

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.

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.

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.