Good morning traders!

In the US last night, the DJIA rose 109 points at 16,010, the S&P500 added 14 points
at 1,795.85 and the Nasdaq gained 48 points at 3,969.16.

In Asia today, the Nikkei was recently down 15 points at 15,351 and the Hang Seng
ahead 101 points at 23,681.

WTI crude oil traded at $95.44 a barrel and Brent crude at $110.08.

Gold settled at $1,243 an ounce.

Happy Friday!

G.

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FTSE / DOW

Morning All.

The curse of Dow 16,000

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — When the Dow Jones Industrial Average crossed about 16,000 for the first time Monday it deservedly got top play in newspapers, web sites, radio and TV.

But as much as these may be historic times, the Dow’s DJIA +0.69% indefatigable run has a ironic side effect: It makes us forget history.

Consider some of the headlines that were buried under the 16,000 huzzahs:

Morning All.

Opening Market Overview

German Ifo Business Climate 109.3 107.9 107.4

Italian Retail Sales m/m -0.3% 0.4% 0.0%

Mario speaks @9:30.

Need European backstops for bank tests - ECB's Draghi

(Reuters) - European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said on Friday that in addition to national backstops, joint European backstops need to be in place before the ECB's bank tests are finished in one year's time.

In the coming year, European authorities will stage a series of exercises to test the ability of its lenders to withstand a future crisis without resorting to taxpayer-funded bailouts.

The tests are billed as the most rigorous assessments the banks have ever had, designed to remove doubts about their health after botched EU stress tests in 2010 and 2011 which failed to reveal major problems at some lenders.

Midday Market Overview

CAD Core CPI m/m 0.2% 0.0% 0.2%

CAD Core Retail Sales m/m 0.0% 0.2% 0.4%

CAD CPI m/m -0.2% 0.2% 0.2%

CAD Retail Sales m/m 1.0% 0.3% 0.2%

Dow 20,000 here we come: It’s different this time

Watching the Dow Jones Industrial Average top 16,000, many investors are hoping this market is in a bubble (so they can shrewdly buy stocks at lower prices when it pops). But we have a long way to go for that.

Right now, the most important part of a bubble is missing — the mania. We need intoxicated investors, a buying frenzy, over the top speculation, and a get-rich-quick mentality. A bubble without a mania is like an ice cream sundae without a cherry. We can do better.

More...

End-of-day Market Overview

Thanks for your company. Have a great weekend all!

G.

And you - a tad cold here the last couple of days.