I’ve got a song in my heart and a smile on my face today, and not just because it’s the end of the week in the middle of summer and all the big cheeses are melting at the beach.
I looked at the news line-up this morning and saw a trend I had not noticed in quite some time. Did you spot it, too? Happiness is busting out all over, surprising the guys who make gloom for a living.
… stocks were up at the opening of the market… well, that’s nice…
… new home sales were stronger than anticipated… of course they were. People are expecting nothing but downers right now. In spite of how much we read or download or link to, we’re always surprised because what we believe will happen next is always in line with what’s going on right now… and that’s not a fair assumption at all… so we’re always surprised, both on the downside, when it arrives and then by the upside, when it inevitably comes creeping in.
… hm… durable goods orders also are up, shocking those experts whose job it is, really, not to be shocked. Are we paying them to be shocked?
Oil prices declining! Gas prices slipping back to ONLY $4 bucks a gallon! Gas up the car, mom!
There’s more!
Cleaner, greener diesel?
And Honda (HMC) reporting record profits, which means it still may be possible to be a car company if you know how to do things right?
And I don’t know about you, folks, but there’s part of me that just plain enjoys seeing guys whose business it is shorting stocks taking it in the, well, the shorts, you know? Bet against us, will ya?! Well, eat the hose, shorty!
See? Nothing but good stuff, all the time. Things are looking up. The sand is hot. The breeze is cool. The banks have hit bottom and are screaming back up the ramp. Our own auto makers are retooling their plants, getting ready to sell us a whole new generation of tin cans that get 30 mpg and better, and to sell those they’ll need to advertise, bringing up the whole media sector. And there’s a new iPhone, too! And a HUGE line around the block not far from here, loaded with happy consumers who can’t wait to ignore all the party poopers raining on the new gizmo. Go, Apple (AAPL)! Spread that sunshine, right? Sure!
Could it get any better? Well, okay, it could, I’ll grant you that. But I’ll take what we’ve got for now.
Monday will come soon enough.