Flat Or Sideways?

US markets finished mixed and flat again today as investors continued to wait for news out of Europe and the epic Faceplant debacle. The SPDR S&P 500 ETF (NYSEARCA:SPY) grew .20% while the SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF (NYSEARCA:DIA) gained .33%. The PowerShares QQQ Trust Series 1 ETF (NASDAQ:QQQ) lost .66% while the iShares Russell 2000 Index ETF (NYSEARCA:IWM) gained .21%.
 
All and all it appears that markets and investors are deciding which way to go as the Europeans continue to stall world affairs. Yesterday’s summit apparently yielded a renewed “effort” to keep Greece in the Euro, however all bets have been off for a while since Greece’ past elections.
 
Faceplant continues to rise despite yesterday’s debacle of faceplants, as the NASDAQ:FB stock gained an additional 3.22%. Lawsuits and Federal Regulators continue to jump into the fray, and a headline today suggested that the NASDAQ exchange has an estimated $100 million worth of lawsuits against it for botching the launch of the Facebook IPO last Friday. Could this Faceplant situation become more bizarre?  Probably, which is the sad part.
 
What’s even more sad (and more critical) is that the jobs data released today was not positive or negative, because literally, the data did not change at all. 370,000 jobless claims last week, 370,000 claims the week before. Sideways economic recoveries never seem to be a feel good kind of experience, no matter how you look at it.
 
Bottom Line: Today was a flat or a sideways day for US markets, please take your pick. Hopefully, you did not pick the Faceplant stock, which will likely continue its volatile ride into oblivion, so as things just keep getting uglier for the new IPO. And, do not of course forget Europe, which still holds the red button for world destruction.

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