Even the most seasoned Wall Street veterans are astonished by the volatility in the marketplace. Yet again this week , enormous swings occurred in the Dow (chart) which finished lower today by over 30o points. The Nasdaq (chart) on the day lost 61.15 points, the S&P 500 (chart) -31.67 points and the Russell 2000 (chart) -20.96.

Today you can blame the crisis of confidence on Europe. Renewed fears of Greece defaulting on its debt and the ECB’s Stark resigning at year end was enough to jolt the global markets. Negative headlines are abound and it’s no wonder the (VIX) (chart) also known as the fear gauge, spiked to over 40 today as well.  When the VIX spikes the way it has over the past month and continues to remain elevated, this historically is an indication of a near term bottom being put in. Add the incessant negative headlines that we are all exposed to daily, and that too historically is a sign of a bottoming process in the markets.

Don’t misunderstand me for the problems here and abroad are very real, and true leadership needs to emerge once and for all to address the global crisis we find ourselves in. However, it is times like these that do indeed create some of the best opportunities for investors, so long as you have the patience and fortitude to ride through one of the most volatile markets in recent history. Good luck to all.

Have a great weekend 🙂

~George