With all the uncertainty associated with the middle east and with Egypt now in the limelight- why is the Market up today? If Greece sneezes the market goes all shaky in the knees. If a few tech companies announce earnings below expectations the market tanks. But if Egypt goes the way of Iran no big deal. Why is the market up on the news? Is more expensive oil good for Wall Street? ExxonMobil announced strong earnings today.
"EXXONMOBIL'S CHAIRMAN REX W. TILLERSON COMMENTED:
“ExxonMobil continues to deliver strong financial and operating results. The full year 2010 earnings, excluding special items, were $30.5 billion, up 57% from 2009, driven by higher crude oil and natural gas realizations, stronger refining margins and record Chemical performance. Fourth quarter earnings were $9.3 billion, an increase of 53%."
So maybe the the current situation in the Middle East is untenable and has been that way for decades, long before Tunisia and Egypt erupted. Maybe the erruptions in Tunisia and Egypt can be seen as manageable earthquakes, the kind that release pressure but are not The Big One. Or maybe what is good for short-term profits is good for Wall Street. Gold is down today too. All seems pretty fishy to me.
Just as an aside- I saw Hilary on Face the Nation yesterday. Bob Scheiffer asked her to explain why the protests were getting "worse." He was not referring to the looting etc.I'm not sure what he meant by "worse." I think he meant spreading or getting larger but perhaps by definition this means worse. This is not what I would call neutral reporting at best. If similar protests were to happen in Iran would Mr Schieffer refer to them as getting worse? I don't think so. To see what I mean advance the video to about the 5:18 mark. Hilary video.
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