[staytrue]

Disclosure: I am short 4 SP500 futures contracts.

In my opinion, going forward the stock market can go up a little, stay flat, go down a little, or go down a lot.

Going up a lot is off the table, in my opinion.

[Moonman62]

That sounds like a lot, but it's probably just a couple percentage points of total market capital, the same as back in 1999.

[Biblebelter]

I am not terribly bullish, but this is not 2000. Buying stocks on margin may be more rewarding than buying real estate on a mortgage. Real estate is where the speculation has been. The difference in the market now is that there is not as much speculation and the stocks that are going up actually have earnings as opposed to the tech bubble. Personally, I believe there were a lot of petrodollars pumping the market up, because much of the move has been on ascending oil prices. It is somewhat counterintuitive but oil and the stock market may be moving in the same direction together. The one thing is for sure that the first time oil hit 70, it did not tank the market. I daytrade the same stocks every day, but only trade two outside the Dow 30. I am still looking to buy weakness on intraday lows, but in the last month one could short the intraday highs and make money as well, which had been a fairly dangerous for the previous months.

[Eagles Talon IV]

This is a meaningless story and was printed simply to create fear in the uninformed. Probably attempting to bring to mind the 1929 scenario when margin requirements were just 10% cash down.

Current requirements are 50% cash to buy on margin. If the stock drops to low the bank or securities firm asks for more cash from the customer to maintain the margin requirement and if it is not forthcoming the stock is sold and the margin debt cleared. There are no consequences other then to the poor bastard that thought he could leverage himself to riches. If these people do not know enough to institute a stop sell order to unload the stock when it hits a certain point then it is his/her problem.

Margin requirements of 50% or more do nothing to exacerbate downside risks in the markets. They are or can be the problems of those who utilize them.

[staytrue]

since you asked on a different thread.

[staytrue]

ping (probably 2 days late)