Well the week started off like a rocket with an almost 500 point up day in the DOW and with even bigger % gainer in the other markets. I feel like a broken record but Europe was the driving factor early in the week as once again plans of a solution gathered steam over last weekend. By the end of the week the focus was on the jobs report which was basically in line with the private sector delivering 140k new jobs and the public sector cutting 20k for a net addition of 120k. As many economists point out this is still not enough growth in jobs if a sustained recovery is in the works.
What was most interesting to me regarding the jobs report was the decline in the unemployment rate due in large part to the drop in the participation rate which indicates that a larger amount of people have given up looking for full time employment. As congress once again debates extending unemployment benefits those utilizing those benefits can continue to sit home and collect their checks. Not that some people aren't in need of the support but where do we begin to draw the line? How can we physically afford to keep extending the benefits as budget deficits spiral out of control.
From a Fund perspective our performance was up 1.9% week over week. There was no activity this week as I continued to be a watchful participant from the sidelines not know where this market may end up. December is a dicey month as managers who are trailing their indexes try to chase performance in order to bridge their gap while others are selling losing positions in order to take advantage of the tax loss. Not sure if the Santa Claus rally has come early this year or not?
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