Another Shanghai Surprise

The market opened under some selling pressure this morning, after a big plunge in Chinese stocks overnight. The Chinese govt. raised a tax on stock trading, and that caused the stock market there to fall -6.5%, a hefty decline.

The selling spilled over into other Asian markets, as they were down across the board overnight. This is the first "Shanghai Surprise" since late February. But with that market in a bubble, you can be sure it won't be the last.

Recent pullbacks in our markets have been shallow affairs, so it will be interesting to see if this Chinese selloff has any lasting effect on U.S. markets.

Bond yields are down slightly, with the 10-year at 4.86%. And oil is up a bit, to roughly $63.64. But a chart of oil still paints the picture of a commodity under pressure. If oil and gas have peaked for the summer, it would be a bullish sign for investor sentiment.