Like Watching Paint Dry

Maybe I should have stayed home this morning. My 4-yr old daughter crawled into my bed last night, and we were so warm and cozy when my alarm went off at 6am. Oh well.

Volume is really light as many investors remain on holiday vacation. Watching the ticks on the tape is painfully slow, like watching paint dry. I just hope things end on a positive note today.

Stores are opening early as they hope to lure in more shoppers looking for post-Christmas bargains. MasterCards's SpendingPulse said total retail sales dropped -5.5% yr/yr in November and another -8% in December (thru X-mas eve). Ouch. Bucking the trend is Amazon.com, who said it had its best holiday season ever.

The Fed approved GMAC's application to become a bank holding company. This should keep credit flowing at GM dealers as GMAC will have access to TARP funds. Maybe my firm can apply to become a bank holding company?

Asian markets were mixed overnight. The dollar is lower this morning, helping boost oil prices +5% to back above $37. The 10-year yield is lower to 2.15%. And the VIX is down another 1% to 43.77.