Business

One month ago we were quite amused by what at that time was one of the most ridiculous short squeezes we have ever seen when the stock of Peabody Energy, exploded higher from $2 to about $6 in days on... nothing.

Many scratched their heads at this move as nothing fundamentally had changed in the company's deteriorating operations, and its bonds are among the most distressed issues trading currently. The move was even more bizarre when just a few days later Peabody warned it may file for bankruptcy protection imminently.

The ridiculous headline risk that is whipsawing oil showed up this morning once again. WTI slide as much as $41.26 earlier on news that Iran's Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh wouldn't be attending the April 17 meetings in Doha, however just moments later it was reported that Iran's OPEC Governor Kaempour will be attending and losses were largely erased.

Going into today, everyone's attention was focused on the JPM earnings report, the first big bank to report, on concerns about the profitability of the banking sector. And sure enough, as the chart below shows, going into JPM's earnings announcement, EPS expectations had been drastically cut to account for what was clearly set to be a painful quarter for banks.

With oil losing some of its euphoric oomph overnight, following the API report of a surge in US oil inventories, and a subsequent report that Iran's oil minister would skip the Doha OPEC meeting altogether, the global stock rally needed another catalyst to maintain the levitation.

Silver Surges 8% In 6 Days To Over $16 Per Ounce

Silver surged 3.65% on Monday and have surged 8% in just six trading days. Silver rose 56 cents from $15.34 to $15.90 per ounce on Monday, and consolidated on those gains yesterday to close above the psychological resistance of $16 per ounce.

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