Europe

In January and in early February UBS' technical analysts said that while they do not believe in a 2008 event, 2016 should be a highly volatile and a trading oriented year for equities... and so far it has. But now Michael Riesner and Marc Muller see a high likelihood to move into our suggested early Q2 cycle top this week.

With last week’s higher low at 2033, we have a new pivotal support in place in the SPX, which makes 2033 to a tactical key support.

• World stocks gain along with oil, clock ticks down to ECB (Reuters)
• Draghi Expected to Defend ECB in Face of German Criticism (WSJ)
• Trump, Cruz, Kasich seek to win over Republican leaders at party meeting (Reuters)
• Donald Trump Plans to Adopt More-Traditional Campaign Tactics (WSJ)
• Japan, Not Germany, Leads World in Negative-Yield Bonds (BBG)
• Obama starts talks with Gulf leaders aimed at easing strains (Reuters)
• Soros: China Looks Like the US Before the Crisis (BBG)

One day after stocks were this close from hitting new all time highs on what have been either ok earnings, if looking at non-GAAP data, or atrocious earnings, based on GAAP, and where any oil headline is now immediately translated as bullish by the oil algos, so far futures are relatively flat, while European stocks were at their moments ago in anticipation of the latest ECB announcement due out in just one hour.  However, unlike last month's "quad-bazooka", this time the market expects far less from Draghi.

Submitted by Brandon Smith via Alt-Market.com,

Most people are not avid followers of economic news, and I don’t blame them. Financial analysis is for the most part boring and tedious and you would have to be some kind of crazy to commit a large slice of your life to it.