Quick VIX

As the dollar weakens along side this summer rally, it appears the time is come to think about stocks who can perform well in the world economy. Click the link below which explains why Starbucks may fit this profile. http://www.cnbc.com/id/15840232?video=1194172473&play=1

Last week we all witnessed some positive gains in the market. On Thursday during the "Halftime Report" on CNBC, I had a chance to give my opinions on various topics, including financials and the future outlook. Some things to think about is that we have seen more buyers gone into this market as well as subsided levels in volatility. This may mean a steady incline in the next coming week. I predict 9,042 in the DOW by the end of the week. That being said, there a few option trades which will help in some protection against pullbacks. Click the link below to hear my strategy in greater detail. http://www.cnbc.com/id/31945283/site/14081545

Looking ahead into the next earnings report, we have seen some mixed messages in the market. On the long side, the sector to think about is clearly tech. I like Tech right now over the other sectors because they have a more heavy cash balance which will help them continue to innovate and consolidate. Some names to think about are MSFT and INTC, being a semiconductor lead rally. AMZN and AAPL are some good ones too. Mixed in with all of this market data is also a rise in volatility levels in the broader market which has the potential for elevated levels of movement over the next 30 days, so you may want to buy put protection in the S&P 500 against a portfolio of tech names.

Dan Deming was quoted this week on Forbes.com. The article touches on the lower levels of volume on the CBOE. In particular, there has been a recent decline in contracts from last year. Dan has an explanation why which is tide to the drop in volatility to a more normal trading environment. http://www.forbes.com/feeds/afx/2009/07/01/afx6610476.html