Is it just coincidental that the U.S. stock indexes Thursday morning are seeing the largest declines in weeks–on the date of the 30th anniversary of the “Black Monday” stock market crash in 1987? Maybe, but these so-called coincidences sure seem to happen often in markets. On that day I was a reporter/editor for what is now Dow Jones Newswires. It was a crazy day. Markets were halted. Limit price moves occurred in the futures markets, and the Federal Reserve tried to make calming pronouncements to unnerved traders and investors. That Monday broke many traders, who would never return to the markets. And it made some, who happened to be short the stock index futures, rich. Back to today: The December e-mini stock index futures are still in a solid uptrend, but the U.S. stock indexes are in very mature bull markets. Traders and investors appear to be getting complacent, as evidenced by the very low volatility in the markets. Complacency is never a good thing in markets and suggests changes are coming soon. Stay tuned!–Jim
