Need To Know: Keep Believing In This Market As Freed Korean-Americans Come Home

The Dow might make it six up sessions in a row today — and then one fine morning, maybe even flip green for the year.

Are the recent good vibes for markets linked to the three American detainees who just got back from North Korea?

Yes, according to CrackedMarket’s Jani Ziedins, who provides our call of the day.

“Obviously, these prisoners won’t affect corporate earnings in any conceivable way, but this is the kind of good news the market has been hungry for,” Ziedins says.

“This market wants to be hopeful, and it is embracing all the good news it can find.”

The lack of a crash lately is building trust, and traders will keep warming up to stocks as many of their fears fade, the newsletter writer tells subscribers. A rerun of recent worrying headlines is “unlikely to make a difference,” given the market seems to be weathering them, he adds.

“The only thing we have to worry about is new and unexpected headlines — something traders haven’t been able to think about,” Ziedins writes in his latest missive.

“Until that happens, keep believing in this market. We won’t race up to the highs anytime soon. But we can keep buying the dip every time reactive owners want to sell their stocks at a discount.”

Key market gauges

There’s not all that much for credulous bulls at the moment, as the Dow DJIA, +0.56%  , S&P 500 SPX, +0.53% and Nasdaq Composite COMP, +0.57% are edging up. The three gauges closed higher yesterday, with the Dow gaining for its fifth-straight session and cutting its year-to-date drop to 0.7%.

Europe SXXP, -0.30% is largely lower, after Asia finished mostly with gains. Oil CLM8, -0.08% is dipping, while gold GCM8, +0.49% is rising. The dollar index DXY, -0.26% is falling, and bitcoin BTCUSD, +0.84% is holding above $9,300.

See the Market Snapshot column for the latest action.

The chart

In other political news, Malaysia’s opposition coalition has pulled off a shock election victory, and the ensuing uncertainty has whacked a U.S.-listed ETF that tracks Malaysian stocks.

The iShares MSCI Malaysia ETF EWM, +4.18% fell 6% yesterday for its largest daily drop since 2011.

The big upset ranks up there with Brexit and President Trump’s election win, says BNY Mellon Investment Management’s Aninda Mitra, according to a Wall Street Journal report. Heavy selling looms in Malaysian assets when markets there reopen next week.

See: Malaysian shocker ushers former leader Mahathir back to premiership

The buzz

In the wee hours today at Andrews Air Force Base, Trump called it a “great honor” to welcome back the Korean-American trio freed by North Korea. The development is viewed as a much-needed diplomatic win and a stepping stone to the upcoming summit with Kim Jong Un.

Read more: President hails release of Americans held by North Korea

And see: Trump says what matters is the peace, not the Nobel prize

Tech darlings news: Google’s GOOG, +1.27% GOOGL, +1.50% plan for Android TV sounds familiar, and regulators are investigating another fatal Tesla TSLA, +0.04% crash. Plus, Amazon AMZN, +0.21% just got left off the government’s first list of companies approved for package delivery by drones.

RBS RBS, +2.63% RBS, +3.11% plans to pay $4.9 billion in a settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice over its role in the mis-selling of toxic mortgage-backed securities.

Eli Lilly LLY, +1.31% says it will buy Armo Biosciences ARMO, +66.74% for $1.6 billion.

California is requiring solar panels on all new houses, making it more expensive to build in a state where housing is already extremely expensive.

Remember that big short by world’s largest hedge fund Bridgewater? Ray Dalio & Co.’s disclosed bets against European stocks have now reportedly declined by 80%.

The stunning fall for Anbang Insurance’s founder has ended with an 18-year prison term.

Geopolitical news: Iranian forces have fired rockets at Israeli targets, and Italy’s antiestablishment parties are close to forming a new government.

The economy

How’s inflation? A consumer price index climbed by less than expected, and a report on weekly jobless claims also arrived before the opening bell. No Fed officials are scheduled to give speeches.

Check out: MarketWatch’s Economic Calendar

Across the pond, it’s “Super Thursday” for the Bank of England, and the Brexit-battered pound GBPUSD, -0.5610% is falling after the central bank left its key interest rate unchanged.

Earnings

Booking Holdings (formerly Priceline) BKNG, -5.07% looks set for a down day after its quarterly results late yesterday, while Roku ROKU, +2.59% and 21st Century Fox FOXA, +1.29% appear on track for gains after their reports.

The companies posting earnings before the opening bell included Duke Energy DUK, +0.61% and AMC Networks AMCX, +6.32%  .

Nvidia’s NVDA, +1.22% earnings after the close likely will depend on gaming and data centers.

The quote

“A person who uses his state employment to financially enrich a company — and then goes to work for that company — certainly violates the spirit of the rule.” — Gary Dickey, a former general counsel for a Democratic Iowa governor, weighs in on an Apple-related dustup in the Hawkeye State.

He’s among those blasting Tim Albrecht — an aide to the current governor who got a job at Apple AAPL, +0.58% after helping promote a $208 million incentive package for the company.

Don’t miss: AT&T paid Trump lawyer Michael Cohen’s company for ‘insights’

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