The Week Ahead: The holiday season kicks off with retailers expecting good holiday sales, but rising fuel costs and credit restrictions may curtail some of the forecasts. The markets will be deciphering reports like the Consumer Confidence Index on Tuesday and the Fed's beige book numbers on Wednesday. Look for the durable goods and existing home sales as well. Thursday brings new home sales figures and a Ben Bernanke speech. Friday, personal income and spending numbers are out along with the Chicago Purchasing Manager's Index.

Stocks to Watch: Shares of Air France-KLM (AKH) moved sharply higher after their 2nd quarter profits almost doubled with sales up near 6%. Massey Energy Group (MEE) got a lift after a higher court overturned a $76 million award against the company. Broadcom Corp. (BRCM) started moving up out of an oversold condition when it reported it will not seek a new trial in the Qualcomm patent infringement case. Transocean Inc. (RIG) will list its new shares from the completion of its Global Santa Fe acquisition to the S&P 500 at the close on Monday replacing the old shares.

Special Note: The Dow Industrials closed below its lowest close in August last week, but this was not confirmed by the S&P 500 or the NASDAQ. Nonetheless, it is noteworthy because if compared to some of the major worldwide indexes, some confirmations do appear such as the Nikkei Index of Japan and the Swiss index. The significance of this low if broken by the broader markets is that it will be the first major step towards a confirmed bear market. If the near term rally fails to make major headway, the August lows could be the dividing line for bulls and bears. Commentary provided by Barry Ward, Registered Principal, NobleTrading.com, Inc.

Commentary provided by Barry Ward, Registered Principal, NobleTrading.com, Inc.
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