What's Going On Here?

If you've been listening to the news lately, you've heard a chorus of commentators, pundits and gurus all telling us that we are witnessing the end of times, the pillars of the Temple are crumbling, recession (the dreaded 'R' word) is looming and we'd better hunker down for hard times.

Really? My friend the stock broker claims we are at the beginning of a bull market. And indeed, this morning the Asian and European markets are up sharply following the trend of the last few days. Could it be that all these investors have not been listening to the news? It is said that markets climb a wall of worry, and there is certainly a lot of worry out there. It is also said that bull markets take off when the mood is most pessimistic. And it is said that it is always darkest before the dawn. (Is that really true?) Chicken Little, feeling a drop of rain on his head, runs around shouting that the sky is falling.

So what will it be? The pundits or my friend the broker? Take your pick.