Superstar On Snow:Lindsey Vonn Takes Fourth World Cup

Americans are feeling much pride this weekend in their champion skier Lindsey Vonn.She captured her fourth World Cup overall title at Are,Sweden with a win in the women's giant slalom race Friday.Her points total of 1808 puts her in rarefied territory.The great Austrian Hermann Meier-the Hermannator-holds the all-time season record of 2,000 points.
There are five more events to go this season.Vonn said she is exhausted,but always excited for a race.Mentally,it feels like the first week of the season.
Friday's win was her tenth of the season,and the 52nd of her career.No other American has won more World Cup overall titles.She is 27 years old,and the new trophy can only increase an already prominent profile in the advertising world.
While cognizant of her own achievement,Vonn is quick to give credit to the other skiers on the World Cup tour.It's a balanced perspective that has served her well.
The stock market also won this week on a better than expected employment report and news of a short term success in managing the Euro debt crisis,with the S&P 500 Index advancing 0.09% on the week.On the year,the S&P is up 9.01.
Next week traders will assess inflation figures;industrial production;retail sales and consumer sentiment;the Federal Reserve interest rate decision;as well as the Empire State and Philly Fed manufacturing surveys.
The S&P futures rose 6.20 on Friday evening,while bond index futures lost value.

Knicks Lose;Market Logs Modest Gain

Jeremy Lin could not get his team to victory Friday night as the New York Knicks lost to the New Orleans Hornets at Madison Square Garden.The 89-85 loss breaks a 7-game winning streak that saw the celebrated point guard emerge from media obscurity.The full glare of the spotlight will be on Lin Sunday as the Knicks play on national television.The game will be carried by ABC beginning at 1 pm Eastern.
Commentator and NBA legend Magic Johnson was critical of Lin's performance.He's got to get a better understanding of the point guard position,Johnson feels.You've got to turn to Amare Stoudemire,who scored 26 points on the night along with Lin.Lin's job is how to win tonight,turning the ball over to Carmelo Anthony and Stoudemire.He must not get caught up in the hype.This was great for Jeremy Lin tonight.It's not all gonna be well.I just want him to go back and watch the films and get better for Sunday,Johnson counseled.
Lin turned the ball over to the Hornets nine times-the worst in his career.
The market did well this week,adding a modest 1.38%,or 8.24 on the year.Positive manufacturing reports from the Empire State and Philly Fed led the way,and hope for a Greek debt deal also assisted.
Next week will be conditioned by the Greek outcome,as well as earnings reprts from Wal-Mart,Home Depot and Hewlett-Packard.In additon,home sales and consumer sentiment numbers will be released.
The S&P futures added 4.89 ahead of the long Presidents' Day weekend,and bond index futures declined.
Wal-Mart(WMT),Home Depot(HD),Hewlett-Packard(HPQ)

Market Has Excellent Week

The stock market excelled this week,with all industry groups coming out ahead as Europe was relatively quiet and Google reported strong quarterly results.For the week,the Dow was up 4.88,while the NASDAQ surged 7.60 and the S&P added 5.98%.On the year,however,the broadly based S&P remains down 2.63.Volume was light this week,showing a lack of conviction behind the good numbers.
Excelling on the PGA Champion's Tour of senior golf pros this year is American Tom Lehman,who tops the Charles Schwab Cup point standings.Lehman has three wins and 11 top ten finishes so far this season,which ends in three weeks in San Francisco.This week,the Tour is at the AT&T Championship at TPC San Antonio's Canyon Course.Fred Couples and Steve Lowery led the field with first round seven under par 65s on a hot,dry Friday.
Next week's financial calendar bulges with data and blue chip earnings.The Empire State and Philly Fed reports,together with housing data and earnings submissions by IBM,Goldman Sachs,Apple,Intel and American Express,will keep the analysts busy all week.
The S&P futures climbed a substantial 21.30 Friday evening,while longer maturity bond index futures declined.
Google(GOOG)

Watson Aces Sixth Hole,Stocks Down on Week

Tom Watson,one of golf's leading lights at 71 years old,showed a flash of old brilliance in second round play at The Open Championship Friday.Watson hit a hole in one at the sixth,the fifteenth ace of his career and his second at a major.He also aced at the 1980 U.S. Open.Watson finished the round at an even 70,four strokes off the lead.Phil Mickelson was three strokes behind at one under par.
Fellow American Lucas Glover and Northern Ireland's Darren Clarke shared the lead at four under par.The tournament is being held at the Royal St.George's Golf Club in Sandwich,England.
The stock market did not score an ace this week,suffering modest declines on the endless debt concern as well as unemployment hangover from last Friday and a weak Empire State manufacturing report,coupled with poor consumer confidence.The Dow fell 1.4,while the NASDAQ lost 2.5 and the S&P slipped 2.1.The Jefferies-Reuters CRB commodities index edged up 0.5.
Next week features data on existing home sales,housing starts and Mid-Atlantic manufacturing,the Philly Fed report.The S&P futures were up 8.20 Friday evening,and bond index futures also rose.Oil futures were up 1.55 at 97.24 a barrel,and gold futures rose 0.80 to 1590.10 an ounce.
Update:Darren Clarke,who will turn 43 next month,took sole possession of the lead in Saturday's third round of The Open Championship,shooting a 69 five under par.Young Americans Dustin Johnson and Rickie Fowler were second and third on the leader board,respectively.Clarke only missed a few greens in the challenging weather conditions,and was the only player to make birdie on the first hole.
The crowd favorite,Clarke had previously won at Majorca,Spain on the European tour this season.Phil Mickelson was at even par Saturday,five shots back of the lead in seventh place.

S&P In Correction's Shadow

The S&P remains in correction mode this weekend,being down 10.6% from its April high.For the week,the index fell 4.2,while the Dow stumbled 4.0 and the NASDAQ crumbled 5.0.Yes,the Eurozone debt crisis was a fundamental concern;but it wasn't just Europe.Unemployment claims here rose sharply and unexpectedly,up 471,000.Two important manufacturing reports,the Philly Fed and the Empire State,showed a decline in new orders,and the index of Leading Economic Indicators was down as well.
In sum,the recovery went on vacation this week,leaving investors behind to contemplate a return to serious worry.The idea of a double dip recession had been receding this year to almost invisibility,but has a renewed credence now.Cash is looking more attractive than it has in some time as we grope our way through a new maze of uncertainty.Indeed,it seems the path of wisdom until the fear index settles back at least somewhat.
The futures are a mute equation.Both the equity and bond futures are up,indicating confusion about what lies ahead.Baseball is simpler.Baltimore led Washington tonight in inter league play,while Virginia was topping Miami in college ball.