Market Rockets on Toxic Debt Plan, Housing News

I've always said I wouldn't become like a liberal and cheer every time something bad happens to the president I disagree with and come up with some lame excuse every time something good does. If we pull out of this, I'll be the first to credit Obama.

One day (or week) doesn't mean anything of consequence but it sure beats the alternative:

March 23 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. stocks rallied, capping the market’s steepest two-week gain since 1938, as investors speculated the Obama administration’s plan to rid banks of toxic assets will spur growth and investor Mark Mobius said a new bull market has begun. Treasuries and the dollar fell.

Bank of America Corp. and Citigroup Inc. both soared at least 19 percent as the U.S. Treasury said it will finance as much as $1 trillion in purchases of distressed assets. Exxon Mobil Corp. and Chevron Corp. jumped more than 6.7 percent after oil rose to an almost four-month high. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index extended its rebound from a 12-year closing low on March 9 to 22 percent as all 10 of its main industry groups advanced.

Here's the housing data:

US existing home sales saw a surprise rebound in February, rising 5.1 percent to a stronger-than-expected annual pace of 4.72 million units, the National Association of Realtors reported Monday.

The rise marked a hopeful sign for a sector hurting for more than two years, but the industry group cautioned that sales remain weak and prices continued to fall.

The national median existing-home price for all housing types was 165,400 dollars in February, down 15.5 percent from a year ago.

The level of home sales was well above expectations of an annual pace of 4.45 million but it remained down 4.6 percent from a year ago.

Good news considering we're at about the lowest point we can be at and (hopefully) the only way to go is up. But, until the average American feels confident and job markets start showing some life, I'm not exactly tossing confetti and planning any major improvements on my house.

All in all a good day. Let's hope it continues into tomorrow and next week.

Update: Er, well, I was feeling good but now, not so much.