Career News 24/7: STOCKS TANK, EUROPE CRUMBLES: Here's What You Need To Know, June 25, 2012

Monday, June 25, 2012

STOCKS TANK, EUROPE CRUMBLES: Here's What You Need To Know, June 25, 2012

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Monday, June 25, 2012

Markets took a beating today.

First the scoreboard:

Dow: 12,502, -138.1, -1.0%
S&P 500: 1,313, -21.3, -1.6%
NASDAQ: 2,836, -56.2, -1.9%

And now the top stories:

Negative headlines flew out of Europe, sending stock markets down around the world. Reports suggested that this week's EU leaders' summit would be a big disappointment as German chancellor Angela Merkel remains inflexible to the requests of its EU neighbors. Adding to all of the uncertainty was the unexpected resignation of Greek Finance Minister Vassilis Rapanos. SEE ALSO: The 15 Maps That Explain The Entire World >
Billionaire investor George Soros has lately been the most vocal critic of Merkel and her handling of the euro crisis. Tragically, Soros thinks she has been "acting in good faith."
Regarding Soros' plan to save Europe, BI's Joe Weisenthal sums it up nicely: "Soros wants Europe (using the ECB and Germany as a backstop) to take the risk of a sovereign blowup completely off the table. Investors should not have to worry about Spain or Italy going belly up. In exchange for governments getting this guarantee, a scheme would be put in place to financially penalize governments that do not adequately reform." Unfortunately, Soros believes that Europe has just three days before it crosses the point of no return.
New home sales jumped 7.6 percent to 369k in May. This annualized rate was much higher than the 347k that economists were looking for. This represents a two-year high.
The June Dallas Fed survey also pleasantly surprised everyone. The index came in at 5.8, well above the -2.0 reading that economists were looking for. This was a marked improvement from last month's reading of -5.1.
The major commodities moved in opposite directions today. Gold rallied today, which got the gold bulls arguing that the yellow metal was indeed a safe-haven asset. Ben Davies of Hinde Capital thinks that the yellow metal can eventually hit $6,000. Don't Miss Richard Russell's Ode To Gold >
The southeastern U.S. is prepping for Tropical Storm Debby. And when storm season comes around people expect energy prices to rise given the refining industry's presence in the region. However, an energy analyst told us that the storm was just weak enough to not disrupt output, while being disruptive enough to keep some drivers on the road. In other words, supply is expected to remain steady while demand falls. This of course would be unfavorable for prices. But, good for consumers.
DON'T MISS: We Had Drinks With The Biggest Players In The Shipping World, And This Is What They Told Us >