The Market On Thursday

  Good morning. It is 46 degrees and sunny here in the Upper Hudson Valley. Sunshine is predicted for today and tomorrow. Well last night's first game of the season was a disaster for my Knicks. It was so bad that I actually had to turn it off. The Knicks were not just bad, they were horrible. The Chicago Bulls literally ate them alive. Today they fly to Cleveland to get trounced once again in tonight's match-up. It's not our year Knicks fans, it's not our year.

  At 8:50 a.m. ET futures are moderately lower and the price of oil per barrel is down. The market is poised to open lower.

  There are so many things happening in the economic realm at the moment, one wonder how anyone can make sense of it all. Fresh third quarter GDP number came in this morning with the US economy allegedly growing at a rate of 3.5% - whatever the hell that truly means, seriously it's a very profoundly flawed measure. Nevertheless, it's a solid number. First time layoff numbers for the last week were at 287,000 which still suggests an improving job market. Then the world as always is partially collapsing under the weight of immense hubris and greed. Plus quantitative easing is now officially over. Add it all up and the weekend can't come soon enough.

CNN: Stocks: 4 things to know before the open

Investors are watching various European economic figures coming in on unemployment, inflation and consumer confidence.