Tom Hanna's Lifestream

The Pending Home Sales Index fell, but there were two positive notes: the index ended up 2.4 points (2.8%) higher than expected and the previous month's index was revised upward. The reported drop was 0.7 points, but the drop from the initial September number was only 0.3%. Though the market seemed to repeat the pattern of shrugging off good news from the housing market again Tuesday, the picture was muddled by both a less than crystal clear housing improvement, other events and some natural profit taking. A good report on mortgage applicaionts Wednesday could be powerful fuel for the stock market. Overnight trading points to an upward trend in the roller coaster, with US stock market futures up just under 1%, Asian stocks trading higher for both the Nikkei and Hang Seng indexes, and oil futures up more than 3%. The dollar is up against the yen, down against the Canadian dollar, euro and pound. [1:10 AM Eastern]Yesterday's Economic NumbersPending Home Sales - October 2008 Pending Home Sales Index: 88.9 Monthly Change: Down 0.7 Yearly Change: Down 1%Japan’s Leading Index plunged 2.5% Leading Index: Down 2.5% Coincident Index: Down 0.5