If there is anything more than 250,000 jobs then everything reverses and all bets about a pause at 3.25 percent are off,

I don’t see any last-day-of-the-year rebound. I think it will be more of the same tomorrow.

Right now, the transparency we had with (former Chairman Alan) Greenspan is gone. We’re trying to get some semblance of which way the Fed is going to go.

We’ve come off a phenomenal July. And we’ve seen a real reversal in the stocks that were leading the market, with economically-sensitive names doing well.

We’re certainly on solid footing on an economic front.

When you have strong growth and low wages, the chief beneficiary is corporate America.

But the key here is really going to be guidance. Everyone is looking for signs of the rolling over of profit growth, although not as much as the Fed or higher energy prices might indicate.

The employment report is one of the key indicators for figuring out if the consumer can hold on. We’re trying to transition this economy away from the consumer, but this potential war is getting in...

Between leading indicators and subdued inflation expectations, it’s really set a nice backdrop for the market today,

After looking at the employment numbers, there is no doubt in my mind that the measured language remains. Knowing what we know now, there’s no pause in 2005.

Over the last four years the Fed has played the part of a surrealistic painter, creating a dreamy backdrop with generously low interest rates.

Investing in a mutual fund is like riding in a bus; your progress depends in large part on other people and what they’re doing. An exchange-traded fund is closer to riding in your own car.

The bond market is still behind the inflation curve. The inflation story continues to chip away at our economy and it doesn’t seem to be getting any weaker.

We’re still getting more negatives on the economic front today, and this is a period where we’re really looking for economic growth to avoid a Fed rate cut.

Economists are expecting a gradual slowdown in economic growth paired with a slowdown in inflation. That will allow the Federal Reserve to wind up its rate-hiking campaign.

Investors have their rally caps on for year end, and we’re doing it with speculation. With a good inflation report and strong growth, it seems to be the perfect elixir for Wall Street.

Gold is creating a psychological dark cloud over the market. With gold on the upside and inflation fears, the numbers we get tomorrow will clarify some of these concerns.

Investors are taking stock of earnings and questioning whether they should be as optimistic as they are.

The projected job growth number would mark a pretty strong snapback from the previous month.

We can’t believe any trend right now, until the issues tied to this conflict are resolved. Unfortunately, in this kind of market there’s going to be no clear direction. We’re going to be in this...

This deal makes sense for both companies. Bank of New York has been expanding in the custodial business and doing a fine job. This shift out of distribution is an ideal fit for J.P. Morgan.

You needed to be a meteorologist to make money in this market.

This lends some comfort to the situation. In spite of slight economic weakness, the Fed sees no need to change its strategy. It’s also not going to shut down the economy too quickly.

The GDP upgrade could put more pressure on the Fed. At the same time, we’re losing ground with the consumer… From the perspective of today’s market, it’s a one-two punch.

The world assumes the Fed will raise the rates by a quarter percentage point, that’s a non-event. It’s what the statement lays out about the pace of future rate hikes that will be important, because...

Accounting concerns continue to dominate the market. We’re going to be seeing this ‘Prove it to me’ investing for a while.

With light volume, we’re going to bounce around like a ping-pong ball. I wouldn’t take any moves this week as a clear indication of anything.

The market is starting to shift back to quality stocks.

Generally, Wal-Mart can give real-time data faster than the government, because they can just pull this off their cash registers.

I don’t view the market as risky or dangerous even in spite of more Fed tightening. We have enough value in U.S. and international growth stocks. What’s holding stocks back right now is uncertainty about...

There’s really not a lot of information here to work with, and I think the market’s taking a rest. We’re still a few weeks away from first-quarter earnings, so all you have to focus on...

We have some very ugly numbers. You can argue that the ISM is still backward looking, and maybe even the jobless claims, but eventually we’re going to need some evidence that the economy is improving....

I would infer from the statement that the Fed is somewhat more sanguine on the economic recovery. Perhaps they believe that $55 oil prices are, at least for the time being, something of the past...

You have to look at all the options you have available, from A to Z.

It was probably one of the quietest days of the year. We started the day with good news on weaker oil [prices] but bad news on housing sales.

I would not expect investors and traders to make any big bets ahead of the number tomorrow. It clues us in on growth in the economy but also inflation.

Any number Wal-Mart gives is tantamount to an economic indicator,

The market was dealt a one-two punch.

Any bad news can throw us, and the jobs report was perceived as bad news, seen as a sign that the recovery is fragile, but that’s not necessarily true. In the last two recessions, a...

For the fee-based deal business, it’s still a favorable environment. But they also have a huge consumer credit exposure.

All of those things conspired to create a difficult environment for stocks.

Earnings are still the engine and the market is not overvalued, but the environment we are in is creating pressure.

It seems like the market is obsessing on this bond market fallout.

Confidence is slipping, manufacturing is slowing, and even with today’s jobs report, the employment trend is still negative. The bet here is that the Federal Reserve will have to stop raising rates in order to...

People are taking some comfort in results and a feeling that the economy is getting better, but there’s still some caution. We need to see more evidence of a sustainable recovery. We need companies to...

Raising rates by more than 25 basis points would shock the market so much that the Fed’s credibility would vanish,

Maybe now there’s enough fear out there to form a base to rally again.

The tick up in oil prices hurts, but history has shown that interest rates have a much bigger impact on the stock market than oil. And looking at the ISM services number, you’re seeing the...

It’s increasingly believed among participants that the Fed will skip the next meeting, and possibly one more by the end of the year.

In both fees and commissions, they’re in good shape.