Fiscal Cliff Worries Year-End Markets

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By Trey Thoelcke Published
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Only a few days remain for the U.S. markets to sell off because of fiscal cliff worries. There are actually just two. Volume will be light because so many traders have gone on vacation. Sometimes, thin volume magnifies fluctuations. The markets are in for a wild ride.

The S&P 500 has traded down most of the past five days, with a recovery at the end of the period. Rumors of détente between the White House and congressional Republicans encouraged traders, but the chance for cooperation yesterday turned out not to be true. The president will meet with congressional leaders today. If the meeting ends without a hint of a solution, markets will sell down at a torrid pace.

Those investors who have taken time off will be left to do their selling on January 3, when the rush to ditch the markets could increase with the volume created by the rested and tanned crowd.

Douglas A. McIntyre

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About the Author Trey Thoelcke →

Trey has been an editor and author at 24/7 Wall St. for more than a decade, where he has published thousands of articles analyzing corporate earnings, dividend stocks, short interest, insider buying, private equity, and market trends. His comprehensive coverage spans the full spectrum of financial markets, from blue-chip stalwarts to emerging growth companies.

Beyond 24/7 Wall St., Trey has created and edited financial content for Benzinga and AOL's BloggingStocks, contributing additional hundreds of articles to the investment community. He previously oversaw the 24/7 Climate Insights site, managing editorial operations and content strategy, and currently oversees and creates content for My Investing News.

Trey's editorial expertise extends across multiple publishing environments. He served as production editor at Dearborn Financial Publishing and development editor at Kaplan, where he helped shape financial education materials. Earlier in his career, he worked as a writer-producer at SVE. His freelance editing portfolio includes work for prestigious clients such as Sage Publications, Rand McNally, the Institute for Supply Management, the American Library Association, Eggplant Literary Productions, and Spiegel.

Outside of financial journalism, Trey writes fiction and has been an active member of the writing community for years, overseeing a long-running critique group and moderating workshop sessions at regional conventions. He lives with his family in an old house in the Midwest.

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