The New Financial Rally — Is It Real?

I caught this at MarketBeat. Gives a sense of what is going on out there. Read more by following the link.

clipped from blogs.wsj.com The catalyst in Wednesday’s action appears to be word that President Bush will sign Congress’s housing bill, which solidifies support for the mortgage guarantors that, though, other major banks are gaining ground, including Wachovia Corp., which is up 6.2% after a 29% gain Tuesday on the back of a quarterly report which detailed major losses at the Charlotte-based firm. The banking stocks have put together a nice rally. In context, it seems mild. The Philadelphia Stock Exchange/KBW Bank Index was lately up 1% and has gained 41% in six sessions. The Securities and Exchange Commission’s decision to crack down on “naked” short-selling has contributed to the improvement, as have better-than-expected-but-still-sorta-lousy earnings from banks includingCitigroup Inc., Wachovia and Washington Mutual Inc.