Sighting: 153 Days and Counting

The Dow has climbed nearly 18% since July. This, of course, is good news for investors. However, many investors are starting to get anxious wondering if a major selloff is looming ahead. According to USA Today, the Dow has gone 153 days without a 2% selloff, dating back to July 14th. More impressively, the Dow hasn't had a 10% correction in 992 sessions! What does all this mean? Well, that depends on who you ask.

The Bears Outlook: "The market is very extended, and the likelihood of a pullback or correction sometime over the next few months is fairly likely," says Mark Arbeter, chief technical strategist at Standard & Poor's. InvesTech Research reports that the current bull is more than 4 years old and more than a year older than the median-length bull.

The Bulls Outlook: "The strength (and) persistence of this rally and the absence of a pullback on a medium-term basis is bullish if you believe the stock market is an intelligent forecasting tool," Rod Smyth, of Wachovia Securities, says. Jim Paulsen, of Wells Capital, says stocks are benefiting from massive liquidity chasing investments, bond yields below 5%, strong corporate profits and huge stimulus from emerging economies around the globe.

Whether a selloff is around the corner or not is more a guess than anything else. You can find compelling arguments supporting both sides. In any event, it's important to keep in mind that this debate is over the direction of the market over the short-term; over the long term, the market will almost certainly move higher.
— Bull and bear quotes from USA Today

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