Bull Market, Bear Market; Potash and Oil (IPI)

David Gaffen at the Wall Street Journal's MarketBeat blog is on a roll with a three-beat today:

1) A Bull Rally or Bear Rally?

Is this rally for real?
Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average ended at its highest close since Jan. 10, and the Standard & Poor’s 500-stock index ended Friday at its best closing level since Feb. 1. In recent days, a growing number of stocks are reaching new highs than those reaching new lows, and volatility is receding, suggesting growing comfort among investors with additional risk. However, the stop-and-go pattern of stock advancement suggests a tentative approach from the investing community, leaving strategists divided as to whether this recent surge marks the beginning of a new bull run, or just another bear-market rally....MORE

2) Crude Oil and the Dollar: Vicious Circle

Joanna Slater has this report on how oil is affecting the dollar…and vice-versa.

This morning oil scraped out a new intraday high above $118 a barrel. The euro has reached an all-time high against the dollar, breaking through the $1.60 level to $1.6002. What’s the connection?>>>MORE

3) Fertilize and Water Daily for Stock Growth

Investors looking to jump into the newest hot public offering used to go ga-ga over technology. Now, they look at fertilizer.

Shares of Intrepid Potash Inc., the largest producer of potash in the U.S., jumped 56% in their first day of trading as investors gobbled up shares of the agricultural play, giving it the best one-day return for any U.S. initial public offering larger than $10 million in 2008. The company priced 30 million shares of stock at $32 a share, higher than originally expected....MORE