May 27, 2009 (FinancialWire) (By Dr. Joe Duarte) — The S&P SPDR ETF (NYSE: SPY) managed to end up higher on 5-26 while the SPDR Gold ETF (NYSE: GLD) also paired its losses, making for an interesting day on Wall Street.

All looked like gloom and doom Tuesday morning, as North Korea’s nuclear test and the usual battery of economic indicators looked glum. But a surprisingly robust consumer confidence number changed everything and stocks rallied while gold paired its losses.

And although the stock market grabbed the headlines, it was the action in gold that was most interesting. Inflation seems intuitive with global governments printing money like there is no tomorrow in order to keep their respective economies from collapse. Yet, gold prices fell over $16 in overnight trading before Wall Street opened on 5-26, despite nuclear saber rattling by North Korea, the kind of event that usually leads to a flight toward gold. The gold bugs answered the call, though, a very bullish development if you’re a fan of the yellow metal.

So what gives? The conspiracy theorists will tell you that central banks sold gold in order to keep the alarm bells from sounding with regard to North Korea’s nuclear testing. And they may be right. It could also have also been that yet another hedge fund was in trouble and had to sell what it could in order to raise capital. Or it might have been the thin markets with the U.S. off the grid for Memorial Day.

What should matter to traders, though, is that gold came back. And that’s a sign of demand remaining steady, and that even though there may be some selling out there, the buyers are coming in on the dips. That’s something to consider as the money presses around the world continue to grind on in hyperdrive. (Disclosure: Dr. Duarte owns shares in GLD.)

The Investrend Earnings Calendar features AutoZone (NYSE: AZO), expected at $2.89 versus $2.49 a year ago; Cracker Barrel (NASDAQ: CBRL), expected at $0.45 versus $0.46 a year ago; Dollar Tree (NASDAQ: DLTR), expected at $0.59 versus $0.48 a year ago; Jo-Ann Stores (NYSE: JAS), expected at $0.11 versus $0.12 a year ago.

The Investrend Economics Calendar lists Existing Home Sales for April (10 a.m.), EIA Petroleum Inventories (10:30 a.m.), Treasury auctions 5-year notes (1 p.m.).

The Investrend Events Calendar showcases CSCO, CA, JNPR, MU at Cowen and Company Technology Media & Telecom Conference; CVX Shareholders Meeting; CY, CSCO, ENTR, TKLC at Barclay’s Capital Wireline and Wireless Conference; ESRX Shareholders Meeting; HIG 2009 Annual Shareholders Meeting; HOC, HEP, PXD, DNR at WJB Capital Group Dallas Energy Bus Tour; MCD Corporation Shareholders Meeting; TSO, BHI, DYN, SII at Deutsche Bank Securities Energy & Utilities Conference; XOM Annual Shareholders Meeting.

The Investrend Money Index is an indicator of the depth of market direction or indirection. While not always including the same stocks, the NYSE/NASDAQ 50 Most Actives indicate the direction in which the mass of money is flowing. Last session’s trading showed 40 advancers versus nine decliners and one unchanged. Advancers were led by Ultra Real Estate Pr (NYSE: URE) up 10.98%, Financial Bull 3x (NYSE: FAS) up 10.59%, Qwest Comm Intl Inc (NYSE: Q) up 7.98%, Netapp, Inc. (NASDAQ: NTAP) up 7.96%, Ultra Financials Pro (NYSE: UYG) up 7.14%, Us Bancorp (NYSE: USB) up 6.79%, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) up 6.76%, Research In Motion Limited (NASDAQ: RIMM) up 6.55%, Jp Morgan Chase Co (NYSE: JPM) up 6.19%, Marvell Technology Group, Ltd. (NASDAQ: MRVL) up 6.02%. Decliners followed Ultrashort Real Esta (NYSE: SRS) down 11.09%, Financial Bear 3x (NYSE: FAZ) down 10.79%, Ultrashort Financial (NYSE: SKF) down 7.58%, Ps Utlrshrt Qqq (NYSE: QID) down 7.25%.

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Quote of the Day: “The right to be heard does not automatically include the right to be taken seriously.” Hubert H. Humphrey

Today is: National Senior Health & Fitness Day.

Happy Birthday: Jay Gould, Wild Bill Hickok, Hubert H. Humphrey, Dashiell Hammett, Vincent Price, Sam Snead, Christopher Lee, Henry Kissinger, Sumner Redstone, Tony Hillerman, Harlan Ellison, Lee Meriwether, Ramsey Lewis, Louis Gossett Jr., Peri Gilpin, Todd Bridges.

Today in History: Peter Stuyvesant was inaugurated director-general of New Netherland in 1647. A bubonic plague outbreak began in 1907 in San Francisco, California. The Ford Motor Company ceased manufacturing the Ford Model T in 1927 and began to retool plants to make Ford Model A’s. The U.S. Federal Securities Act was signed into law in 1933, requiring the registration of securities with the Federal Trade Commission. In California, the Golden Gate Bridge opened in 1937 to pedestrian traffic, creating a vital link between San Francisco and Marin County. DC Comics published in 1939 its second superhero in Detective Comics #27: Batman, one of the most topical comic book superheroes of all time.

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