The “Heat Map” is indicating the U.S. stock market is in good shape ASSUMING no international crisis. We have identified one potential international crisis hot spot:
Iraq and the “powder keg” in the Middle East. On a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being the highest level of crisis, I rate this Iraq situation as a 3 at this time. This is unchanged from last week even in light of the downing of the Malaysian Airlines jet and the Israeli/Gaza conflict. Risks continue to lurk, and they deserve our ongoing attention.