After putting up solid double-digit gains this year, the case for the stock market in 2011 is more of the same, says Teddy Weisberg, a veteran trader on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYX) and founder of Seaport Securities.

"We're going to continue to climb this proverbial wall of worry, because the problems have not gone away," Weisberg says. "The unemployment numbers are stubbornly high, the housing market is stubbornly weak, and I don't see anything dramatic changing there."

But at the same time, the U.S. economy is gradually and sluggishly improving, setting up inflation -- and higher interest rates at some point later this year. Weisberg says he has no idea when the Federal Reserve will move to raise short-term rates, but the smart traders will be those who jump on the opportunity to do some serious bargain-hunting, he says.

"The U.S. economy is going to be better than most people think, and that has a lot of people worried because of the threat of higher rates. But I think it's a positive, not a negative, because it means growth," Weisberg says. "And when higher rates come, it's going to slam stocks, and that's going to be a great buying opportunity."

For more on Weisberg's outlook for stocks in the new year, see the video above.