nasdaq

Markets hate uncertainty more than bad news, which is one reason they've swooned recently. But technical analysis looks at the patterns deeper than the daily news, and charts suggest a real bear ahead.

A resilient performance by Japanese shares helped stocks in Europe and the U.S. Thursday, while the yen pulled back from a record high against the dollar amid expectations that finance chiefs from the world's industrialized nations will discuss how to ease the currency's rise.

The economy has had more than its share of trouble lately: Japan's earthquake comes on top of rising oil and food prices, political turmoil in the Middle East and a crop of government austerity measures. But investing opportunities lie hidden behind the bad news.

The technical signs suggest we're at a crucial point for stocks: Either a decisive rise or a dramatic fall is coming. And if you're the type to dismiss technical analysis as unscientific voodoo, you're missing the point: It's not about pattern matching, it's about human psychology.

With Mideast turmoil chasing oil higher and stocks lower, it's a good time to check the charts and see what price levels seem to be key "lines in the sand." Some indicators have been warning for months that the steep rally was preparing to reverse.

The fabled New York Stock Exchange isn't what it used to be. Today's NYSE Euronext has lost a huge volume of trading to upstart computerized exchanges in recent years, and scandals have tarnished its luster. Now, Germany's Deutsche Boerse wants to buy control of it. I say: "Sell!"

NIVS IntelliMedia Technology Group, whose consumer-electronic products and brands are widely known in China and marketed in some 80 countries, flies under the radar in the U.S. But it's well positioned to cash in on rising consumer spending in China.

The frightening revelations over the past few days that hackers had penetrated certain systems at the Nasdaq stock exchange are reverberating throughout the financial world. Did cyber-crooks gain access to inside information that can used to reap ill-gotten gains?

Unless you're ultra-wealthy or willing to chance the vagaries of the secondary markets, you can't invest yet in hot social networking companies like Facebook, Zynga or Groupon. But soon there may be an alternative: a new fund called NeXt BDC Capital that will take stakes in top-quality venture-backed firms like those.

Facebook and many other tech startups have realized that the hassles and headaches of an IPO in the U.S. aren't always worthwhile. Thanks to willing venture capitalists and private investors, it's easier than ever for tech companies to avoid the lure of going public.