The ASX has put on gains in 11 out of the past 12 days and shows no signs of slowing down
Just when the Australian market rally seemed to have hit a bump, the bulls are back in charge on the ASX.
The S&P/ASX 200 (ASX: XJO) (Index: ^AXJO) put on 13.4% in 2012, or a touch under 19%, including dividends (a lesson for investors there!) but it seems the bulls weren't content to take a break as the new year rolled around.
In the month of January, the ASX 200 advanced another 3.7%, in the process enjoying a 10-day winning streak, the longest in over a decade.
That streak ended yesterday, with the market giving up some of those gains after a soft day on Wall Street, but the red ink was to be short-lived, with the market jumping strongly back into the green today, the ASX 200 up almost 0.8% to start February with a bang.
In total, the market value of Australia's premier market index has increased by a whopping $75 billion in little more than 20 trading days at the beginning of 2013 – and it looks like there's more to come.
There are a string of companies hitting 52-week highs in the excitement, with 61 businesses hitting their yearly highs yesterday alone – and another bunch likely to achieve the same again today.
Foolish takeaway
Of course, all of these new highs are being recorded despite continued economic pessimism – just another reminder that investors should be ignoring the short-term and focussing on the underlying value of the businesses in which they invest… by the time the news is unambiguously positive, most of the gains will have been made and we'll be ever closer to the next downturn.
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