CNBC Stocks Still Rattled by Signs The Economy Remains Weak

Consumer weakness—as shown by Tuesday's retail sales numbers—serves as a reminder that the economy still poses a danger to the stock market.

Investors otherwise in a good mood over the relative health of the financial sector retreated a bit, signaling that while a fairly firm market bottom may have been put in, the race to the top won't be a picnic either.

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Retail sales dropped an unexpected 1.1 percent, leading to a negative day on Wall Street. Even comments from President Obama and Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke that the economy was showing signs of recovering didn't help investors' mood.

That the selloff was not more dramatic may have provided some encouragement that the market can withstand bad news. Nonetheless, there was a pervasive feeling that there's work to be done before investors can feel safe again.

"We've had various things happen that in the past several months would have caused a (major) selloff and that's not happening," says Richard Sparks, senior analyst at Schaeffer's Investment Research in Cincinnati. "By the same token I don't see us at least in the near term jumping back up to 10,000 on the Dow—which would suggest to me that we're in a grind phase." more...