Weekend Linkage – April 19, 2009

It finally feels like spring.

We took the kids to Branch Brook Park near Newark yesterday for the Cherry Blossom Festival, the first time in more than seven years. In the past, we usually took our children to DC in early April to see the cherry flowers, but this year we decided to stay close to home.

It was a gorgeous day yesterday and the flowers are at their peak, but you can hardly tell that the site has the second most cherry trees in the nation, as it claims. Nonetheless, the kids had a pretty good time.

Market Recap

U.S. stock market stretched its weekly gain to sixth last week, fueled by unexpected profit reports from major banks such as Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, and Citigroup. For the week, the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 0.59% to 8,131.33, the S&P 500 gained 1.52% to 869.60, and the Nasdaq added 1.24% to 1,673.07. Since reaching 12-year low on March 9, the S&P 500 has surged more than 29% in the past 6 weeks, the steepest gain since 1938. Crude oil ended the week 3.66% lower to $50.33 a barrel. Gold dropped 1.67% to $866.80/ounce while silver plunged 3.90% to $11.83 an ounce.

Weekend Readings

• How to Pay Less Income Tax @ Brip Blap
• Do You Haggle? How To Negotiate A Price @ The Digerati Life
• Financial Literacy Month Continues and Thoughts on Emergency Savings @ Generation X Finance
• The Three Most Influential Lessons My Parents Taught Me @ Frugal Dad
• My Tenant: “I’ve Lost My Job and I Can’t Pay You…” @ Lazy Man and Money
• Is it Time to Switch to a Fixed Rate Mortgage? Million Dollar Journey
• Baby Tips on Life @ Money Smart Life
• Did You Miss the Stock Market Rally? @ My Dollar Plan
• Discovering Your Financial Priorities @ Man Vs. Debt
• 12 Things Every Teenager Needs To Know About Money (And How To Teach Them) @ Free From Broke

Carnivals

• Carnival of Pecuniary Delights No. 3 – The Money Box Edition @ Miss Thrifty
• Money Hacks Carnival #60: The File Your Tax Return Edition @ Consumer Boomer
• Festival of Frugality – Last Minute Edition @ Stretchy Dollar
• Carnival of Personal Finance #200 – Edition of Mini Accomplishments @ Money Ning