Dear Santa,

I realize it is a little early but I thought I would fire off this letter so you were well aware of my wishes. As you know I have been pretty good this year so I am hoping that what I ask for isn’t all that difficult. It sure has gotten bad down here and just about every trader feels like it will be coal in the stocking. The dollar has continued to plummet this year and I now know why you have always asked for cookies as your preferred gratuity.

It has been a pretty easy trade so far, buying up Gold (GLD), but I would like to now ask for a pretty strong bounce in the greenback. It seems to me like the trading elves have gotten pretty greedy here and need a dose of humility. I realize after any bounce it will continue to fall, and that is fine, but I wouldn’t mind seeing a little healthy correction sometime in the near future. It seems a little wacky I know, but I started a short of GLD ahead of this and will keep a tight stop in the event you decide otherwise. 

The financial stocks have really taken a beating recently and I know you will be surprised when you visit and hear that stocks like Citigroup (C), Bank of America (BAC) and Washington Mutual (WM) are trading at multi-year lows. It sure would be nice if you could orchestrate at least a temporary bottom in these stocks, not so I could buy them, although I have started the financial ETF (XLF), but so that the S&P, which is comprised of 20% financial exposure, could bounce into the holiday season, bringing some joy to all. Because I know you have been so kind to us in the past, I took the liberty of adding some SPY this morning and am hoping this letter gets to you relatively quickly before I am stopped out on a whoosh to August lows.

I would also ask that you grant a personal request. I realize most of the letters you receive this year will be for iPods, laptops, and other fancy computer electronics. I have heard that it has been some time since you upgraded your workshop and still favor wooden trucks, dolls and board games, but I am sure if you desire to do so, an arrangement can be made where you can outsource a majority of your production to Santa-friendly companies such as Apple (AAPL), Dell (DELL) and Microsoft (MSFT), which would definitely give these companies a boost if they snagged you as a customer. This would help the general technology sector, which has taken a beating in the last several days. I am eyeing some of these companies and would just love to see them pop into year end.

Last but not least, Santa, I realize you are probably not too happy with our financial state of affairs down here and there won’t be much joy for many families this holiday season as they grapple with just how to pay their mortgages and fear losing their homes. While I realize this subject can be a hefty debate around the workshop, I simply ask that you bring them a little something nice for the holidays so they can have a smile on their face.

I know we have some tough times ahead and also know this is all part of economic development and progression but would greatly appreciate your help with my requests.

I hope Mrs. Claus is doing well, and as always I hope you travel safe this holiday season. Give my best to Rudolph and the other reindeer and I look forward to seeing you soon.

-Quint