By Clyde Noel

Investors are slowly warming up to the market again, because better-than-expected corporate earnings are beginning to appear. The Iraq conflict is over, and crude oil is back down to around $27 a barrel — where it was before the war.

Last week the Dow Jones industrial average gained 0.26 percent, the Nasdaq composite climbed 1.2 percent, and the Town Crier index was up 2.6 percent because of some favorable action reported by local companies.

Wall Street regained its upward momentum after a rosy outlook from two local companies, Intel and Nvidia.

When industry leaders like Intel say they think there will be a recovery in the PC market, it has a domino effect, with other software and chip company prices moving up.

The Town Crier index is ahead 22 percent since Jan. 1, with most index companies having double-digit increases. Intel rose to $19.58 after the chip company said it saw signs of an industry turnaround later this year.

Nvidia surged $5.31, or 34 percent, after the chipmaker reported quarterly earnings that beat estimates.

Some analysts say the market could be “overbought.” That means prices have risen too much and equities are too expensive, which creates a condition ripe for selling.

In contrast, stocks have advanced for their fourth straight week, and that kind of resilience is considered “momentum investing.” The term is used to describe periods of vigorous buying on Wall Street, with investors worried about not being in the market and losing money.

Although the daily trend is upward, we are not in a true bull market. Each move higher is accompanied with a round of profit-taking along the way.