Blue Line Jumps 2 Percent
Excitement swept the financial world Monday, when a blue line jumped more than 11 percent, passing four black horizontal lines as it rose from 367.22 to 408.85. It was the biggest single-day gain for a blue line since 1994. "Even if you extend the blue line's big white box back many vertical lines, you won't find a comparably large jump," said an analyst with Merrill Lynch. "That line just kept going up, up, up."

The blue line, which had been sluggish ever since the red line started pointing down in April, began its rebound with an impressively pointy 7 percent rise Friday. By noon Monday, it had crossed the second horizontal line from the top for the first time since December. Investors are ecstatic. "It's a really steep line," said Larry Danziger. "I stand to make a alot of money as a result of the steepness of this line."

"It looks like the line's about to shoot out of the box," said Boston-area investor Michael Lupert, enjoying a glass of white zinfandel on the bow of his 30-foot yacht. "I'm definitely going to keep a close eye on this line as it continues to move to the right." Despite such bullishness, some financial observers are urging caution.