The elephant in the room is and continues to be the euro plunge. 40% of the profits of the S&P 500 multinationals come from overseas sales. A very strong dollar due to the eurozone crisis will cause multinational profits to plummet. Back in march 2009 when the dow was around 6500, the euro was around $1.25. Now the dow is 10380, and the euro is a mere $1.27. Its not so much that there's a "strong dollar" (gold @1200!) but this feels like another flight to safety into USDs.