Cramer: Don't Fade the Opening

10/12/08 - 09:13 PM EDT

Jim Cramer

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Do you fade an opening that's this strong? Do you decide that the worldwide plan to save the banks isn't enough?

Some reasons why it might be dangerous to fade it:

  1. The rally off the bottom was so vicious on Friday that you can see it doesn't take much to rally. Recall what happened on Friday. It started with Apple(AAPL Quote - Cramer on AAPL - Stock Picks) and then spread to the rest of the market, aided by what we knew very little of, a plan to take stakes in banks.
  2. We are so oversold, minus-20, an unheard of amount of selling, that it makes me think that there has to be an end, at a certain point, to where people want to sell, even if the selling returns from a higher level.
  3. Without bank failures, and with lending, why would you not want to bet that there could be a recession rather than a depression?
  4. Many stocks are at levels where they could be taken over for next to nothing and be additive immediately. Hence the desire from an already strapped Santander(STD Quote - Cramer on STD - Stock Picks) to buy Sovereign(SOV Quote - Cramer on SOV - Stock Picks). I also believe that JPMorgan Chase(JPM Quote - Cramer on JPM - Stock Picks) could be up $10 on this move.

Against that, we know that there is severe stress in the system involving housing and unemployment that's not in the market at Dow 8,500 but would be in the market at Dow 6,600, where we would be on a 1987 low -- the Monday low.

I say, play it out, don't sell. Let's see if we can't get something going for a couple of days, unless you have some stock you bought into the down-600 moments from Friday. Even if you are down a lot, you are being too greedy...

At the time of publication, Cramer was long JPM.

At the time of publication, Cramer was long JPM. Jim Cramer is a director and co-founder of TheStreet.com. He contributes daily market commentary for TheStreet.com's sites and serves as an adviser to the company's CEO. Outside contributing columnists for TheStreet.com and RealMoney.com, including Cramer, may, from time to time, write about stocks in which they have a position. In such cases, appropriate disclosure is made. To see his personal portfolio and find out what trades Cramer will make before he makes them, sign up for Action Alerts PLUS. Watch Cramer on "Mad Money" weeknights on CNBC. To order Cramer's newest book -- "Jim Cramer's Stay Mad for Life: Get Rich, Stay Rich (Make Your Kids Even Richer)," click here. Click here to order "Mad Money: Watch TV, Get Rich," click here to order "Real Money: Sane Investing in an Insane World," click here to get "You Got Screwed!" and click here for Cramer's autobiography, "Confessions of a Street Addict." While he cannot provide personalized investment advice or recommendations, he appreciates your feedback and invites you to send comments by clicking here.

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