This is a perfect day to look at bond yields and what they might be telling us about the FOMOC meeting scheduled for tomorrow and ending Wednesday.

Yet we have to take this snapshot with a grain of salt because today, European Central Bank chief Mario Draghi again hinted quite strongly that Europe-wide rate cutting is over with (as he did on Friday).

Reversing field, equities worldwide today latched back onto the positive side of the sayings of Chairman Draghi of the European Central Bank and to a very modest rise in the price of oil.

Another risk-off day swirled in markets around the world today, extending yesterday’s momentum and touching all investments in some way.

Crude oil was down, but not spectacularly so, leading us to surmise that equities are fearful of another oil meltdown, and so slipped in price.

We experienced a classic, if small-scale, risk-on day in U.S. and European markets today. Crude oil also rebounded robustly today as well, abetting the lukewarm strength in stocks.

You could assign many reasons for the drop in crude oil prices – and all would probably be right. Let’s enumerate a few prime candidates.

First, oil has come too far, too fast. Yes, indeed. It’s shocking that there hasn’t been broader profit taking earlier than today. Goldman Sachs’ yellow caution flag to “slow down” helped fuel the sell off.

Many experts are suddenly touting the idea that the oil crash and long-standing route is dead and ready for burial.

Certainly oil prices are acting as if that is true. At 3 o’clock in New York, West Texas Intermediate and Brent North Sea are up over 5.00%. For Brent, perhaps more significantly, it is looking to close over $40 per barrel.

It’s getting close to Fed O’clock.

The next Federal Open Market Committee meeting is still six business days away but the avalanche of data – especially the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employment report for February issued earlier today – will stoke the rate-hike debate and roil the markets till the minutes are released one week from Tuesday.

In trading at 4 o’clock in New York, gold is sitting at $1261 per ounce. It is pulling the rest of the precious metals complex up, although it appears that raging palladium would do quite well if it went solo.

Two reports of note were issued today. The first, and more complicated, is the Fed national Beige Book, which covers the (approximately) six weeks through February 22.

Markets were driven by our usual friend – crude oil, as well as by stronger-than-expected data from the U.S. economy.

The Institute for Supply Management (ISM) said its index of national factory activity rose to 49.5 in February from 48.2 the previous month, comfortably surpassing expectations of 48.5 from a Reuter’s poll of economists.