By John Gabriel

Even though things looked extremely grim early on, 2009 ended up being a wonderful year to be long in the markets. But, on the heels of a monumental rally that saw major market indexes bounce 70% off their lows, many investors are now beginning to question the sustainability of the market's recovery. With the market's margin of safety narrowing significantly, a healthy degree of caution seems warranted.

According to UBS yesterday on S. Korea [bold emphasis mine]:

Most indicators have already hit peak growth rates and are likely to drop by mid-year. The 6mth rate of change in the government’s leading composite indicator already points to a very notable slowdown for GDP and industrial production.

The month of February has opened on a high note as stocks and exchange traded funds after reports showed that the manufacturing sector accelerated last month while personal incomes and consumer spending rose.

Finally, a big batch of good news to kick off the new month: