9/11 and the slowdown of 2001-2003 hit the stock markets pretty badly, but now both the FTSE 100 (basically the UK equivalent of the Dow) and the Japanese Nikkei have finally got back on track. The Nikkei is over 17000 for the first time in years, and the FTSE has just topped 6000. As the FTSE was hit a lot more heavily than the Dow by the downswing, this is a pretty big deal, and a healthy stock market is a pretty nice thing to have for now.