The debate going around Wall Street has now shifted to exactly what the stock market will need to hold its recent gains and move forward in the future. The month of March was a good one for the stock market, and thus far April has also proved to be a positive month as well.

What is behind the recent improvement in the stock market? Many analysts and strategists point to the economic news that has been “less bad” than it was before. In other words, the economic news has been bad, but it hasn’t been downright terrible like it was in the previous months. Another thing which has helped quite a bid is corporate earnings, and quite honestly they paint just about the same picture as do the economic reports. Many companies have been able to beat expectations, especially the financials, but in reality, the earnings are still quite poor. You could look at it one of two ways; one could say that the financials continue to struggle or you could say that there has been substantial improvement which bodes well for the future.

Economic numbers such as consumer confidence and even housing data have been on the rebound in the last month. If you put it into a historical perspective the numbers are still very poor, but given the desperately low levels they have come back from, the most recent data is certainly an improvement.

Now the question becomes, is less bad good enough for the stock market to keep it up? It is likely that for a while reports that are less bad than had been expected will be enough to help the market, but over time as expectations begin to rise again the economy will have to show that it can once again expand for the market to find its long-term footing. Less bad may be good enough for now, but in the long run we’ll need a little better.

The old saying that patience is a virtue is one that is commonly used, but it couldn’t possibly be more true in the economy and the market that we are now faced with. Over the next few weeks and as we get into the new year you will hear many different analysts trying to pinpoint exactly when things will get better for the economy and the stock market. I strongly urge you to take their calls of a bottom in the economy or the market with a grain of salt, because no one truly knows just how bad it could get.

When uncertainty reaches the levels it is currently at, there simply isn’t a quick solution to make things better. No matter what is done to help stimulate our economy or the marketplace it will take quite some time to work its way into the economic numbers. As more and more people lose their jobs at a faster rate, it is highly unlikely consumers will be becoming any more optimistic anytime soon.

You’ll hear many people saying that certainly our economy will turn around and the market will as well, which I believe is definitely the truth, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it will be anytime soon. These things don’t go away quickly, and you are kidding yourself if you think they will.

The point is you are going to have to be very patient with this economy and the stock market in the coming months and possibly even years. A recovery will definitely come, but probably not as fast as many predict and certainly not as fast as we would like. The economic data doesn’t lie, and things are simply getting worse instead of better. Your guess is as good as mine for when that trend will end, but be prepared to have your patience tested!