But in practice, much of what happens in financial markets is about psychology. Ten thousand is a point where all investors are likely to pause to think about what will happen next. Will it prove to be a peak from which shares now fall back, could we be in for years of stagnation at around this level, or could a new phase of gains be about to start?

The man who stood out as Wall Street's most vocal optimist is Ralph Acampora of Prudential Securities. We asked him if he was excited by the fact that the Dow had leapt over the 10,000 hurdle?

"Oh, I'm so pumped. It is wonderful. It is exhausting. It is exhilarating. But it is not just a number. What I am trying to express to people is: it is the way we are getting above ten thousand. It is the leadership that is carrying us above this level.

When you have companies like General Electric and Johnson and Johnson and Citigroup - this is blue chip America at work. If it were very speculative stocks, I would worry. I am not worried about the quality of the leadership. We will consolidate and move higher.

My secondary target for 1999 is 11,500 and I think we can do that by the third or fourth quarter of this year. Ralph Acampora

Actually I am sitting down right now putting pen to paper, and I am about to put out a book one of these fine days. I think this is a market that'is being driven. Are you ready for this? I think that what is propelling this market are two things -. one is peace and the other one is technology.

If I am right and my research is true, I think you are talking about maybe another eight or ten years of a market that is being stimulated by all of the right things that are going on around the world. And I think we should be very excited about this."

Do you realise: if we cancel one Stealth bomber today, we save one billion dollars? Why don't we cancel a dozen of them? Ralph Acampora