Despite a healthy bounce on Wednesday, the stock market is far from on the road to recovery.

The markets are desperate for any good news and even the little they got Wednesday (lower oil prices and some decent earnings news) is enough to trigger a brief rally.

Unfortunately, the basic reasons for the market’s bear mood haven’t gone away:

• Oil is still in the stratosphere
• The credit crisis hasn’t hit bottom (which will hold down any housing recovery)
• Inflation is climbing at an alarming rate
• The economy has slowed to a crawl

We are on the verge of stagflation, which is a period of high inflation and a failing economy.

There aren’t many good alternatives in the near term except to work through this period and hope the economy can rebound sooner, rather than later.