Crude closed today at $72.66.

Very strange day on Wall Street today. First, it’s clear the markets think the fighting in the Middle East is going to end sooner than later. I’m not so sure. Especially since today we saw a record number of bombings on both sides.

But secondly — that thundering herd of bulls you heard today on the Street was put into motion thanks to Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke. Big Ben told Congress today that he thinks inflation can be controlled and the economy is slowing. The market did its own translation of those remarks: NO MORE RATE HIKES — FULL STEAM AHEAD.

That is why the Dow Jones Industrials ended the day up 212.19 points, the second highest gain this year.

As for the airline sector today — it doesn’t take much to figure out what happened here. It’s called the Southwest Airlines-American Airlines Profit Dance.