ONE-TWENTY TWO: Trading Financial Markets
Exploring the poetry in financial markets for students of money and economy since the year 2000.
Earlier, I noted that Intel’s stock looked ominous given so many stocks were making bullish post-earnings reversals. On Friday, Intel (INTC) finally gave up the rest of its impressive post-earnings gains. On a day in which the market staged a relatively impressive comeback from initial selling (the NASDAQ closed marginally UP), INTC closed on its … Read more
First Solar (FSLR) reports earnings this evening. Unlike the last two rounds, I have no strong feelings about the potential upward or downward moves this time around. I went neutral on FSLR after closing out positions on the great post-earnings pop in April, and I have not done much else since then with the stock … Read more
I decided to take the plunge and read “How the Great Recession Was Brought to an End” by economists Alan Binder (Gordon S. Rentschler Memorial Professor of Economics, Princeton University) and Mark Zandi (Chief Economist, Moody’s Analytics). Binder and Zandi conclude that the various stimulus programs and creative use of montary policy over the last … Read more
July will deliver an up month for Goldman Sachs (GS) for the first time since March and only the third time since it peaked nine months ago. GS is up 12% for the month of July, handily beating the 7% gain for the S&P 500 and and the 6% gain for XLF, the SPDRs Select … Read more
The British pound’s bounce from May’s 14-month lows versus the U.S. dollar has surpassed all my expectations. The currency has stumbled at key resistance points as expected, but the trend upward has been persistent and undeniable. The pound has followed a steep channel straight up. The pound is now sitting right at its 200-day moving … Read more
Momentum continues to swing swiftly in favor of the bulls. The stock market is now pushing deep into overbought territory just three weeks after it was fashionable again to talk about a double dip recession. Last week, the S&P 500 broke a downtrend I assumed would hold for at least a few more weeks. It … Read more
Graphs depicting economic data can convey different meaning to different people. For example, several models exist to explain economic growth and the variables important for forecasting economic performance. My most recent experience with this dynamic occurred after reading John Maudlin’s latest treatise on the deflationary threat facing the global economy (free subscription required). I remain … Read more
With tongue reaching for the cheek last week, I declared the market both extremely undervalued and very overvalued, guessing that “as earnings season grinds on, I suspect the near-predictable pattern of post-earnings fades will finally wear thin, giving way to more bullish behavior.” I did not expect the turn to happen so clearly and dramatically … Read more
Last week, Wunderlich Securities initiated coverage on Ener1, Inc. (HEV) with a hold rating. HEV designs, develops, and manufactures rechargeable lithium-ion batteries and battery systems for energy storage (from Yahoo! Finance profile). These batteries are used in electric vehicles. Eric Savtiz’s Tech Trader Daily covered the coverage. Wunderlich’s main points are: HEV is a very … Read more
I spoke a day to soon on the bearish downtrend on XLI, the SPDRs Select Sector Industrial ETF. A healthy 3% one-day gain sent the ETF hurtling over resistance and into breakout territory. The next line of resistance is the June high or the “left shoulder” formed in late May/early June, depending on your perspective. … Read more