A Fresh Top in Cocoa

It did not take long. Two days after I identified a Bollinger Band squeeze on iPath Bloomberg Cocoa SubTR ETN (NIB), the technical chart pattern resolved to the downside. NIB has lost 11.9% over this time. Source: FreeStockCharts.com At current levels, NIB has confirmed a top from its 19-month high: a breakdown below the 50-day … Read more

A Cocoa Surprise: Prices Spring Back to Life

In commodities, the time to get bullish is usually when prices are pressuring the industry and sentiment is persistently and deeply negative. The time to get bearish is usually when prices are skyrocketing, industry participants are celebrating wondrous fortunes, and sentiment is as euphoric as can be. Since I am long-term bullish on cocoa, I … Read more

Another Bullish Breakout for Cocoa

On Friday, The iPath Bloomberg Cocoa SubTR ETN (NIB) soared 3.0% to a 14-month high. It was a breakout the validated months and months of patience betting that in a market with strong demand, extremely low cocoa prices would create the conditions for higher prices in the future. While NIB has persistently rallied since the … Read more

A New Breakout for Cocoa as Ghana Falls Short

It was a welcome turn of fortune for iPath® Bloomberg Cocoa SubTR ETN (NIB). In a week where global stock markets took a sharp tumble, NIB followed through on an important technical breakout. The week started ominously when NIB sold off and dove back below its 50 and 200-day moving averages (DMAs). After that setback, … Read more

ShotSpotter CEO Loads Up On Shares Following Investor Conference

When it comes to insider transactions, I only pay attention to the purchases and sales of company executives – the CEO and CFO in particular. Last week, it was the CFO of ShotSpotter (SSTI) purchasing shares ahead of the investor conference. This time, an SEC filing after market hours revealed that the CEO bought shares … Read more

Trading Cocoa: A Fresh Price Collapse Amid Conflicting Narratives

Almost a month ago, I celebrated a major breakout for iPath Bloomberg Cocoa SubTR ETN (NIB) by declaring a confirmed bottom. That bottom still holds but unfortunately NIB has persistently declined since then. NIB is down 15.2% from the time of that post. Source: FreeStockCharts.com At the time of my last post, the International Cocoa … Read more

Trading Cocoa: The September Confirmation Of A Bottom

Congratulations to any of you who stuck by the iPath Bloomberg Cocoa SubTR ETN (NIB) and accumulated over the course of 2017 as cocoa prices slowly but surely carved out a bottom. Looking back, it seems September was a key turning point in the flavor of the trading. Source: FreeStockCharts.com The chart above shows how … Read more

Trading Cocoa: Buffeted by Weather But Staying the Course

Trading for the iPath Bloomberg Cocoa SubTR ETN (NIB) could have started quite negatively this week. Yesterday, On May 29th, Bloomberg reported from unnamed sources that Ghana’s main crop for the cocoa growing season would produce its highest tonnage in three years: “Graded and sealed deliveries from the so-called main crop, the larger of two … Read more

Trading Cocoa: A Roller Coaster of Weather and Forecasts of Surplus

The downtrend for the iPath Bloomberg Cocoa SubTR ETN (NIB) won out yet again. Source: FreeStockCharts.com The buyers looked particularly convincing for NIB’s latest 50DMA breakout. Yet, a 1-2 punch of a return of good weather results in Ivory Coast and a particularly aggressive crop production forecast from Rabobank killed the latest rally for NIB. … Read more