Above the 40 (February 2, 2018) – Janet Yellen Exits As Oversold Market Conditions Loom

AT40 = 38.3% of stocks are trading above their respective 40-day moving averages (DMAs) AT200 = 54.7% of stocks are trading above their respective 200DMAs VIX = 17.3 (28.5% increase!) Short-term Trading Call: bullish Commentary “We cannot tolerate pervasive and persistent misconduct at any bank and the consumers harmed by Wells Fargo expect that robust … Read more

Beyond Trump Versus Jay-Z: A Better Lens on African-American Unemployment Data

As a data nerd, I have a large pet peeve about the many ways in which the press and media fail to help its audiences understand the nuances in data and analysis even as I understand the need for journalistic expediency and story-telling. However, that annoyance increases by several orders of magnitude when I see … Read more

Canadian Dollar: Economic Data Overriding the Brakes of the Bank of Canada

The Canadian dollar (FXC) is at an interesting juncture. Strong economic data has strengthened the currency but the Bank of Canada (BoC) has applied brakes on currency’s rally. The Canadian dollar weakened in the wake of policy statements in October and December. The last word of 2017 went to the economic data as hot inflation … Read more

Housing Market Review (December, 2017) – Seasonal Strength Launches With A Flurry of Activity

The last Housing Market Review covered data reported in November, 2017 for October, 2017. At the time, the iShares U.S. Home Construction ETF (ITB) traded at a 10+ year high with the angst of tax reform left far behind in the rear view mirror. The day after my post, Toll Brothers (TOL) reported earnings that … Read more

A Housing Industry Sharply Split On the Impact of Tax Reform

Perhaps it is the pressure of having member companies whose stock trade on public markets. Perhaps it is a coincidental divide in politics. Whatever the explanation, the split in opinion on the impact of Republican tax reform on the housing market became even more stark this week as The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) … Read more