ONE-TWENTY TWO: Trading Financial Markets
Exploring the poetry in financial markets for students of money and economy since the year 2000.
The Follow-Through Intro The stock market followed a rare stumble with a broad-based rebound from “oversold enough” conditions. Stocks were generally up across the board as buyers rushed in to grab “bargains.” AT40 (T2108), the percentage of stocks trading above their respective 40-day moving averages (DMAs), jumped from 37% to 46%. My favorite technical indicator … Read more
The Bitcoin bottom from a month ago continues to hold. However, the latest bounce off the Bitcoin (BTC/USD) bottom is dangerously different than the last one and the bottoms prior. Once again, Google search trends for “Bitcoin” is the key signal. Unlike the bottom in May where the Google Trends Momentum Check (GTMC) provided another … Read more
Stock Market Commentary The Federal Reserve seemed to change the rules of the game. To-date, easy money policies and stubborn dovishness in the face of rising inflation was a formula for higher asset prices, reflation and inflation-friendly trades, and even rising fears of an over-heating economy. Last week, Federal Reserve Chair Jay Powell shifted the … Read more
Stock Market Commentary The drag I described in the wake of the Federal Reserve’s pronouncements on monetary policy eroded the stock market a lot more than I thought. Market breadth printed a major fakeout with my favorite indicator plunging in the wake of deep selling in inflation-related trades from commodities to industrials to financials. The … Read more
Google trends provides a measure of the popularity of Google search terms. The data can indicate relative popularity and interest in a topic. I use the search on “Bitcoin” as a trade indicator called the Google Trends Momentum Check (GTMC). During my checks on the GTMC, I noticed for quite some time the African nations … Read more
As someone who watched too much of this year’s crypto run-up from the sidelines, I welcome the recent implosions of Bitcoin (BTC/USD) and Ethereum (ETH/USD). These top cryptocurrencies are inherently extremely volatile, so sharp and deep corrections are features not bugs for crypto traders. As long as these assets enjoy a broad fan base of … Read more
North American: The United States “What we’re seeing now is an economy that seems to be at an inflection point….we feel like we are at a point where the economy is about to start growing much more quickly, and job creation coming in much more quickly…we see strong growth and strong job creation starting right … Read more
A Fresh Crack from the Currency Market At the time of writing, the Australian dollar versus the Japanese yen (AUD/JPY) is falling below its 50-day moving average (DMA) (the red line in the chart below) for the first time since last September. This move is the latest yellow, perhaps red, flag on the stock market … Read more
Stock Market Commentary The growth tantrum is almost a distant memory. Complacency is more the order of the day as the volatility index sinks further below 20 and the S&P 500 (SPY) hops and skips through all-time highs. Big cap tech is popular again. These stocks are helping to drag both the S&P 500 and … Read more
Last November, the South African rand (USD/ZAR) finished reversing its pandemic related losses against the U.S. dollar. Along the way I pointed out the benefits of getting long the South African rand. This week, USD/ZAR dropped to levels last seen in January, 2020. The rand looks to strengthen further based on the confidence expressed by … Read more