ONE-TWENTY TWO: Trading Financial Markets
Exploring the poetry in financial markets for students of money and economy since the year 2000.
After Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s “war of economic independence” came to an official end, I waited for evidence that the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey (CBRT) would get serious about fighting inflation. The monetary evidence may have arrived on August 24th in the form of a monster rate hike from 17% to 25%. In … Read more
Bearish Engulfing the Major Indices The stock market took a decidedly bearish turn right at the edge of Jackson Hole. In particular, the NASDAQ (COMPQ) printed a bearish engulfing pattern right at resistance from its 50-day moving average (DMA) (the red line in the chart below) and its 20DMA (the dotted line). The S&P 500 … Read more
Stock Market Commentary The annual Jackson Hole confab of central bankers starts this coming Thursday. Almost like technical poetry, the S&P 500 and the NASDAQ are back to the highs directly preceding Jackson Hole 2022. Depending on your perspective, this Jackson Hole redux either represents a bullish confirmation of the market’s resilience after 18 months … Read more
Stock Market Commentary The summer of stocks looks like it is winding down as trading dynamics transition into the stock market’s most dangerous months. The complete reversal of July’s gains on the major indices represents the most ominous sign of the transition. Technology stocks in particular have flipped from rocketships to anchors weighing on the … Read more
Stock Market Commentary A week ago, buyers did their best to push against topping stock indices by restarting overbought conditions. That overbought period lasted just 3 days as a Fitch downgrade of U.S. Treasury debt freshly cooled the summer of loving stocks. The resulting selling confirmed topping conditions and greased the skids of the stock … Read more
Housing Market Intro and Summary May’s housing market was remarkably strong and represented the peak velocity of the spring selling season. June followed up with more relative strength but a slight sequential cooling as mortgage rates continued a march back to the top of the recent range. Housing starts, new home sales, and existing home … Read more
Stock Market Commentary The stock market delivered a gift on Friday as I scrambled to de-risk following the Bank of Japan’s drama on monetary policy. I braced for selling into bearish pressure and instead was pleasantly greeted by a broad push higher for stocks from the open. After the dust settled on the day, I … Read more
Stock Market Commentary The Federal Reserve’s latest pronouncement on monetary policy was supposed to provide the drama of the week. However, the stock market yawned and resumed the buying of the summer of love at the open of trading the next day. Enter the Bank of Japan (BoJ) to provide the real drama. The fireworks … Read more
Stock Market Commentary On Thursday, good economic news scared Wall Street yet again. Initial jobless claims came in well below “expectations” and set off a cascade of reactions. Interest rates shot up and the stock market dropped down. The stubborn strength of the labor market allows the Federal Reserve to stay hawkish and keep its … Read more
Almost a year ago, I claimed that investing in ARK Innovation ETF (ARKK) was little different than speculating on initial public offerings in the Renaissance IPO ETF (IPO). I was both right and wrong. On the way down, IPO far out-performed ARKK in 2021 and 2022. However, ARKK has benefited more than IPO in this … Read more