Rio Tinto Vs. BHP Billiton: A Pairs Trade for the RBA’s Top In Iron Ore

On September 19th, the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) released the minutes from its last meeting on monetary policy (September 5, 2017). Iron ore was perhaps the biggest headline coming out of those minutes. Surprisingly, the RBA called a top in the price of iron ore (emphasis mine): “Iron ore prices had been supported at … Read more

Above the 40 (September 15, 2017) – Another Missile, Another All-Time High for the S&P 500

AT40 = 60.4% of stocks are trading above their respective 40-day moving averages (DMAs) AT200 = 53.2% of stocks are trading above their respective 200DMAs VIX = 10.2 Short-term Trading Call: cautiously bullish Commentary North Korea launched another ballistic missile over Japan, this one with enough range to hit Guam. The general market response was … Read more

U.S. Concrete: The GDP Rally Fully Reverses

Getting a second opportunity at a great set-up is rare in the stock market, but U.S. Concrete (USCR) may be offering just such a second chance. On September 3rd, I lamented missing an opportunity to buy USCR when it neatly tested support at the top of its last trading range. The headline reason for the … Read more

Above the 40 (September 11, 2017) – The S&P 500 Hits Fresh All-Time High On Tension Relief

AT40 = 53.0% of stocks are trading above their respective 40-day moving averages (DMAs) AT200 = 51.1% of stocks are trading above their respective 200DMAs VIX = 10.7 (down 11.5%) Short-term Trading Call: neutral (see below for caveats) Commentary I had no idea that the previous tensions in the stock market fully priced in the … Read more

Above the 40 (September 8, 2017) – Lingering Tensions for the Stock Market

AT40 = 44.9% of stocks are trading above their respective 40-day moving averages (DMAs) AT200 = 48.9% of stocks are trading above their respective 200DMAs VIX = 12.1 (up 4.9%) Short-term Trading Call: neutral Commentary The market has made no progress since my last Above the 40 post which covered the volatility and fizzle from … Read more