ONE-TWENTY TWO: Trading Financial Markets
Exploring the poetry in financial markets for students of money and economy since the year 2000.
NOW this is getting really interesting. I am still in learning mode on cryptocurrencies. Every twist and turn is like a new flower patch around the bend. When I last wrote about the price patterns in Bitcoin a week and a half ago, I gave a qualified call for a bottom in the price of … Read more
The volatility index, the VIX, closed below 11 on April 24, 2017. That launched 184 trading days of extremely low volatility (ELV). The VIX is now just 1 more trading day away from finally bringing this historic event to an end. By my definition, it takes 20 trading days of the VIX closing above 11 … Read more
AT40 = 19.4% of stocks are trading above their respective 40-day moving averages (DMAs) – first oversold day after 19 percentage point plunge AT200 = 45.8% of stocks are trading above their respective 200DMAs VIX = 37.3 (115.6% increase! The largest since at least 1990) Short-term Trading Call: cautiously bullish – oh so many caveats … Read more
At the time of writing, Bitcoin (BTC) just experienced another large one-day loss…currently around 10%. Source: Yahoo Finance A week ago, sellers panicked and sent Bitcoin careening toward $10,000 as an orderly pullback from all-time highs suddenly became chaotic. Buyers quickly moved in and the cryptocurrency stabilized. Until last week’s low gets violated, I am … Read more
I have been harping on retail as a contrary investment and trade for the past month or so. A reader prompted me to consider whether a seasonal element helps explain the current run-up that has turned into a bona fide breakout for the SPDR S&P Retail ETF (XRT). Turns out the answer is “not really.” … Read more
I am a fan of using Google Trends for understanding the dynamics of financial markets. I have specifically used it in the past for analyzing extremes in sentiment and trading on gold. Given Bitcoin’s latest historical surge – this time through $11,000 – I wondered whether Google (GOOG) searches were increasing alongside the price of … Read more
DexCom (DXCM) is a maker of continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) systems. Last week, the stock of the company cratered after Abbott Laboratories (ABT) received FDA approval of its competing FreeStyle Libre flash CGM. It is the first system that allows diabetics to check and monitor glucose levels without sticking themselves. In response to the news, … Read more
One by one Trump Trades have unwound and completely reversed all their gains (or losses) since the U.S. Presidential election last November. I find the end of this particular Trump Trade particularly thematic. On June 21, 2017, the VanEck Vectors Russia ETF (RSX) completed a full reversal of its gain since the election of Donald … Read more
AT40 = 47.1% of stocks are trading above their respective 40-day moving averages (DMAs) AT200 = 54.7% of stocks are trading above their respective 200DMAs VIX = 10.8 (volatility index) Short-term Trading Call: cautiously bullish Commentary Like two ships passing in the night, the NASDAQ, including the PowerShares QQQ ETF (QQQ), took back its advantage … Read more
AT40 = 56.7% of stocks are trading above their respective 40-day moving averages (DMAs) AT200 = 57.5% of stocks are trading above their respective 200DMAs VIX = 10.4 (volatility index) Short-term Trading Call: cautiously bullish Commentary The Federal Reserve gave the permission to the stock market that I awaited…well, sort of. On Wednesday, June 14, … Read more