ONE-TWENTY TWO: Trading Financial Markets
Exploring the poetry in financial markets for students of money and economy since the year 2000.
Stock Market Commentary A curious break in the trading action unfolded as financial markets wrestled with two “disappointing” inflation reports. Both the CPI (consumer price index) and wholesale inflation (the producer price index or PPI) came in slightly higher than “expected” (headline and core). The data just tell me expectations are unrealistic or at best … Read more
Stock Market Commentary Is another tease for the bears underway? The current bullish rally has included so many temporary bearish signals that I had to stop using baseball metaphors to call strikes. Now, the latest bearish signal looks like the most ominous yet. In the wake of February’s job report, price action delivered a wicked … Read more
Stock Market Commentary Last week delivered the magic of all-time highs. Another all-time high for the S&P 500 and the NASDAQ’s entry into the all-time high club provided a benign feel to the stock market. Financial markets even look like a safe haven from all the turmoil and trouble in the world. Investors and traders … Read more
Stock Market Commentary There is a deepening irony in my on-going bearishness on the stock market. The sector most visibly responsible for the anti-bearish animal spirits leaning against poor market breadth is the same sector I remain unapologetically bullish about: Artificial Intelligence (AI). The ironic contrast was in full display last week as the bullish … Read more
Stock Market Commentary I hate to be one of THOSE bears, but this current wild stock market has turned me into the classic broken record of bearishness. Last week’s red flags consisted of mind-boggling price changes in certain stocks both up and down. Stocks should not move in big chunks at a time, sometimes for … Read more
Stock Market Commentary Right after the stock market tempted me to flip from bearish to neutral, January’s CPI (consumer price index) turned brought the bears rushing back to the scene. Inflation’s fizzle turned to sizzle, and the technical picture of the stock market almost flipped on its head. The charts say it all – the … Read more
Stock Market Commentary Last week repeated a familiar story. The S&P 500 and the NASDAQ closed up for the week. Since the October lows, each index has only suffered one down week. The iShares Russell 2000 ETF was part of the party until the calendar flipped to 2024. The ETF of small caps lost altitude … Read more
Stock Market Commentary Instead of climbing a wall of worry, the market is climbing a wall of frustration (I stole that from a friend of mine). No matter what economic indicators bears stare at to declare impending doom, the jobs market just keeps coming in hot month-after-month. While a widening swath of stocks are breaking … Read more
Stock Market Commentary A bearish divergence is well underway in the stock market. While the S&P 500 and NASDAQ rally, a key bearish trading signal persists in market breadth. The previous week, market breadth created a strong bearish signal by slicing below the overbought threshold. This key bearish trading signal was reinforced by last week’s … Read more
Stock Market Commentary A decisive end to the extended overbought period signaled the arrival of bearish conditions last week. Bears boldly sold for one more day before a “stock bulls taunt” forced suddenly hesitant bears into a partial retreat. A sharp market divergence is now taking hold. While the major indices rallied off support and … Read more