The Next Fed Rate Gets Rescheduled for “Never”

The U.S. Federal Reserve failed to hike rates in its June policy meeting just as expected. More importantly, the Fed left alone its projection of the appropriate policy path for 2016 at 0.9%. The Fed trimmed its expectation for 2017 from 1.9% to 1.6% and slashed 2018 from 3.0% to 2.4%. The “long run” dropped … Read more

Brexit Anxieties Soar to New Highs

Earlier this month, I used Google Trends to demonstrate that the currency market lagged a key shift in Brexit sentiment. Just 10 days later, interest (aka anxiety?) in Brexit, the prospect of a UK exit from the European Union (EU), has scaled new heights while the British pound (FXB) has hit new lows for the … Read more

T2108 Update (June 14, 2016) – Volatility Soars Into Tests of Central Bank Resolve

(T2108 measures the percentage of stocks trading above their respective 40-day moving averages [DMAs]. It helps to identify extremes in market sentiment that are likely to reverse. To learn more about it, see my T2108 Resource Page. You can follow real-time T2108 commentary on twitter using the #T2108 hashtag. T2108-related trades and other trades are … Read more

T2108 Update (June 10, 2016) – A Bearish Reversal for the Stock Market

(T2108 measures the percentage of stocks trading above their respective 40-day moving averages [DMAs]. It helps to identify extremes in market sentiment that are likely to reverse. To learn more about it, see my T2108 Resource Page. You can follow real-time T2108 commentary on twitter using the #T2108 hashtag. T2108-related trades and other trades are … Read more

T2108 Update (June 8, 2016) – A Notable Post-Recession Breakout

(T2108 measures the percentage of stocks trading above their respective 40-day moving averages [DMAs]. It helps to identify extremes in market sentiment that are likely to reverse. To learn more about it, see my T2108 Resource Page. You can follow real-time T2108 commentary on twitter using the #T2108 hashtag. T2108-related trades and other trades are … Read more

Apple’s Currency Index Turns A New Page In Apple’s Financial Results

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on January 30, 2016. Click here to read the entire piece.) Apple (AAPL) reported Q1 2016 earnings that disappointed the market. The negative reaction was consistent with the Apple earnings trading model. This time around, I took particular interest in Apple’s accounting … Read more

A Blow-Off Top for Gold? Not Quite Yet…

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on May 8, 2016. Click here to read the entire piece.) Speculators are now net long gold at levels that surpass the financial crisis of 2008/2009 and the major 2011 peak in gold prices. Source: Oanda’s CFTC’s Commitments of Traders Given this … Read more

Fed Minutes Put A Bow On Earlier Fedspeak on Rate Hikes

“Most participants judged that if incoming data were consistent with economic growth picking up in the second quarter, labor market conditions continuing to strengthen, and inflation making progress toward the Committee’s 2 percent objective, then it likely would be appropriate for the Committee to increase the target range for the federal funds rate in June…Some … Read more

A Reluctant Market Nudges the Expected Timing for Fed Rate Hikes

The message is clear: the U.S. Federal Reserve WANTS to hike rates a few more times this year. Various Fed officials started this week with speeches and interviews discussing their desire to hike rates again as early as June and for a total of two or three hikes in 2016. The response is also clear: … Read more

T2108 Update (May 13, 2016) – An Abrupt Shift From Defiant Buying to Breakdowns

(T2108 measures the percentage of stocks trading above their respective 40-day moving averages [DMAs]. It helps to identify extremes in market sentiment that are likely to reverse. To learn more about it, see my T2108 Resource Page. You can follow real-time T2108 commentary on twitter using the #T2108 hashtag. T2108-related trades and other trades are … Read more