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: In the previous week, the stock market put on a display of strength ahead of the Federal Reserve’s May decision on monetary policy. That bravado was temporarily undermined by the final blow to First Republic Bank (FRC). After a one-day pause, presumably to contemplate the implications of the lack of a coherent … Read more
It is easy to forget that the months going into the COVID-19 pandemic were filled with fears of a recession. In response to mounting economic and political pressures, the Federal Reserve, led by Jerome Powell, reversed course on the Fed’s 3-year effort to slowly normalize monetary policy with what he called a “mid-cycle” rate adjustment. … Read more
“One-Twenty Two” is a different narrative for students and fans of financial markets. This blog often examines the investing and trading implications of extremes in financial markets. By definition, an extreme condition marks a top or a bottom in prices and invites contrary thinking. For example, the cyclical concepts of “overbought” and “oversold” measure temporary … Read more
Stock Market Statistics AT40 = 72.2% of stocks are trading above their respective 40-day moving averages (DMAs) (1st day overbought)AT200 = 42.3% of stocks are trading above their respective 200DMAs VIX = 22.2Short-term Trading Call: cautiously bullish Stock Market Commentary The last overbought period ended in June. The volatility index (VIX) did not drop much … Read more
In early July, I rolled out an “economic reality” index to provide a sober summary of the economic trials and tribulations facing millions of Americans even as those of us with trades and investments in the stock market enjoy the largesse of monetary and fiscal stimulus. I am now putting the chart comparing continuing claims … Read more
Stock Market Statistics AT40 = 53.9% of stocks are trading above their respective 40-day moving averages (DMAs) (2-month low)AT200 = 25.6% of stocks are trading above their respective 200DMAs VIX = 34.7Short-term Trading Call: neutral Stock Market Commentary The damage in the stock market the previous week looked strong enough to eventually take trading conditions … Read more
Purists in the financial markets often decry the “voodoo” of technical analysis. The U.S. jobs report for May, 2020 is an extreme version of how the fundamentals can also fail to provide sufficient guidance for trading and investing in financial markets. Economists and other sooth-sayers in consensus expected the U.S. economy to lose 8.3 million … Read more
U.S. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for the first quarter of 2020 (advanced estimate) plunged by 4.8% as the coronavirus pandemic put the economy on lockdown. The following categories made positive contributions to GDP in ascending order of their contribution to the percentage change: Housing and utilities: .08% Change in farm inventories: 0.10% Government consumption expenditures … Read more
My now wavering bullish case for the Canadian dollar (FXC) took a major hit with the November, 2019 Labour Force Survey. Statistics Canada reported worsening unemployment rates both sequentially and year-over-year. November’s 5.9% unemployment rate was an increase from October’s 5.5% and the 5.6% in November, 2018. The chart below suggests an end to the … Read more
AT40 = 68.0% of stocks are trading above their respective 40-day moving averages (DMAs) AT200 = 55.1% of stocks are trading above their respective 200DMAs (essentially matches the 2019 high and is a new 10-month high)VIX = 13.3Short-term Trading Call: neutral (caveats below) Stock Market Commentary Good news is bad news….oops, nevermind The search for … Read more