More of the same all around with ES propped up for three days in a row…

…by the continuing collapse in VIX.

continued for members…

The equity picture:

DJI has reached its 1.618 extension…

…while COMP continues to falter.Oil and gas are still holding up. And, it’s not too late to short NG.

USDJPY is also hanging in there. DXY’s next spurt should come as early as next week. Someone asked on CNBC why BTC wasn’t moving in tandem with SPX any more – a surprisingly naive question, even for CNBC.

BTC might have Elon Musk and other cheerleaders rooting for it. But, that’s nothing compared to the effort being made by the Fed and every other central bank of consequence to keep stocks rising — reinforced by all the institutional investors whose bonuses will benefit from a strong finish to the year.

Most central bankers have no interest in seeing BTC succeed. At the end of the day, it will be a great indicator of their ability to influence “market” prices relative to what even enthusiastic investors can do in an actual market.

If you have a sparee 10 minutes today, check out this excellent article on Tom Hoenig, the ex Kansas City Fed President who retired in 2011 rather than go along with Bernanke’s QE strategy. It’s interesting intrigue. And, it’s an excellent overview of the Fed’s role in reinflating asset bubbles over the past 13 years and a look at the dangers we now face as a result.

https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2021/12/28/inflation-interest-rates-thomas-hoenig-federal-reserve-526177

Unless something noteworthy happens in the next 24 hours I’m going to skip tomorrow morning’s post and work on the forecast for the year ahead.

GLTA.