Another Blowout Jobs Report

NFP came in at 303K vs 200K estimates, a huge beat which, combined with a decline in the unemployment rate, argues against any near term rate cuts. ES is all over the map this morning, but has given up much of its overnight ramp and is approaching our next downside target. With CPI coming out … continue reading →

The Big Picture: Mar 25, 2024

Many bears have simply given up betting on a downside that, despite plentiful recession indicators, feels increasingly unlikely. Since the S&P 500 completed its Inverted Head & Shoulders pattern back in December, the index has piled on nearly 14% [see: A Look Ahead at 2024.] The many, many bulls point to a generally strong economy, … continue reading →

Breakdown/Breakout

In a repeat of the most effective algo move of the past 10+ years, VIX broke down following the Fed’s no-news rate decision and press conference yesterday. As always, this allowed equities to leapfrog an area of stubborn overhead resistance. continued for members… … continue reading →

Hey Fed: You Break It, You Fix It

In his January press conference, Fed Chief Jay Powell accepted some responsibility for the sharp rise in housing prices during the pandemic. “We’re also well aware that when we cut rates at the beginning of the pandemic, for example, the … housing industry was helped more than any other industry.” This statement implies that, were … continue reading →

NFP Soars

Nonfarm payrolls soared by 353,000, more than twice the 175,000 expected. Average hourly wages also beat at +0.6% (+4.5% YoY) versus +0.3% expected. Unemployment remained at 3.7%. Forget about a March rate cut. Bulls will be lucky to get one in May. The overnight ramp job has completely disappeared, with futures struggling to remain positive.  … continue reading →

Update on Gold and Silver: Jan 24, 2024

In last month’s update on gold and silver [see: Dec 5 Update] we noted that gold and silver had reached our mid-October targets. We forecast that silver would likely drop to its 200-day moving average and continue dropping to backtest two significant trend lines at 22. It reached 22.04 on Monday before and has bounced … continue reading →

Update on the USDJPY: Dec 19, 2023

In a move that surprised no one, the BoJ left their monetary policy unchanged unhinged. The policy statement still reflects the looney tunes, magical thinking that has always epitomized their decisions: they’ll raise rates when inflation reaches 2% – even though inflation is well above 2% and has been for over a year. Annualizing the … continue reading →

October CPI Unchanged

October CPI came in unchanged following a 0.4% increase in September. For the year, CPI dropped to 3.2% from 3.7% in September. Core came in at 4.0% YoY and 0.2% MoM. Futures soared on the print. As we have anticipated for the past several months, it was a sharp drop in gas prices which produced … continue reading →