US corporate profits rose to a new high in 2Q18, but prior quarters were revised lower by $739 billion. Second-quarter US corporate profits were published Wednesday. Profits adjusted for inventory valuation and capital consumption rose 7.7 percent year-over-year to a … Continued
The Nasdaq 100 index enjoyed a mini-breakout Tuesday, only to find itself right underneath seven-month channel resistance. A breakout would be massive. Could shorts come to longs’ rescue in due course? The tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 (7570.25) Tuesday rose to yet … Continued
Here is a brief review of period-over-period change in short interest in the August 1-15 period in nine S&P 500 sectors. XLB (SPDR materials ETF) XLB ($59.13) mid-August once again successfully tested support at $57. As if anticipating this, shorts … Continued
Following futures positions of non-commercials are as of August 21, 2018. 10-year note: Currently net short 700.5k, up 2.3k. The 10-year T-yield (2.83 percent) lost five basis points this week. The neckline of a potentially bearish head-and-shoulders formation has been … Continued
Major US equity indices are at/past late-January highs. Investor sentiment, on the other hand, is nowhere near as giddy. Is this good or bad? The Russell 2000 small cap index (1722.54) just broke out of a two-month pennant. Of major … Continued
QQQ bulls faced channel resistance a month ago, but defended channel support of different duration. They are, however, facing headwinds of waning momentum. The bull-bear tug of war continues on QQQ (Invesco QQQ Trust). On July 25, bulls were rejected … Continued
Bulls put foot down on major US equity indices last week. They have the ball near term. Shorts with medium-term focus can sell weekly puts to raise the short price. The greenback acts strong. The US dollar index (95.98) hit … Continued
Following futures positions of non-commercials are as of August 14, 2018. 10-year note: Currently net short 698.2k, up 111.9k. In the 12 months to July, the US Treasury issued $544.1 billion in notes and bonds. A year ago, issuance totaled … Continued
Corporate bond issuance continues to surprise on the downside. While some technical factors could be responsible for this, the deceleration comes amidst strong GDP growth. In July, US corporations issued $61 billion in total, made up of $52.5 billion in … Continued
Small-caps have rallied nicely year-to-date. Supposedly, they benefit the most from last December’s tax cuts and are also considered insulated from negative effects of a trade war. They now sit at critical technical juncture. Over the last eight weeks, the … Continued