Following futures positions of non-commercials are as of February 14, 2017. 10-year note: On February 15, 10-year yields hit 2.52 percent before retreating. That high tagged a declining trend line from December 15 when yields hit 2.62 percent intraday. This … Continued
China’s Treasury holdings rose by $9.1 billion month-over-month in December. This comes in the wake of six consecutive months of contraction during which it sold $194.7 billion worth. This was the first monthly increase since last May. Coincidentally or not, … Continued
The usual middle-of-the-road approach. Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen’s Humphrey Hawkins testimony to the Senate yesterday, that is. (She appears before the House later today.) There were no hints as to if she was ready to vote for a rate … Continued
Peak optimism? We are increasingly beginning to hear commentators/observers use that phrase in media interviews, articles as well as on social media. Among other things, Charts 1 and 2 are probably to blame. In the latest week, Investors Intelligence bulls … Continued
Following futures positions of non-commercials are as of February 7, 2017. 10-year note: On January 26, 10-year yields began dropping after hitting 2.56 percent, lower than the 2.62 percent on December 15 – hence lower highs. In the meantime, they … Continued
The latest productivity report had observers buzzing more about unit labor costs than output per hour. In 4Q16, unit labor costs jumped at an annual rate of 1.68 percent, up from 0.18 percent in 3Q16. This comes in the wake … Continued
Financials are once again beginning to perk up, with XLF, the SPDR financial ETF, closing last Friday right underneath near-term resistance. The ETF has been sideways for nearly a month. This followed a massive breakout post-election last year. Resistance at … Continued
Following futures positions of non-commercials are as of January 31, 2017. 10-year note: During his presidential campaign, President Donald Trump openly criticized the Fed’s easy monetary policy. Indeed, since June 2006, there have only been two 25-basis-point increases in the … Continued
Regardless whether or not it is solely related to the outcome of the November 8 U.S. presidential election, several data points have seen an uptick since. Stocks rallied, with the S&P 500 large cap index up nearly six percent between … Continued
Following futures positions of non-commercials are as of January 24, 2017. 10-year note: Yields (cash) rose 14 basis points for the week to 2.48 percent, having risen as high as 2.56 percent intra-day Thursday. Earlier, they bottomed at 2.31 percent … Continued