Yesterday came news that U.S.-based funds attracted $36.5bn in stock inflows in the week ended December 24 (courtesy of Thomson Reuters Lipper Service). Some thoughts on this: 1. The inflows are simply massive. There is no other way to describe it. … Continued
U.S. stocks quickly shake off China- and Greece-induced worries Can bulls use the reversal as opportunity to mount a breakout on Russell 2000? Several technical indicators have room to move higher still before they get overbought Whoa! Some reversal that … Continued
Inability of offensives to take the lead has been a thorn in the side of rally since Oct 15th low Outperformance last week of XLY vs. XLP and HYG vs. LQD sign of trend change? Duel on between seasonally favorable … Continued
Small-caps continue to lag their larger brethren RUT sitting on three-month resistance, breakout could be crucial Breakout not probable as bulls have already used up plenty of energy past five weeks Enough ink has been spilled over the issue of … Continued
Economy was probably not reason why QE2/3 got launched, stock sell-off was One month after QE1/2 ended, stocks began to act sick, prompting Fed into action Year-end rally may or may not happen; impending sell-off to test Fed’s pain threshold … Continued
Even during recent sell-off, Investors Intelligence bears never went over 20 Overall sentiment too smug, but buy-the-dip complacency has paid off – so far Risk is, stretched sentiment readings mean there are too many on one side of trade After … Continued
200-day moving average perceived by many as demarcation line between bull and bear market VIX surges past 17-18 and nears two-year-plus 21-22 resistance, but yet to retreat (Re) action at/near previous breakdown points to decide who wins out Defensive sectors … Continued
Equity bulls and bears lock up horns in quest to dictate near-term direction Last week’s lows saved on major indices, amidst very bullish engulfing patterns VIX once again rejected at/near 17-18; one more opportunity for bulls to take out resistance … Continued
VIX action yesterday constructive for equity bulls Medium- to long-term, equities have much more to go on the downside Near-term picture beginning to change, as beaten-down junk bonds and small-caps attract bids The morning gap-down in U.S. equities yesterday was … Continued
NYSE margin debt rises slightly in August, hovers near all-time highs Since 2009, margin debt has closely tracked expansion/contraction in Fed’s balance sheet Margin debt to drop when institutions, badly looking for buyers to sell into, run out of patience … Continued