Why there is no V

The market has been getting excited by the prospect of a V-shaped recovery. It points to data such as the ISM Manufacturing PMI, which rose from 43.1 in May to 52.6 in June, indicating expansion. The employment index improved from 32.1 to 42.1, and the new orders index increased from 31.8 to 56.4..    ...

Can the bulls breach the island’s moat?

Preface: Explaining our market timing models We maintain several market timing models, each with differing time horizons. The "Ultimate Market Timing Model" is a long-term market timing model based on the research outlined in our post, Building the ultimate market timing model. This model tends to generate only a handful of signals each decade. The...

Fun with technical analysis on the 4th of July

On this 4th of July Independence Day weekend, let's try a change of pace and indulge in some technical analysis of a different sort. The behavioral finance basis for technical analysis is the wisdom of the crowds. Francis Galton observed a competition at a local fair in 1906 where about 800 people tried to guess...

A 2020 year

Mid-week market update: It is said that the adage "hindsight is 2020" may have been a garbled warning from a future time traveler. This year is certainly turning up like that. The S&P 500 fell -20% in Q1 2020, and recovered 20% in Q2. It's been that kind of year. Tactically, the index is backtesting...