Being bearish is too obvious

Mid-week market update: I am publishing this before the market close on Wednesday because I have an appointment just before the close so many of the charts won't have Wednesday's closing prices. The market structure continues to be bearish, and I continue to believe that the intermediate-term trend is down. Nevertheless, it's too obvious to...

How the market could break up to a blow-off top

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 Trend...

What market structure tells us about where we are in the cycle

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 Trend...

How to spot the stock market bottom

Is the U.S. economy headed into recession? The signs are all there.   Even though a recession isn’t part of the Fed’s official forecast, Fed Chair Jerome Powell conceded during the May post-FOMC press conference that the Fed’s staff economists were calling for a mild recession. Carl Quintanilla of CNBC also reported that the overwhelming...

My case for a correction

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 Trend...

Market correction signals

Mid-week market update: Subscribers received an alert on Monday that my trading model had turned bearish. Despite the positive reaction to the Microsoft earnings report, which is holding up the NASDAQ today, there are plenty of signs beneath the surface that the stock market is weakening.   The failure of the S&P 500 to hold...

Making sense of the Mona Lisa market

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 Trend...

Why I’m not overly bullish or bearish

As the S&P 500 stalls at overhead resistance while exhibiting negative divergences, here are some reasons why you shouldn’t be overly bullish or bearish on U.S. equities.       The Bear Case The bear case for stocks is based mainly on macro and fundamental conditions. A recession is on the horizon in H2 2023,...

The market leaders hiding in plain sight

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 Trend...

Does inflation matter to stocks anymore?

Mid-week market update: The S&P 500 roared out of the gate this morning on a slightly softer than expected CPI print. Robin Brooks observed that super-core CPI (core services  ex-housing and healthcare, light blue bars) have been decelerating.     Unfortunately for equity bulls, the gains faded over the course of the day.   Callie...

Why I am fading the breadth thrust

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 Trend...

A fire and ice challenge to risk assets

 In case you missed it, the 10-year Treasury yield fell and broke a technical support level even as the 3-month T-Bill yield rose. This left the 10-year to 3-month yield spread inverted further, which has historically been a strong recession signal.       The 10-year and 3-month Treasury yield spread has inverted before every...

A NFP preview

Mid-week market update:  I know that we mostly focus on the outlook for the stock market in these pages, but investors should cast their eyes on the bond market once in a while, as they might learn something. Bond prices staged an upside breakout, which is a signal of economic weakness.     As the...

Interpreting the Zweig Breadth Thrust buy signal

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 Trend...

What USD weakness may mean for asset returns

An unusual anomaly arose during the latest banking crisis when a long-standing historical relationship broke apart. When bank stocks skidded in response to the problems that first appeared at Silicon Valley Bank, the 2-year Treasury yield fell dramatically, indicating a rush for the safety of Treasury assets. What was unusual this time was the weakness...

How greedy should you be during this rally?

Mid-week market update: There is an adage on Wall Street, "Bulls, make money, bears make money, hogs just get slaughtered." I issued a tactical buy signal to subscribers on the weekend based on my usually reliable S&P 500 Intermediate-Term Breadth Momentum Oscillator (ITBM). ITBM flashed a buy signal as of the close on Friday when...

A Fed Put of a different kind

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 Trend...

Is the Fed’s glass half full, or half empty?

Mid-week market update: Investors and traders have been waiting for the moment of the FOMC announcement and subsequent press conference. How does the Fed respond to the twin challenges of a banking   John Authers highlighted analysis from Bespoke indicating the market was entering a period of extreme volatility in Fed Funds futures.   The...